Manage sitemaps and indexing with Muse
Managing sitemaps with Muse means asking Meta's personal AI agent which of your products, collections, pages and posts StoreSEO excludes from the sitemap or marks noindex, and then changing those flags one resource at a time after you confirm.
Last updated: October 2026
Set up Muse for StoreSEO
Skip this if Muse is already connected. The full guide, with the alternatives, is on the Muse page.
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Send this message to Muse
Paste it into a new chat with Muse in the app, on muse.ai or in WhatsApp. Muse is rolling out in the US first, so you need access to it before this works.
new message to MuseAdd a custom connector for my Shopify SEO app StoreSEO: https://mcp.storeseo.com/mcp - It is an MCP server over HTTP and it signs in with OAuth. Send me the sign-in link and I will approve it. - Once it is connected, show me my store's SEO score breakdown.
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Approve the sign-in for your store
Open the sign-in link Muse sends back, pick your Shopify store in the browser and approve access. Meta does not review custom connectors, so only approve this one if you started it.
server URLhttps://mcp.storeseo.com/mcp
Step-by-step guide in the docs: How to connect StoreSEO MCP to Muse
How does this work in Muse?
Everything starts from a list, which suits a thread. You ask Muse which products are hidden from search, and it calls storeseo_start and storeseo_list_resource_sitemaps for one resource type at a time. Each row carries three flags: excluded from the sitemap, noindex and nofollow. The tool can filter by flag, so a question like which of my pages are noindex returns exactly those. Muse can read the HTML sitemap with storeseo_get_html_sitemap_settings, which returns whether it is enabled and its full configuration, and nothing in that read changes your store.
Changing a flag is storeseo_update_resource_sitemap, which sets any of the three flags on one resource and writes the matching Shopify metafields. The danger is noindex: it removes a page from search results, so Muse should name the resource and wait for your yes, and you should check it picked the right one when two products have similar names. After a change, ask Muse to list the flags again in the same reply, so the thread ends with the stored state instead of the state it expected. A test product you hide today is a page you can lose by a mistyped name.
The HTML sitemap is a two-person job. storeseo_update_html_sitemap generates it and later marks setup complete, but the step between, adding the sitemap link to a navigation menu, is yours in Shopify admin, and Muse hands you the menu addresses from storeseo_list_sitemap_menus. Settings replace the whole configuration, so Muse reads them before it edits. Because a phone is a poor place to edit a menu, ask Muse to send those links and finish the menu later at a desk, then come back to the thread to mark the setup done.
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You: Use StoreSEO to hide my Gift Card Test product from search.
- storeseo_start read-only
- storeseo_list_resource_sitemaps read-only
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Muse: I found one product called Gift Card Test and it is currently in the sitemap and indexable. Noindex removes it from search results. Should I exclude it from the sitemap and set noindex?
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You: Yes, both.
- storeseo_update_resource_sitemap needs approval
- storeseo_list_resource_sitemaps read-only
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Muse: Illustrative result: the product now shows excluded from the sitemap and noindex.
What to ask Muse
Tap a prompt to copy it, then paste it into Muse.
What StoreSEO does: sitemaps and indexing
StoreSEO controls two things here: per-resource sitemap flags (left out of the XML sitemap, noindex, nofollow) and an HTML sitemap page. The agent lists flags, changes them one resource at a time and walks you through the HTML sitemap setup.
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List the flags
The agent lists products, collections, pages or articles with their sitemap, noindex and nofollow flags, filtered as you ask.
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Change one resource
After your yes it sets the flags on one resource, which writes the matching Shopify metafields.
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Re-read before reporting
Flags can also change in the StoreSEO app, so the agent re-lists before telling you the current state.
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Create the HTML sitemap
It reads the HTML sitemap settings, then generates and enables the page.
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Add it to a menu
It lists your navigation menus with their edit links; you add the sitemap link to a menu in Shopify admin, then the agent marks setup complete.
Sitemaps and indexing reference
| Flags per resource | Excluded from sitemap, noindex, nofollow |
|---|---|
| Resource types | Products, collections, pages and articles |
| Where flags live | Shopify metafields on the resource |
| HTML sitemap steps | Generate and enable, add the link to a menu yourself, mark complete |
| HTML sitemap settings | Replaced wholesale on update; read first |
| Menus | Listed with edit links; the menu you choose is not stored |
| Plan | Every active plan |
Rules Muse follows
- A noindex flag removes a page from search results, so the agent names the resource and waits for your yes.
- The agent re-lists flags in the same turn before telling you their current state.
- Adding the sitemap link to a menu is a step you do in Shopify admin; no tool does it.
- HTML sitemap settings are read before every update, because an update replaces them.
In Muse
A short thread invites a short instruction, and short instructions are how the wrong product gets hidden. Muse is not told your catalog, so give the exact title or ask it to list matches before it flags one. There is no list of connected tools to switch the sitemap writes off in Muse, so wording is your only control inside the client, and a noindex mistake is quiet: nothing breaks until the page drops from search. Re-list flags after every change.
What runs without asking. Reads such as SEO scores, store listings, settings and Google reports run straight away. Generating a preview spends AI credit but writes nothing, and StoreSEO tells the agent to say what a generation will cost before it runs one. Applying content, optimizing images, changing settings, publishing llms.txt or agents.md, writing a product description and deleting anything wait for your yes in the conversation. That yes is an instruction the agent follows, not a lock on the server, so your client's own tool-approval setting is the hard stop.
Questions
Can Muse add my HTML sitemap to the store menu?
No. Muse can generate the sitemap and send you the menu edit links, but adding the link to a navigation menu is done in Shopify admin. Muse can then mark setup complete.
What does noindex do to a product Muse changes?
It asks search engines to drop the page from results. Muse should name the resource and wait for your yes before it sets the flag, and it can clear the flag again by calling the same tool.
What is the difference between excluding a page from the sitemap and noindex?
Excluding a resource leaves it out of your XML sitemap, so crawlers are not pointed at it. Noindex tells search engines not to show the page in results even if they find it. StoreSEO sets each flag separately per resource.
Can the agent add the HTML sitemap to my menu?
No. The agent generates the HTML sitemap and lists your menus with their edit links, and you add the sitemap link to a menu in Shopify admin. Then the agent can mark setup complete.
Do sitemap tools need a paid plan?
No. The sitemap tools work on every active StoreSEO plan.
Why does the agent check the flags again before answering?
Sitemap flags can also be changed in the StoreSEO app outside the conversation, so an earlier listing may be stale. Re-reading in the same turn keeps the answer accurate.
Keep going
Sitemaps and indexing with other agents
More Muse guides