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Meta Description: Proper Length and Best Practices

Dec 27, 2021

Written by Casey Bjorkdahl

Profile Picture Casey Bjorkdahl of https://www.vazoola.com

Casey Bjorkdahl is one of the pioneering thought leaders in the SEO community. In 2010, Casey co-founded Vazoola after working for a Digital Marketing Agency for five years in New York City. Vazoola is now one of the fastest growing and most widely recognized SEO marketing firms in the country.

Meta Description: Proper Length and Best Practices

Do you want to increase your online visibility? If so, you should include a meta description with your individual web pages. There are plenty of examples of meta descriptions available, this description is important for letting search engines know what your website is about. When writing a meta title or description, focus on things like search engine optimization. Keep in mind the length of the meta description for the homepage and how you can you get the most out of your meta description? Learn more about the importance of this key SEO tool below. 

Meta Description: What Is It?

When you enter a query into a search engine, how do you select which results are important for your needs? You probably take a look at the headline, but is this enough to explain to you what the website is about? You may see a brief description underneath the title of each link. That description is the meta description. It is part of your site’s html code and requires a meta description tag.

An seo meta description is important because it gives users a brief overview of the information on your website which helps the user determine the scope of information available. Then, they can figure out if it's worth a click or not. A meta description is also important because it helps search engines determine what information is on your site. That way, search engines will have an easier time getting your website in front of the right target market.

You need to get the most out of this little blurb because this is going to play an important role in whether you can convince someone to click on your link. With a good meta description, you can significantly increase your online traffic, boosting leads and generating conversions. For example, if you have an ambiguous brand name that isn’t well known, users may not associate it with your product or service. The meta description is where you can quickly and efficiently create the association between your brand name and your product or service. 

How To Write a Meta Description

If you are interested in writing a strong meta description, there are several examples to keep in mind. These include:

  • Try to put relevant keywords at the front of the meta description. Not everyone is going to read the entire description, so make sure to highlight the topic immediately.
  • You may want to include a call to action. For example, tell people to visit your website if they want to learn more about a specific topic.
  • Make sure your meta description matches the content on the page. If the meta description does not match the content, search engines could penalize your website.
  • Be specific. Users want to get details about what they will learn if they visit the site. The more specific you are, the better.
  • Try not to make your meta description too long. If the description is too long, it might get cut off by the search engine.

If you follow these tips, you should be able to craft a strong meta description. 

Meta Description Length

How long should your meta description be? In general, you should try to limit the size of your meta description character count to 155. If your meta description is too long, it might get cut off by the search engine. As a result, people might not be able to figure out what your website is about. On the other hand, you do not want your meta description to be too short either. If the description is too short, visitors might not learn enough about the website to garner a click. They may think the website is not legitimate since the creator has not made the effort of creating a meta description.

Meta Description Example: A Few Options

Sometimes, it is helpful to look at a few examples of good meta descriptions. For example, if we enter a query for website design and development, a few meta descriptions that pop up include:

  • “Web design is concerned with what the user actually sees on their computer screen or mobile device, while web development governs all the …”
  • “Take a look at what jobs, internships and courses you can do with a degree in web design and development.”
  • “Web design refers to the design of websites that are displayed on the internet. It usually refers to the user experience aspects of website development”

Based on the examples above, we can see that one of the meta descriptions got cut off. Notice that all these meta descriptions contain target keywords for the query. They also clearly let people know what they will learn if they visit that website. For these reasons, these are examples of strong meta descriptions. 

Get More Out of Your Online Presence with Meta Descriptions

If you are wondering how to write meta descriptions, these are a few key points you should keep in mind. Meta descriptions are an important part of your digital marketing strategy, and you need to make sure you let search engines know what your information is about. If search engines have a difficult time figuring out how to categorize your information, you might not get your website in front of the right market. Furthermore, your audience has to know what your content is about as well. If you need help crafting good meta descriptions for your website, you may want to reach out to a professional. This can help you increase traffic and boost your conversion rate.

 

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