Meta tags can be used to increase the visibility of a website on search engines, so they're undeniably important for SEO. On the other hand, they can negatively affect your website's SEO ranking if written improperly. Let's discover what meta tags are, why they matter for SEO, and how to use them correctly to reap the benefits. Meta-tags are snippets of HTML code capable of being crawled by search engine robots such as Google. They are influential in determining the visibility of a web page on the SERPs. Meta tags are added to the <head> section of pages and can only be seen in the HTML code: Meta tags are one of the main channels that a website has to communicate with search engine robots — those responsible for crawling the content of the pages to be indexed. Meta tags are used to indicate to search engines whether a page should be indexed or not, and adds additional information about its content. This turns meta tags into core aspects of an SEO strategy for two main reasons. With a good writing and configuration of meta tags, we can help robots to have a better understanding of the content of each page of a website, so that we are more likely to rank higher in the SERPs. Additionally, meta tags can offer additional and quality information to the users in order to achieve more clicks and a higher CTR in the searches, as well as to offer them a better experience within the website.What are meta tags?
Why do meta tags matter to SEO?
Examples of Meta Tags
Meta tags are an essential part of a successful SEO strategy, that's why it is important to write them in a unique way, keeping Google in mind in order to rank higher, but also thinking about the user. Let's see some examples of how you should and shouldn't write meta tags.
Examples of Original Meta Title and Meta-description Tags
With meta title and meta-description tags we indicate both robots and users the main topic of the page and what it is about on the SERPs.
They should be written in a unique and originalway so that they describe the content and attract the attention of visitors. This way we can manage to appear even above large websites or directories.
On the other hand, if we do not optimize the title tags with the main keywords and topics of the page, nor in an attractive way, it will be more difficult to appear in the first positions of the SERPs.
And not only that: avoiding keyword stuffingis also recommended, which means that we shouldn't repeat a word too much because otherwise it looks unnatural.
Examples of Meta-tags that Can Damage Our Whole Digital Strategy
A bad setup of a meta tag, either by mistake or lack of knowledge, can considerably damage the entire visibility of the website.
In this case, we are talking about the robots meta-tagwith content="noindex"through which we indicate to search engines that we do not want a page to be indexed — therefore visible — in the SERPs. With this example of robots meta tags, it's difficult to get organic clicks on a web page from Google since it will not be listed.
<meta name="robots" content="noindex, nofollow"/>
On the other hand, with content="index"we do tell the robots that we want to be indexed to appear in the SERPS results:
<meta name="robots" content="follow, index, max-snippet:-1, max-video-preview:-1, max-image-preview:large"/>
For this reason, it is very important to know how to avoid these examples of meta tags that can considerably decrease the visibility of the website on search engines.
How to Write Meta Tags
If you are wondering how to write meta tags to have a better performance it is important that you always write content thinking about your users. Then, if you have designed a well implemented SEO strategy, it will help you rank your pages automatically.
That's why, when you write meta tags you should remember to include the page's theme or its topic. If it is possible with your main keyword or synonyms, specially in the case of title and meta-descriptions tags.
When writing them it is important to follow the following tips to follow Google's guidelines to try to rank better.
Title Tags
By using the title tag, we indicate the title of the page content to both Google and the users on the search engines. This tag should not be confused with the heading 1, the main title of the text. The title meta tag is only visible to users on the search results, but not within the page.
Best practices to write title tags:
- Summarize the main topic of the page with the main keyword or terms.
- Write unique, original and attractive titles to attract the attention of users and increase the CTR of the page in the SERPs.
- Be accurate and descriptive based on the content of the page.
- Do not exceed or repeat keywords.
- Write not more than 60 characters approximately (maximum of 580 pixels).
How to Write Title Tags
In Wordpress or similar CMS tools, you can install SEO plugins such as All in One SEO, Rank Mathor Yoast SEO that will help you to edit and preview your title tags.
Or you can also paste the following code into the <head> of your webpage:
<title>What's a Website Title (Title Tag)& Why Does It Matter for SEO?</title>
Meta-description Tags
Meta-description tags offer the option to add a brief description of the page, which will be visible on the search results.
