At first glance, it may appear that meta descriptions don’t do much for your website performance. The small paragraph comes in between 160 - 300 characters and does not directly influence page rank. But don’t take the meta description for granted. These short blurbs can do wonders for finding the best audience and increasing your clicks.

What is a Meta Description?

Meta descriptions are short paragraphs that summarize the content and focus of a webpage. Search engines don’t always display these descriptions but may choose to show it in a listing if it matches the searcher’s intent. This makes it very important to treat your meta description like it is a pitch. It needs to convince users that your site has the most relevant information for them and hopefully, your website will see more clicks. Here are four ways you can make your meta descriptions work for you.

Write Compelling and Relevant Page Descriptions

It is important to make sure that meta descriptions are written in full, relevant sentences instead of simply listing keywords you hope to target. Meta descriptions aren’t intended to improve your SEO rankings, so it is crucial that you instead try and make sure that the meta description is written clearly and correlates to the content on the page. Ask yourself, “what is my page offering?” and “why should I visit this page?” to help you write informative, concise sentences. Clear and compelling descriptions help the user understand what the page is about if it matches their query.

Avoid Duplicate Content

Make sure your descriptions are different from each other because duplicate content – yes, even meta descriptions - can hurt your site’s performance. Each description should accurately describe what that specific page has to offer instead of services that the company provides. If all your meta descriptions are the same, it may be misleading and confusing to your users and result in a lower click-through rate.

Include but Don’t Abuse Keywords

It is important to include some keywords you are targeting without falling into keyword stuffing territory. Descriptions should intelligently use the keywords to help describe the page in a way the user will understand. Plus, when someone searches for a keyword, it will be bolded in the search results – making your listing stand out more and encourage users to click on your listing.

Consider a Call to Action

Using a CTA (Call to Action) in meta descriptions can be a confusing thing to navigate. Does it make your page seem spammy or pushy to the user? Or does it encourage users to click on your listing instead of the competition? If you choose to include call-to-actions in your meta descriptions, make sure they are specific to the page and read in a respectful way that does not come across as too sales-pitchy. For example, “learn more about meta description optimization” is specific to the page and sounds more enticing than a simple “contact us today” call to action.

Improve Your Website Click Through Rate with Meta Descriptions

Meta descriptions may not seem like they make a big difference to your internet marketing efforts, but they should not be overlooked. A fully optimized meta description can help increase your search engine page rankings, help you stand out against your competitors and improve your click-through rate. Contact Ecreative to get more details on how well-written meta descriptions as part of an overall SEO program can help your online industrial business with traffic and conversions.

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