Meta description is an HTML element that describes your page to search engines. It describes the contents of a page in the form of 2-3 lines of text displayed under the page title in the search results of search engines.
In a 2007 post, Google had stated that while Meta descriptions can improve click-throughs, they don’t affect the ranking within search results, which is the reason why Meta descriptions are neglected. Even though it doesn’t affect the rankings but, the page title and its Meta description frequently appear whenever the pages are listed in the natural search results of a search engine, which is why the content included in these areas play a major role to attract visitors.
Although said Meta descriptions do not affect the search engine rankings but they actually do so indirectly. Let’s see how:
The content in a Meta description does not influence the search algorithm.
As said earlier, search engine rankings do not consider Meta descriptions as a factor. Thus, it is not necessary to put the most important keywords in the Meta description.
User behaviour is considered in the search algorithm.
User behaviour is analyzed and affects the ranking process. For example, a user sitting in Bangalore when types “weather conditions” in the search box automatically gets the weather forecast for Bangalore. At the same time, when a user in the US types the same, he gets the forecast for US. Many more factors of user behavior are taken into notice by search engines.
Click-through rate is a very essential part of the algorithmic ranking process.
Search engines analyze whether or not a result gets clicked and whether or not a given result matches the search.
A good Meta description improves click-through rate on search results pages.
A user will click on a search result only if he is impressed by the page title and what the Meta description has to say. The 2-3 lines decide upon whether a visitor will want to click on the link or not. Hence, Meta description is the most important piece of information that either attracts or loses a user.
We can summarize the above points as: Good content in Meta description – attracts more visitors – increases the click-through rate – gets a higher ranking in the search engine page. So, we can conclude that Meta description is definitely a Search Engine Optimization factor after all!
If your website is not driving the required traffic and not ranking in the first page of search results, Jain Technosoft, a well-known Search Engine Optimization company in Bangalore, can help you rank high and increase your website visitors.
Here are a few tips that can help you write better Meta descriptions:
Be Descriptive – The language used in the Meta description should speak well what the page is about. The users should get a complete idea what the page is about by only reading those few lines.
Be Convincing – In order to get more clicks, there should be a convincing power in the Meta description that wants the users to go through the page.
Arouse Curiosity – Once the users read the Meta description, they know what the page is about. But, if they are curious about what the page will say about that topic, they are definitely going to visit the page.
Use The Right Words – Use the most relevant words that can relate with the user’s query. The right words in the right places make the difference!
Make Them The Correct Length – The maximum length for a Meta description is 160 characters, including spaces. If it exceeds the amount, the search engine will shorten it as per its choice. Also, if there is no description, the search engine will automatically pull text from the site for a description which may or may not be something that is relevant.
So, meta description is definitely needed to be focused upon to get better search results from an Organic SEO perspective. It is the most important thing connecting the search result with the visitors.
