Meta tags are very important for search engine optimization and a vital component of your marketing strategy. Yet, writing the perfect Meta tag can be challenging for many website managers. To help you create Meta tags for your website, we have developed this helpful guide.
What are Meta Tags?
Meta tags are HTML tags used in code to communicate to search engines and users information about particular pages on your website. Each page of your website should have unique Meta tags (no duplicates allowed!). The two Meta tags we are going to focus on today are Meta Page Titles and Meta Page Descriptions.
Most content management systems and SEO plug-ins contain a search engine optimization section where you can enter your original page titles and descriptions. If you are not sure where to find this section on your CMS, contact your developer for assistance.
How to Write an Awesome Page Title
Page titles are Meta tags that are used to define the title of a particular webpage. They appear in the browser tab at the top of your screen, search engine results pages, and attached to links shared on social media.
Here are 5 things to keep in mind when writing awesome page titles:
- Keep it under 60 characters
- Include your targeted keywords for that particular page
- Include your company name at the end of each page title (e.g. Our Web Services | Informatics Inc.)
- Include your location of it is important to your business (e.g. Our Web Services | Informatics Inc. | Cedar Rapids, IA)
- Use pipes to separate key phrases instead of commas (see above examples)
How to Write an Awesome Meta Description
Meta descriptions are Meta tags that appear below the page title in search results and are used to further describe the contents of a particular webpage.
Keep these 5 things in mind when creating your Meta descriptions:
- 1. Keep it under 300 characters
- Include your targeted keywords for that particular page
- Avoid double quotations which are not recognized by Google and will therefore be cut off
- Write compelling content that encourages users to click on your link
- Do not pull the Meta description directly from your page content
Don’t Worry about Meta Keywords
When looking at the SEO section of your content management system you will also see a third line for Meta keywords. While it will not harm your SEO to include this tag, it also is not beneficial. Search engines no longer look at Meta keywords when indexing websites because the tag was abused in the past. There is no real advantage to including the tag and the only real disadvantage is that competitors can see which keywords you are targeting.
If you need further assistance with creating your Meta tags, please contact Informatics.
