These days, the meta description tag doesn’t get a lot of SEO love. But given its important role in influencing click-throughs from search results, we thought it was worth a post all on its own.
What Is a Meta Description Tag?
Meta tags in general are the bits of code that are placed within the <Head> </Head> section of a web page’s HTML. As the name implies, these coded bits aren’t visible to users, but are used to better describe the content of the page to the browsers and search engines.
The meta description tag was designed to provide a brief characterization of the content on the page. This description is often used as the summary (or “snippet”) for the page when it’s listed on the SERP (search engine results page). Typically, a meta description should consist of two or three well-written and concise sentences that explain exactly what your page is all about. Be sure to include the primary keywords for the page in your meta description or the search engines will look elsewhere on the page (or even off the page) for the snippet.
The meta description tag is usually placed after the title . The proper syntax for the meta description tag is:
<META NAME=”description” CONTENT=”A description of your website’s content.”>
Why Use Meta Description Tags?
Even though they don’t figure into ranking, it’s still a good practice to add unique meta descriptions to all your web pages. Some search engines rely on them to describe the content of your page to users.
Google will typically look through your online content and try to find a relevant portion (or “ransom note”) to display as a snippet. However, if Google determines that your meta description contains terms that are relevant to the search query, it will use that as the snippet. This gives you a modicum of control over how your listing will appear to search engine users and therefore to influence the likelihood of them clicking on your listing.
As any search marketer knows, getting your page to show up in the search engine listings is just half the battle. A good meta description tag won’t help with ranking, but it will certainly encourage users to click over to your website.
What Makes a Good Meta Description Tag?
The best meta description tags are the ones that:
- Offer a good summary of the page’s content in just two or three sentences.
- Aren’t stuffed with keywords, but focus on one or two as they occur naturally in the text.
- Are attractive and inviting to users, encouraging them to click through.
- Use no more than 156 characters to avoid being truncated when displayed as a snippet.
- Are specific and unique for each page of your website.
