Meta tags have been one of the most basic elements of SEO. They have filled a big role in search engine history by influencing search engine rankings. However, Meta tags have been misused and even disregarded. Let’s run through a few things revolving Meta tags and how it can contribute to growing a successful SEO!
What are Meta tags?
In a nutshell, meta tags are unique keywords assigned to each particular page of your website and must be present on the page content. But meta tags are beyond just descriptions and keywords, they are your solution to get your website rise to the top.
What do Meta tags do?
Instead of telling users what your site is about, you’re telling the search engine. Some may argue that meta tags are not important because Google doesn’t use metadata in their algorithm. This is false! Yes, without a doubt Google is the most popular search engine, but it’s still a bad idea to ignore this valuable aspect. Here’s why we think so at Island Media Management:
- Google is uninvolved with meta keywords. No sites will be penalized for having it so why not? Other search engines appreciate meta keywords in their algorithms and although they won’t make up a larger portion of a site’s traffic, traffic is still traffic.
- Meta tags are simple to add and don’t take a lot of time.
- Google still uses meta descriptions to give searchers more insight about your website. Without a meta description, Google will randomly pick something from your site it feels is suited to what the user is looking for. While this can be helpful, we prefer to have a clear and well-written meta description that can really attract users that your site is the one they are looking for.
Our main piece of advice regarding meta tags is to stick to the foundation and at a minimum. You can have what you want but you’ve also got to think what your business needs. So when you’re using meta tags, don’t add tags you don’t need as they consume more code space. There are 3 meta tags you should be adding to your website:
- Title tags– We are aware that the title tag is not necessarily a “meta”, but it similarly functions like one. Title tags are texts that are shown in search engine listings. As it acts almost like a header, be sure to have a unique title tag as it contains information about your business. We can say that this is very important to SEO.
- Meta descriptions– The meta description tag is used for only one significant purpose: to describe your page to users. It’s where you’d want to put your company’s summary. It doesn’t contribute to your website’s ranking, however, they determine whether your ad is being clicked on. It’s kept within 160 characters so keep it short, attention grabbing, and informative.
- Keywords– Keywords are basically the words that will take your website to the top. Even if the user were to type something different yet relevant, they see the other keywords you have placed. This gives an idea of what other services you cover in your business.
Meta tags affect how the search engines are able to read them, in order to compare if these keywords and the descriptions are relevant with the visible content. Are your keywords present in your web page?
Are you keen to learn more about SEO, especially in meta tags but don’t know where to begin? You have us! Island Media Management is always up to date with the latest SEO trends. W. Do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions about our services!
