A SHORT GUIDE TO WRITING QUALITY META DESCRIPTIONS
Nov 10, 2022 | 2022, November
Your meta descriptions are important for your website’s SEO. Make sure they are clear and concise so potential viewers will be able to get a good idea of what your page is about before clicking through to it. In addition, high-quality descriptions can be displayed on SERPs, and can also help improve the quality & quantity of your website’s search traffic.
Let’s dive into some examples to get better at writing meta descriptions:
DETAILS INCLUDED |
BAD WAY OF WRITING |
GOOD WAY OF WRITING |
Keywords |
- <meta name=”description” content=”Sewing supplies, yarn, colored pencils, sewing machines, threads, bobbins, needles”>
- Just a list of keywords
|
- <meta name=”description” content=”Get everything you need to sew your next garment. Open Monday-Friday 8-5pm, located in the Fashion District.”>
- Explains what the shop sells and details like opening hours and location
|
Description for articles |
- Same description used for every news article
-
|
- <meta name=”description” content=”Upsetting the small town of Whoville, a local elderly man steals everyone’s presents the night before an important event. Stay tuned for live updates on the matter.”>
- Uses a snippet from the specific news article
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Summary of the page |
- <meta name=”description” content=”Eggs are a source of joy in everyone’s life. When I was a small child, I remember picking eggs from the hen house and bringing them to the kitchen. Those were the days.”>
- Doesn’t summarize the page
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<meta name=”description” content=”Learn how to cook eggs with this complete guide in 1 hour or less. We cover all the methods, including over-easy, sunny side up, boiled, and poached.”>
- Summarizes the whole page
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Length of the description |
- <meta name=”description” content=”Mechanical pencil”>
- Too short
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- <meta name=”description” content=”Self-sharpening mechanical pencil that autocorrects your penmanship. Includes 2B auto-replenishing lead. Available in both Vintage Pink and SchoolbusSchool bus Yellow. Order 50+ pencils, get free shipping.”>
- Specific and detailed
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Lastly, your descriptions should be easy for people to read and understand and should also be diverse, so potential customers can get a good sense of what your product or service can offer them.