Key Takeaways

• Meta Data is simply small snippets of code with a brief description of your page that is shown in search engine results pages.
• It helps search engines to better understand the content of your page.
• Metadata is an important part of search engine optimization efforts.

When it comes to the success of your SEO efforts, there are a few important themes to keep in mind – one of these is metadata or meta tags.

Metadata has many different faces, but they all play a crucial role in search engine optimization.

As we know, SEO is all about organically ranking high in search engine results pages (SERPs) and metadata is key to achieving this.

When used properly, metadata can have a lasting impact on your Google search results and conversion rates, which ultimately leaves potential clients with an overall positive experience.

In this blog post, we’ll explore the different types of metadata, cover how to find and use it, and explain some common mistakes that even experienced webmasters still make with metadata.

Also, stay tuned for more on metadata and SEO in upcoming posts!

What Is a Meta Description?

Before we delve deeper into how to make these little packets of data work for you, you first need to understand what it is.

Essentially, it is simply small snippets of code with a brief description of your page that is shown in search engine results pages or SERPs.

Think of it as the digital description that tells search engines how to best present your page in online searches.

Now, the trick is to accurately describe both your website and its content to boost its visibility in search engine rankings and click-through rates, or CTRs for short.

This is where an experienced SEO agency comes to the rescue.

Why Are Meta Descriptions Important for SEO?

Simple – it helps search engines to better understand the content of your page.

This includes the title, meta description and keywords.

A meta description should be short and to the point, with keywords that are relevant to your page’s topic.

Make sure you update your meta descriptions regularly so that you’re providing accurate information to Google and other search engines.

How Meta Tags Can Be Found

Meta tags are embedded in the HTML, so it is not clearly visible to your average web user.

Instead, search crawlers can extract this data to analyse it and determine how and where your website will appear in search results.

This information relates to the content of your site and will include the titles, descriptions, and keywords.

Now, let’s take a look at the different types of metadata or metatags.

These include a page or title tags, descriptions, keywords, and headings.

1. Title-Tags

Your page title is the most important part of your meta-tag strategy.

It is the first thing that a search engine considers to place your website, so the right title, with the right keywords, can drive people to your website (or push them away if you fail in your efforts).

As you can see, a basic understanding of keyword research is crucial to create catchy yet accurate titles.

Ultimately, you want to target specific search terms.

Title tags are then further divided into headings and subheadings or titles, ranking from H1 to H6. Let’s take a look.

2. Heading Tags (H1-H6)

Each heading has a specific function and should be used appropriately to improve your SEO efforts.

For example, the H1 tag is primarily used for the page’s title, while the H2 tag is used for the main section of the page, and so on.

Your H1 title will obviously be the most important, while H6 is the least.

Therefore, your H1 heading is what Google’s algorithm looks at, your H1 should contain your most important keywords.

Your H1 header will be the title of your post or something you want to draw attention to on the page.

It is not the same as your title tag – your title tag is what people see in their browsers – so keep that in mind as well.

The optimum length for headings tags is also worth a mention here – they should ideally be between 75 to 100 characters long.

Anything shorter, and the search engine will ignore it, and anything longer won’t be allowed.

Just remember, Google no longer rewards spamming, so don’t try to cram keywords in your titles.

So, make sure to tag your content appropriately, and watch your website’s ranking climb!

3. Heading Tags (H1-H6)

Meta description tags play a big role in your rankings as well, with short, paragraph-length descriptions that appear below the SERP.

They should be catchy and relevant to your content, keyword rich, and free from spelling or grammar errors.

The goal of meta description is to capture a user’s attention and get them to click on your link.

When you write your meta description, make sure to use keywords that you’re targeting for SEO purposes!

They serve the same purpose as titles, but they can be longer – up to 200 characters.

4. Meta Keyword Tags

We are only listing meta keywords to show you what NOT to do.

This was common practice about a decade ago.

Companies stuffed their website content with certain keywords in the hopes to rank higher in search engines, but this is highly frowned upon today.

In fact, you will now get penalized if you try.

5. Robot Meta Tags

Our last two examples of meta tags are a little bit more technical, but the list would not be complete without them.

Next up, meta robots are simply pieces of code that give instructions to bot web crawlers on how to crawl or index any content on a specific page.

There are also two types of robot meta tags – those that form part of the HTML page, and those sent by the web servers as HTTP headings.

6. Viewport Meta Tag

The viewport refers to the area of visibility of your page.

As an example, the visible area is naturally smaller on a mobile device than on a computer screen.

You (or hopefully an SEO expert, in this case), will use the viewport tags to enhance the presentation of your web page.

It is used to create responsive pages that can adjust themselves according to the viewport parameters.

Make Your Website Pop With Meta Tags

Nowadays, everyone is aware that content is king.

However, why is it so crucial?

And why should you work with an SEO company to improve your content?

To increase your website’s SEO ranks on Google and Bing, you must be able to optimize the content of your website.

To achieve this, you need to consider the best, most precise keywords and search-friendly language.

A skilled SEO team can do:

• In-depth keyword research
• Modify material for the right keyword placement and density
• Spot chances for more search engine-friendly wording, keyword synonyms, latent semantic indexing (LSI), etc.

Additionally, poor keyword techniques and content optimization are probably harming your SEO results.

Another reason why you urgently need an SEO company in Dublin is that spammy “black hat” tactics can be actively harming your company.