Although Google does not always display the content that the creator has proposed, sometimes it can be generated automaticallythrough the content of the page if they value that those generated by the user are not of enough "quality" or are not related to the user's query.
Best practices to write meta-description tags:
- Write the meta-descriptions in a personalized way summarizing the content of the page.
- Include the keyword at the beginning of the sentence in a natural way and without repeating it abundantly.
- Make them attractive and original.
- Keep it between 140 and 160 characters approximately (maximum 920 pixels).
How to Write Meta-description Tags
You can also use SEO pluginsthat will help you to edit and preview this section:
Or you can also paste the following code into the <head> of your page:
<meta name="description" content="A meta description is basically what helps the searcher decide whether or not to click the link to an article or webpage. A meta description helps convince or persuade readers to choose your site. "/>
Meta-robots
The robots meta-tagis one of the key meta-tags in an SEO strategy. This tag specifically tells a search engine whether a page should be indexed or followed, or not.
- In general, the default values areindex, followand it is not necessary to specify them in most cases. With this we indicate to the robots that we want the page to be indexed on the SERPs and that it can be followed.
- On the contrary, if we indicate the values noindex, nofollow, we are telling Google that we do not want those links to be followed nor to appear on the search engines.
Best Practices to Write Meta Robots Tags
- Don't confuse noindex tags with robots.txt. Through robots.txt fileswe indicate to a search engine if we want to crawl some pages or not, while through robots tag we inform if a website should be indexed or not. That's why it is important not to block noindex pages on robots.txt files, as robots won't be able to read them
How to Write Meta Robots Tags
You can edit the robots tag with Rank Mathor Yoast SEO:
Or you can also paste the following code into the <head> of your page in case you want your page to be indexed and followed:
<meta name="robots" content="follow, index, max-snippet:-1, max-video-preview:-1, max-image-preview:large"/>
Meta Viewport Tag
The meta viewport tag is used to control the way we tell the search engines how to render and display a page on different devices (mobile, tablet and desktop).
Best practices to Write Meta Robots Tags
- Use a meta viewport tagon your whole website to adapt the content for the mobile version.
How to edit viewport tag?
If you do know what you are really doing, you can edit your viewport tag on the <head> of your document. If not, use the option recommended by default:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">
<head> …
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1"> …
</head> …
….
Full list of Meta Tags
But there are still many more meta-tags. We offer you a complete list of key meta-tags for your SEO strategy:
- Title Tags, to name your page on search engines
- Meta Description Tags, to describe your page on search engines
- Robots Meta Tags, to index or not index a page
- Nofollow, sponsored and user-generated content meta tags, for outbound links.
- Twitter cards meta tagsad Open Graph meta tags, for your content shared on social media
- Viewport Meta Tag, to indicate how to render a page on a mobile.
- Language meta-tags, to indicate the content language of the page
- Notranslate meta tag, to tell Google to not provide an automatic generated translation.
- nositelinkssearchbox meta-tag,to not show the sitelinks search box.
- meta charset tag, to define the character encoding of the web site.
- meta refresh tag,to send the user to a new URL after sometime, usually from a redirection. Although it is recommended to not use this tag, and do a 301 redirect.
Other meta tags, not essentials for SEO, but recommended to take into account:
- Author meta-tag, to name the author of the page
- Copyright meta- tag,owner of the rights to the source code of an HTML page.
- Meta name rating tag, to specify adult content
- Date meta-tags, to indicate the date of the content
As we can see, there are different meta tagsthat can be used to help us communicate in a better way with both the user and search engines so that everyone understands better the information that is provided. But it is important to know each one of them and optimize in an attractive and optimal way.
Originally published Jul 15, 2021 1:00:00 PM, updated September 08 2021
Topics:
Technical SEO
FAQs
What meta tags are important for SEO? ›
The two most important meta tags:
Title tags: which specifies the title of a webpage. This is the page title that Google shows in the search results. Meta descriptions: which quite simply describe your page's content. Search engines often use it for the snippet in search results.
