5 Tips to Write an Effective Meta Description [2018]
Among the different types of Meta tags, Meta titles and descriptions are the two things users see before logging in to your site.
A perfectly optimized Meta description gives users the opportunity to sneak into your articles and force them to log in to your site.
It also allows you to tell search engines more about your post and page content.
In this article I will discuss the importance of Meta description for SEO, the ideal Meta description length in 2018 along with some effective tips for writing good Meta descriptions for higher CTRs.
What is Meta Description?
Meta description is a brief description of the content of your web page. This is the type of Meta tag written under the URL page in the search engine results page.
It appears in the <head> section of the HTML web page. This small quote also appears in social media posts under thumbnails and post titles.
What is Meta Tag in SEO?
Meta tags are short HTML codes that describe structured information (metadata) about the content of web pages. There are various types namely - Page Title, Meta Description, Header Tag, Meta Keyword.
How Long Should Meta Descriptions In 2018?
Google has been testing the trailing trail for some time and recently they have confirmed it, they made changes in how the trailer is shown in the SERPs.
We recently made changes to provide more descriptive and useful snippets, to help people better understand how pages are relevant to their searches. This results in a slightly longer, average trailer.
Previously the ideal Meta description is 160 characters, but recently Google has increased its limits and many times shown up to 320 characters.
However, the results are not the same for all SERP results.
The reason may be that some content management systems automatically bypass Meta descriptions.
Moz has found that a large number of snippets cut off by Google are disconnected between 275 and 350 characters and are mostly truncated between 300 and 325 characters.
How important is Meta description in SEO?
Search engines like Google have previously announced that Meta descriptions and Meta keywords are no longer considered a ranking factor. Other search engines also do not disclose how much weight they put into this factor.
However, many webmasters and SEOs believe that Meta descriptions do help in improving rankings.
"How do I write a good Meta description?" This is a very common question among many beginners. Here are 5 tips that will help you figure out how to write Meta descriptions for Google and other search engines.
Keep it Under Limit
However, make your Meta description short, but be sure to write it down to the specified limit. As said above the recent Meta description length is above 300 characters. So you have to write to consume up to that limit or less. Writing it down will cut off your tip.
Include Your Keywords
It goes without saying. You must include targeted keywords in your Meta description. Most of the time, Google and other search engines are bold where they find matches from search queries. Also, the new Meta description length allows you to include more keywords in it.
Make it Descriptive
Although entering your important keywords is very important, but keywords that include your Meta description are a bad idea. This will create a spam website impression in the eyes of searchers. So write your Meta description in natural ways and conversations.
Consider Using Rich Snippets
Increase your Meta description by using scheme markup elements. When you use elements such as star ratings, customer ratings, or pricing schemes, it creates trust between users and increases click-through opportunities.
Do not Duplicate
You may not duplicate Meta descriptions. Like Page Title, Meta description should also be unique for each of your web pages.
How to Add Meta Description in WordPress?
You can add Meta tags on your website in different ways. However, some WordPress SEO plugins make it very easy to add Meta descriptions in your posts and pages.
SEO WordPress by Yoast is one of the plugins you can install on your site to add Meta tags and some other parameters to page optimization.
1. First of all, install Yoast SEO from the Add New plugin section and click Activate.
2. Then visit the SEO page >> Dashboard and click on the 'Feature' tab.
3. Now click the 'Enabled' button under the 'Advanced settings pages' option and save your changes by clicking the save changes button.
4. The SEO settings page will be reloaded and you will see more options under the SEO Yoast menu.
5. Under Metas titles and tags, you will find the Meta Description Template in the Posting Types tab. Here you can create a template for all types of posts.
Or if you want to make it for individual web pages, you can go to the post / page you edit.
- At the bottom of your content you will find the Yoast SEO meta box with the snippet editor function.
- You can view the Meta and Title descriptions automatically for your post there.
- To change the Meta description in WordPress, you need to click the "Edit Snippet" button and write a description of your optimized web page.
- When you're done, just click on the Near Trailer Editor and you can see a Preview of your custom description.
- Finally click the Save or Publish button.
How to Add Meta Description on WordPress Home Page?
You can optimize Meta titles and descriptions for your WordPress Home page with the Yoast SEO plugin.
1. For that, go to the Title and Metas section under the SEO menu and then click on the Homepage tab.
2. Here you can add custom Title, Meta description and keywords for your WordPress Sites. Above is the template for the homepage
3. Click the Save Changes button once you have made the necessary changes.
Meta Description is effective in 2018: The Last Word
The percentage of CTR depends heavily on how well your Meta description is. So, your job does not end with a ranking on page 1 of Google. If you want to drive organic traffic to your site, then you need to optimize your Meta description wisely.
Do you think writing a good Meta description has an interest in SEO? What do you think of the ideal Meta description length in 2018?
