After we have learned how to fill in the Title tag correctly, it’s time to learn how to fill in the Description meta tag.
Meta Tags – the most important elements of the site pages, which affects the ranking in search results, getting into the top search engines, clickability and as a result of the volume of traffic to the site.
In this article we will analyze in detail what is the meta tag Description, how to fill it correctly, let’s see good and bad examples of description.
What is Description meta tag and what is it responsible for
Description – this is a short description of the page of the site, telling what it is about. This meta tag is in the <head> </head> block in the code of the page. Search engines use Description to display in snippets in search results.
We see it every time we search for something in search engines.
Accurately filled out description is more clickable (has a high CTR) and a positive effect on behavioral factors in search results.
Description can be set manually, do not fill or generate using a plugin. In the case where the description is not set, the search engine will automatically generate it, guided by the content of the query.
Of course, it is better for each page to manually create Description. The exception – large online stores, which have tens of thousands of pages. In this case, it is worth making templates based on which plugins will automatically generate descriptions for pages. Also, special programs and services can be used for this purpose.
How to correctly fill in the meta tag Description: step by step instructions
The fact that you need to take into account when compiling Description to have a positive impact on positions in search engines and increase website traffic, we tell below.
For illustration let’s consider an example when we need to write Description for the category “Notebooks” on the site of our online store.
Step 1. at the beginning of Description put the keyword on which the page is promoted. For our page Description will start with [Laptops in New York].
Step 2. Then comes the selling addendum, focused on commercial queries: [Laptops in New York – buy a laptop from $500].
People who want to buy a laptop in the query usually specify [buy, order, cost, price, price] – and we work through these requests and include them in the Description so that they are readable.
Step 3: Benefits. Next we can say about delivery or warranty. Unfortunately we can not tell you about everything, because Description is limited to 140 characters: [Laptops in New York – buy a laptop from $500. Shipping. Warranty].
Step 4. call to action. Two options are possible here:
A call to visit the site: [Laptops in New York – buy a laptop priced from $500. Delivery. Warranty. Visit the site!]
Provide phone number/address/metro station: [Laptops in New York – buy a laptop at a price of from $500 rubles. Delivery. Warranty. Call 8(495) 999-999-9!]
Phone is more suitable for the service industry, and the call to visit the site for catalogs and online stores.
Step 5. unique. The problem is that anyone can write such a Description, so one of the requirements of the search engine is uniqueness.
How to be unique? Add your keyword, company name or website address: [Laptops in New York – buy a laptop from $500. Delivery. Warranty. Check out over 200 models!] or [Laptops in New York – buy a laptop priced from $500 at xxxxxxx.com. Shipping. Warranty. Check out the site for over 200 models!]
Step 6. Emoji. To make your Description more attractive and stand out from your competitors you can add emoji to it. But these emoji should be appropriate to the topic and not replace the keywords. You can replace the word [phone] and add product icons.
Final Description:
[💻 Laptops in NYC 💻 – buy laptop from $500. Shipping. Warranty. Call ☎ 8 (495) 999-999-9 or go online].
How to add Description to your site
For each page of the site, the meta tag Description, as well as title is written separately. Therefore, to add Description to your site to add it to each page. For self-written sites this procedure will have to do in manually, but for sites under the CMS, there are many different plug-ins.
Self-written sites and HTML – the beginning of the code between the tags <head></head>, insert the tag <Description> and add there, created the description.
WordPress – install, any of the plugins:
– Yoast Seo – one of the best plugins to work on SEO-optimization. In addition to editing metadata, the plugin has optimization tips for each individual page.
– All-in-One SEO Pack – More suitable for beginners and has similar functionality to Yoast.
– Rank Math – another SEO product, which combines the functions of many SEO tools.
Joomla
– Sh404sef – an awesome in every way component for Joomla, and at the same time easy to manage! His arsenal is a wide enough range of options that can improve SEO.
– Artio JoomSEF – somewhat like sh404SEF, but less powerful than the previous one, but it is available for free.
Open Cart
– CompleteSEO – clear and comfortable enough editor for the meta description.
– SEO PRO – there are paid and free versions. In the paid version, of course, has more functionality.
Bitrix. Bitrix sites have built-in tools for SEO-optimization, with which you can set the meta tags and customize templates. Also, self-written plugins are often created.
Website builders. If you are focused only on search traffic, creating a website on the constructor is not the best option. Nevertheless, most designers today include a SEO-module, which allows you to prescribe meta-tags.
Conclusion
So, we have disassembled how to properly compose and fill in the meta tags Description. The main thing is not to forget that not only Description affects the ranking of the site. There are other factors, and for successful promotion requires an integrated approach.