SEO Meta Description Optimization

One of the most common mistakes we’ve noticed during our SEO audits is Web pages with missing or poorly optimized meta descriptions. A page’s meta description does not directly impact the page’s search engine ranking (i.e., it is not a ranking signal), but it does affect the page’s click-through rate (CTR) in the search engine results pages (SERPs). When you use a compelling description that accurately describes the page’s content, users are much more likely to click your link and visit your site. As a result, SEO meta description optimization should play an important role in your SEO campaign. In this video, we provide a few simple tips to help you improve your descriptions:

Video Transcription

Hello and welcome to Gnome Tips! Today we will discuss SEO meta description optimization.

A page’s meta description is not used as a ranking factor by the search engines, but it is still very important for attracting online traffic because it shows up in the search engine results pages. In this example, we have highlighted the meta description for our SEO audit page. Now, let’s go to the page and see where the meta description actually comes from.

Once we’re there, we can right click on the screen and select “View Page Source” to view the page’s HTML. In the HTML, the meta description is sitting in the head section inside a meta description tag. I’ve highlighted it to make it stand out.

Now that we’ve covered the basics, let’s look at a few best practices for SEO meta description optimization.

First, make sure the description is less than 160 characters to avoid getting truncated in the search results. It pays to be clear and concise.

Second, use a unique meta description for each page. You want each description to be relevant and compelling to encourage users to click through to your page.

Finally, let’s look at an example of a compelling meta description for a fictional dog grooming company called, “Pampered Pets.”

This description incorporates the company’s offerings as well as the company’s name. And it even includes a call to action at the end. I know at least one person that loves it…

Thank you for watching this edition of Gnome Tips. To learn more about Search Engine Optimization, visit our website at www.webgnomes.org.