3 meta description mistakes to avoid, always

Meta descriptions offer insight into what your page offers without reading your story. Here’s how to leverage it. 

Meta descriptions are a direct search engine ranking page ranking signal. However, many writers and search engine optimization experts fail to give them the attention they deserve.

A properly optimized meta description plays a key role in attracting visitors from search engines to visit your website. They are summaries, almost like small ads, optimized to assure web surfers they are headed toward the right content, to drive more visitor action, and to increase your click-through rate. If you want your meta descriptions to act as a hook to drive user intent, you should first be aware of these three meta description optimization mistakes.

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• Unoptimized description count for devices 

The usual count for meta descriptions is 120 to 158 characters. However, this differs when the number of search results on a single SERP is limited, particularly on mobile devices. As a result, most developers aim for 160 characters for desktop sites and 120 for mobile when it comes to meta description tags.

You can use more than 160 characters in your description, but if your descriptions are too long, Google will cut them short and display only the part under 175 characters.

Must Read: SEO Blunders that can hurt your SERP performance

• Duplicate meta descriptions

In some cases, creators repurpose their meta descriptions across multiple website pages. It’s common knowledge among SEO experts that Google and other search engine algorithms dislike duplicate content, including meta descriptions, and will present a unique page description instead.

• Unnatural keyword placing

Adding keywords to your meta descriptions is essential, but you must use them naturally. Write a compelling and persuasive description that will entice searchers to click on your listing and learn more about what you offer. 

Pro tip: Optimize for a human reader first and the search engines second. This is always the right thing to do, and it’ll help you convert more clicks from better search engine optimization.

The right meta description is the secret to bringing quality traffic

Quality meta descriptions can make or break your website. Even if they have no direct impact on your site's organic search rankings, meta descriptions help your website stand out in search results. Leverage the benefits by creating value-packed, keyword-optimized meta descriptions that correspond to the exact content on your site's pages. Avoiding the blunders outlined in this story will result in higher CTR, more targeted traffic, and higher conversions. 

Do you want your website to perform better in search results? Contact us at 888-PR-FIRM-8 for a no-obligation web consultation.