Rules for writing meta title tags

Your meta title is a short summary of your page, which both search engines and web users can use to understand what your page is about. The meta title is also used in web browser tabs and is pulled in when sharing a page on other websites and social media.

Your meta title tag can be the difference between someone visiting your site and checking out what your competitors have to offer.

We have lots of experience optimising websites at Bubblegum Search, as well as offering meta title writing services to customers across the UK.

We’ve put together this guide to meta title best practices to help you make the most of this valuable piece of search engine real estate.

What’s the right meta title length?

Technically, your meta title tag can be as long as you like, and search engine spiders will consider the full title when crawling your page.

However, if your meta title is too long, it will be truncated in the search engine results.

So what's the ideal meta title length?

While Google hasn’t given a definitive answer, it’s recommended that your meta title character limit to 60 characters. This isn’t a lot, so you have to be selective in what you include!

Putting the most important information at the start of your meta title is a good starting point.

That way, if the search engines truncate your tag, people will still be able to understand what your page is about.

Here are some ways you can reduce characters in your meta title.

• Use numbers instead of writing them out, for example, ‘13’ instead of ‘thirteen’. This saves space and draws the eye to your title
• Make every word count. Removing stop words like ‘a,’ ‘the,’ and ‘this’ can make your meta title more powerful
• Emojis can reduce the number of words you use and increase the click-through rate of your search engine links. However, use them with discretion. While they might work well for a coffee shop or toy store, they may not be suitable for a funeral director or bank!
• Remember that you also have a longer meta description which you can use to provide more information about your page

We always recommend checking your meta title tag length before you add it to your page. Codeshack has a great tool you can use to make sure the meta title character limit doesn’t come into play.

Meta title best practices: what to consider

In August 2021, many people reported that Google had started to rewrite their page titles in the search engines. A study by Zyppy found that Google had amended over 60% of meta page titles.

Why was Google doing this?

Because it thought the meta titles in question weren’t providing value to web users and matching the intent of the page.

So, what do you need to bear in mind when writing a meta title that people not only want to click on, but that Google won’t rewrite?

Here are some of our top tips for creating high-quality meta title tags.

1. Write your meta title tags for humans

While search engines like Google use meta title tags to add context to searches, you must ensure your title tags are understandable.

Think like a customer – how can your title tag help them understand what’s on your page?

2. Use keywords (carefully)

If you have a primary keyword that you’re using on a specific page, it makes sense to use it in your title tag, ideally as close to the start of the title as possible. This can give a search engine user additional context about your page.

However, be careful not to stuff your meta title tag full of keywords. This can have the opposite effect and can look spammy.

3. Add your brand name at the end of the meta title

There’s a lot of debate about whether businesses should include their brand name in meta titles.

While it means slightly less space to play around with, we think this approach is fantastic for raising brand awareness and differentiating between other websites. After all, if you’re competing against five other pages with the same page title, you want to stand out!

4. Include a call to action

What do you want customers to do when they visit your page?

Do you want them to click on a link, contact you for more information or visit you at your brick-and-mortar store?

Include this in your meta title tag to compel people to click on your website. ‘Learn more,’ ‘shop now’, or ‘click here’ are some great examples of calls to action to try.

5. Make it relevant

Your meta title needs to match the content of your page. If you use it to trick customers into clicking on your website, you could find your bounce rate increases, and your dwell time lowers, which can negatively impact your SEO rankings.

Be as honest and factual as possible when it comes to meta titles.

6. Don’t duplicate title tags

When you have a lot of pages to optimise for SEO, it can be tempting to give them all the same title tag. However, this can confuse the search engines and means your prospective customers won’t know what makes your pages unique.

Take the time to create individual tags for each page on your site, and you’ll reap the benefits.

We hope this article has given you valuable insight into meta title guidelines. A well-written, contextual meta title can entice prospective customers to visit your website!

Copyright 2022. Featured post made possible by Marketing Donut expert Matt Cayless, director at Bubblegum Search. Matt is a digital marketing expert having worked on campaigns for some of the world’s biggest brands. He has a passion for helping small and medium-sized businesses grow online. Follow him on Twitter or LinkedIn .