Meta Title – what is it and what impact does it have on SEO?
- What is a meta title?
- What is the correct meta title?
- Automatic meta title generation, Google algorithm update
- Impact of meta title on website visibility
- How to set a unique meta title in wordpress
- Despite the change, the search engine shows the old meta title
- Summary
Every website has a title that is visible in Google search. At first it may seem as an inconspicuous element of the page, but its role is of great importance in SEO. Therefore, in this article, you will learn what a Meta Title is, what role it has in seo and learn good practices related to its use.
What is a Meta Title?
Mentioned at the beginning, the title of the page from the level of HTML code is referred to as meta title. Depending on the structure of the website, its content can be automatically taken from the titles of individual pages and entries. However, it is also possible to set your own values, which will affect the page positions. The content of the meta tag title is visible in the search engine, which directly affects the number of visitors to a particular website. It has an informative and image function. Therefore, it is worth taking care of it, which will translate into the results obtained.
What is the correct meta tag title?
According to the guidelines from Google, the length of the meta title is 60-70 characters with spaces or 600px. This is the optimal length of text that will be displayed in search results. However, content beyond this length will be automatically cropped. So, bearing in mind that the purpose of the meta title is to encourage users to enter the site, it should be worded accordingly. Meta title is strongly correlated with traffic statistics. Because clear and understandable content also has a direct impact on the rejection rate, which is the number of users who left the site in a given interval after entering it without taking any further action on the site. The main reason for this situation is incorrect information contained in both meta title and meta description.
Therefore, beware of inserting content that is inconsistent with the content of the subpage. Only then will we have a low rejection rate and more conversions.
Automatic meta title generation and Google algorithm update
On August 24, 2021, an algorithm update took place to implement a solution responsible for automatically generating titles in search results. The purpose of this update was to improve the quality of search results, which is expected to increase the efficiency of finding the best answers to typed queries. As the implemented update is still in effect, it hits sites that:
- Do not have unique titles
- Have excessively long titles exceeding 60-70 characters with spaces
- Have too many keywords
In addition to eliminating pages that have a poor quality meta title, Google has introduced generating its value based on the content of the page, particularly the headings. They are the critical element from which content is drawn.
Impact of meta title on website visibility
Pages that meet the requirements rank higher in the search engine. When setting the value of the meta title, pay attention not only to its quality but also to the degree of optimization. To this end, keywords should be placed thoughtfully. This applies to all sites, especially stores that have the same product in different variations. The aforementioned correlation of the meta title with the content of the sub-page also has a bearing on the position and visibility of the website. Therefore, when deciding on the choice of keywords for the meta title, one should pay attention to the level of optimization of the content for it. If you do not know what keywords to insert in the meta title, it is best to use professional tools that allow you to analyze the search potential of specific phrases. The best example is Keyword Planner, among others.
To use it, you need to have access to an account that has already run a Google Ads campaign.
How to set unique meta title in wordpress – will Yoast help?
WordPress is one of the most popular CMS systems. Therefore, it has solutions that allow you to take care of seo in every way. This includes meta title and description, which can be done literally in a few clicks. WordPress itself does not have implemented settings that will allow you to change the meta title without changing the title of the sub-page or entry. Therefore, plugins can be used for this purpose. Currently, the most popular plugin under SEO is Yoast.
Basic settings of the Seo WordPress plugin
After installing and enabling the Yoast(seo wordpress) plugin, all you have to do is go through the initial settings that will affect the meta title structure. There are basic options like setting the subpage title separator from the domain name. Once you have enabled the settings, you are now free to proceed to edit the sub-page or entry. In the content editing window, you will see a section responsible for setting the meta title and description values for a particular subpage. Here there are equally other options such as disabling its indexing.
This is a good solution if only for the privacy policy sub-page.
Once the data has been entered, it remains to update the sub-page or entry. Now it remains to index all the changes that have been made.
Despite the change, the search engine shows the old meta title
A common situation is the lack of search engine visibility of the changes made to a page. This is especially noticeable in the case of the meta title, which serves as a placeholder for the content of a subpage. This state of affairs is due to a process called indexing, which is not done in real time and takes time. The changes made to a page are not immediately visible to the search engine. This is because Google needs time to collect all the data, process it and enter it into the index. Here, patience is important, but you can get out of this situation and use the Google Search Console tool to check the indexing status.
Summary
Knowing what a meta title is, it is important to strive for its high quality, which has a significant impact on the visibility of the site and the behavior of its visitors. Already at the stage of content creation it is best to think about its content. Only then do we have a chance to have an advantage over competitors who do not take into account the recommendations and best practices indicated by Google.
