Meta tags are important and great for the functionality of your SEO. They also provide input to the search engines for elements about your site and page content, improving your rankings in searches and enhancing click-through rates. This blog from DotsDen describes adding meta tags that will enhance the visibility of search results and ensure a positive user experience.
1. Choose Key Meta Tags for SEO
Adding effective meta tags starts with the selection of those which have an effect on search engine crawlers and complement search intent. The significant meta tags you require include:
Title Tags: These are clickable page titles that show up in search results. They should be alluring and include the target keyword or any keyword that happens to give focus to the content. Choose a custom title that is descriptive enough to represent your content and indulge your clicks.
Meta Description: A brief summary of a page could go here. This is an accurate, keyword-rich description of the page intended to drive user traffic. One or two sentences at most. No duplicates allowed.
Meta Keywords: Though not in much use, even then meta keywords do provide some value. List high-priority keywords 'relevant' to content. Do not stuff keywords.
Meta Robots: Inform search engines of behavior with meta robot tags. Allow or disallow indexing with the tags and control the crawling traffic to your site.
2. Add Meta Tags to Your Website
You have a few ways to add meta tags:
- Edit Source Code: Access your website’s source code and add meta tags in the <head> section. For example, a meta description might look like this:
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<meta name="description" content="An accurate description with keywords for SEO."> - SEO Plugins: WordPress users can use an SEO plugin like Yoast SEO. These plugins simplify adding SEO titles, descriptions, and meta robots. Popular plugins provide easy access to SEO settings without editing code.
- Google Search Console: Submit your site to Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools for direct indexing. These tools also highlight underperforming tags that may need adjustments.
3. Test Across Devices
Make sure your tags work on mobile devices and desktops. Add a viewport tag to ensure accessibility across devices:
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<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
Wrapping Up
Adding meta tags enhances search engine indexing and helps search engines understand your content. Well-written tags can attract more visitors, improve click-through rates, and elevate your website’s presence online.