- Create unique descriptions for each page on your site.
- Include relevant information about the content in the description.
- Programmatically generate descriptions.
- Use quality descriptions.
Meta tags are pieces of information you use to tell the search engines and those viewing your site more about your page and the information it contains. Meta tags include: Title tags: the title of your page, which should be unique for every page you publish. Meta description: a description of the content on the page.
How do you write a meta tag? ›- Do stick to character counts— Title tag should be around 60 – 72 characters in length or about 5 – 10 words. Meta description should be no longer than 135 – 160 characters.
- Don't exceed counts—The search engines will simply cut off excess text, potentially causing your links and descriptions to be less readable.
- Gather research in Topic Research and the Keyword Magic Tool. ...
- Analyze keywords by Keyword Difficulty. ...
- Generate an SEO Content Template and outline your content. ...
- Grade yourself as you write with the SEO Writing Assistant.
There are four major types of meta tags worth knowing about and we'll talk about them all here. Some are not as useful as they once were. Others are worth using regularly, and will very likely increase your traffic by letting Google know who you are and what you provide.
What is meta tag explain its all types with example? ›In HTML, meta tags or meta elements are tags placed in the head section of your code that help define the contents of a web page. For example, a description meta tag is used by Internet search engines to display a description of your page in their search results.
Do meta tags affect SEO? ›Meta tags are important for SEO because they make sure search engines know what your content is about. Based on these tags, search engines will be able to show the website in the appropriate results. This way, people can find you easily.
What are the 12 things to know about SEO? ›- Make the website about one thing. ...
- Mention keywords where they matter most. ...
- Link to internal pages on your site. ...
- Use a permalink structure that includes keywords. ...
- Remove anything that slows down your website. ...
- Use keywords in your images. ...
- Link to other websites with relevant content.
The Three Pillars Of SEO: Authority, Relevance, And Experience.
What is SEO title example? ›
To optimize your title tag for multiple keywords, add some modifiers to your primary keyword to create a few long-tail variations, like this local SEO example: Primary keyword: “clarinet lessons” First long-tail keyword: “cheap clarinet lessons” Second long-tail keyword: “clarinet lessons in dallas texas”
How do you write a meta description for 2022? ›- Accurately summarize the page content. ...
- Use unique descriptions for each page. ...
- Include your primary keyword and related keywords naturally.
- Understand the KPI of your writing. ...
- Create a structure based on a strategy. ...
- Find SEO keywords by using keyword research tools. ...
- Make sure your headers are in order. ...
- Write using the tone suited to your industry. ...
- Include relevant internal and external links.
- Choose a SEO friendly filename.
- Define a good title and description.
- Use headings and include relevant outgoing links.
- Make sure they don't cause duplicate content issues.
- Don't save PDF files as images.
- Optimize for mobile and file size.
Companies can calculate SEO's return on investment by looking at search engine rankings, organic website traffic, and goal completions, and then using the ROI SEO formula: (Gain from Investment – Cost of Investment) / Cost of Investment.
What are the 4 main components of an SEO? ›Knowing and understanding each of the 4 main components of SEO is crucial to improving a brand's search results. Each component builds on and complements the others. The stronger the connections between each of the 4 SEO components—technical SEO, on-page SEO, off-page SEO, and content-—the better the results.
What is meta name title? ›A meta title (also called title tag) is an element in the head section of an HTML document that defines the title of each page of a website. It is retrieved by web browsers and also used by search engines such as Google to display a webpage in search results (SERPs).
How do I add meta tags to my website? ›- Click the Advanced SEO tab. Click Additional Tags. Click + Add New Tag.
- Add your meta tag code in the HTML Code field. Click Apply.
- Important: It's not possible to delete the default meta tags that Wix adds to your site. You can only delete additional meta tags.
One of the more popular uses of meta today is for the meaning best described by the formula “meta-X equals X about X.” So, if we take the word “data” for our X, and add the prefix meta- to it, we get metadata, or “data about data.” A meta-text is a text about texts, metacognition is thinking about thinking, and a meta- ...
Where do I put SEO keywords? ›- Site domain.
