Let me just put this out there before we go any further: You will hear from plenty of sources that meta descriptions don’t matter anymore, that they are part of an outdated system, and that Google doesn’t take them into consideration when ranking websites. I need you to understand differently.
Yes, meta descriptions have been abused by many a webmaster and, yes, Google has changed the SEO game to the point where certain things have become obsolete. In short, they matter, and because they do, it’s important to know how to write a good one.
Your meta description is often your last line of defense when Google and other search engines display your content on a user’s search engine results page (SERP). They may not factor into rankings, but they play a huge role in content discovery. As anyone who runs a successful copywriting company will tell you, they also play a key role in the creation of effective web copy. Here are a few tips for enhancing the quality of yours.
Communicate a Direct Call to Action
The point of a meta description is to get people click through to your content. The best way to spur that process along is to simply tell the user to do it. That call to action should be tagged to a promise or guarantee – something that tells the user that there is something of value waiting behind this link. Pointed action verbs, like “learn,” “discover,” and “find out,” get more clicks than simply describing the content and hoping for the best.
Bad Meta Description Phrase: “Tips on how to up the yields on your tomato plants.”
Good meta description phrase: “Discover how you can double the yield from your tomato plants this summer.”
Promise a Specific Benefit or Solution
Problem-solving is a great marketing tool, so if your content addresses a specific pain point, mention it in the meta description. Conversely, you can also make the key benefit of the product clear. Choose the one thing that would make your ideal avatar click through to the content. Here are two examples:
“Discover how to eliminate engine knocks for good with this revolutionary fuel additive…”
“Tired of dealing with knock and ping? This miracle fuel additive could be your solution…”
Aim for 150 Characters
A few under or over is fine. The maximum is 155. The point is that you want to keep it close. Why? Because 155 characters is actually a lot of space to sell your content.
This entire sentence represents 147 characters and, as you can see, you have plenty of opportunity here to provide information about your content.
Be Honest About the Content
Nobody likes clickbait, and it will not help any of your analytics, especially your bounce rate, if you aren’t delivering in the content what you’re promising in your meta descriptions. The idea here is to engage, not enrage, so don’t make lofty claims or knowingly misrepresent the content.
Be Specific
Yes, 150 characters are plenty, but you can’t exactly write a book inside that space. Hit the pain point or drive the benefit and follow it up with your call to action. Leave the fine details for after they click through.
Whatever You Do, Don’t Skip It!
You need a meta description for every page you want to rank in Google. If you don’t include one, Google will simply take a maximum 155-character snippet from the first paragraph of the page, which may or may not provide the best representation of the content.
Forget About Keywords
The meta description is not the place to worry about seeding with keywords. It won’t do any good and will likely make the text feel choppy. Your meta description has to have good flow and send a direct message. Worry about keywords within the page itself. That’s where they count.
Your meta description is your best opportunity to win over those all-important clicks, so don’t neglect them, don’t skimp on them, and make sure they’re relevant to the content behind them. Do those things, and you will find that your SEO efforts become more successful over time.