- Site title.
- URL page slugs.
- SEO title and page title.
- SEO site, page, and item descriptions.
- Headings (eg, heading 1, heading 2, heading 3)
- Body text.
- Categories.
Do meta keywords Matter 2022? ›
Suffice to say; you should not be spending any time adding meta keywords to your website in 2022. Google does not use them to determine ranking signals, and they provide no additional value to users – rendering them obsolete in SEO.
How do you use H1 H2 H3 for SEO? ›To break it down, remember: H1 = Main keywords and subject matter, what the overall post is about. H2 = Sections to break up content, using similar keywords to the H1 tag. H3 = Subcategories to further break up the content, making it easily scannable.
How many keywords should I use for SEO? ›It's easier for pages to rank if they focus on one topic, so you should focus on two or three primary keywords per page that are reworded variations. Targeting four or more keywords is difficult because there is limited space in the title and meta description tags to target them.
Does H1 H2 H3 matter SEO? ›The structure of H1, H2, H3 tags
For an article or webpage, remember that the H1 title is the most important section. H2 and H3 are used to organize sub-sections, while H4, H5 and H6 are intended to provide additional information, with more details.
To get to the top of Google search results in a competitive niche you'll need: To follow Google Webmaster SEO Quality Guidelines. A website reputation for publishing original, useful and relevant content. A satisfying user-friendly page experience for visitors from search.
Is HTML better for SEO? ›HTML is the basis of the vast majority of web pages and is one of the most essential parts of technical SEO. With the help of HTML elements, SEOs can relay information on web pages both to people and search engine bots.
Are H1 and H2 important to SEO? ›H1 and h2 tags affect SEO and provide a better user experience. The more organized and easier to understand your content is, the more likely search engine crawlers will comprehend your content and rank it accordingly. One h1 tag is okay, but so is two, if your page needs more than one page title.
What 4 pillars are important in SEO? ›- Technical SEO: Makes Your Discoverable. Technical SEO makes it easier for search engine bots to discover, crawl, and index your pages. ...
- On-Page SEO: Makes Your Pages Understandable. ...
- Content: Shows the Value You Provide. ...
- Off-Page SEO: Proves Your Authority.
- Quality content – the most important on-page SEO factor. The content you post is the most important part of SEO. ...
- Title tag. ...
- Meta description. ...
- Proper formatting – very important on-page SEO factor. ...
- Image use for on-page SEO. ...
- Well-composed URL.
H1 – Main Title. H2 – Subsection. H3 – Sub-Subsection. H4 – Sub-Sub-Subsection.
What are the 3 core must haves of basic SEO? ›
Focusing on these three pillars of SEO – authority, relevance, and experience – will increase the opportunities for your content and make link-earning easier. You now have everything you need to know for SEO success, so get to work!
What is SEO checklist? ›On-page SEO checklist. On-page SEO is the process of optimizing the actual content on your page. It includes optimizations made to visible content and content in the source code. Let's look at how to do it.
What are the 200 factors in SEO? ›- Domain Factors.
- Page-Level Factors.
- Site-Level Factors.
- Backlink Factors.
- User Interaction.
- Special Google Algorithm Rules.
- Brand Signals.
- On-Site Webspam Factors.
The 'Golden Rule” of SEO is: Understand your customers' needs and create an SEO experience that satisfies those needs - from the search result listing, to the first impression the visitor gets when landing on the page, to the ability for the visitor to quickly and easily find the content she is looking for.
Do fonts Matter in SEO? ›Does font size impact SEO? Yes, it does impact your SEO. In fact, a simple tweak to your theme's settings page or your stylesheet has the potential to improve your website SEO, conversion and user experience in a way you didn't imagine. Improving your font size is normally easy.
Which SEO score is most important? ›- New referring domains. Backlinks are one of the most important Google ranking factors. ...
- Domain authority / domain rating. ...
- On-page optimization scores. ...
- Text readability SEO metrics. ...
- Impressions. ...
- Click-through rate (CTR) ...
- Keyword rankings. ...
- Organic visibility (organic market share)