What is a meta description tag? It is a brief summary of a web page’s content and most often used by search engines to describe the page on a SERP (search engine results page).  The meta description tag appears between the clickable page title and the URL like so:

In the early days of web search, meta description tags played a significant role in search engine optimization.  They used to be one of the main factors in determining a site’s ranking.  Today, meta descriptions have little to no effect on ranking!  As far as search engines are concerned, a meta description tag is just that—a description.

Why waste time writing one then?  A new eye tracking study determined that searchers spend more time focusing on the description rather than the title or URL.  As you can see in the example above, Google “bolds” the keywords searched in the title, the URL, and the description.  So, the meta description tag serves as a powerful advertisement for your website.

Meta description tags won’t do much for your search engine ranking. But, writing a persuasive description will have great impact on your website’s click-through rate.  While meta description tags are not an effective SEO tool any longer, they provide valuable space for marketing calls-to-action.  Just think of them as the “prime real estate” of organic search results.  If done well, it may make the difference between users clicking your website versus the competition!

Guest blogger:  Collyn Floyd

With the attention span of web users only slightly longer than that of goldfish, it’s awfully hard to keep potential customers engaged on your site.  You’re going to need some snazzy copy if you want them to stick around for a while.  Here are a few tips to get you started:

Make your copy customer-centric. Before you start hammering away at the keyboard, take a minute to identify your target audience.  Think about why they’re visiting your site.  How can your product or service address their “pain”?   Structure your copy around solving the concerns of your customer, not tooting your own horn.

Write for the Web. When you’re writing for the Web, keep in mind that most users skim content; they don’t read word-for-word.   Keep your copy in bite-sized chunks by using copy strategies like shorter paragraphs, bolded text, bullet points, and “call-outs.”

Write with the Inverted Pyramid in mind. Since you know your visitors could stop reading at any moment, put your most important information at the top of the page.  This includes any kind of call to action or conversion point (i.e., newsletter signup, “add to cart” button, etc.).  Less “sexy” copy like product specs or details can go lower on the page.

Get Rid of the Useless Chatter. A wise copy strategy is to minimize distractions and get to the point.  Things to avoid: too much copy on a single page, too many links (especially links that may take your visitors away from your site completely), and too many ads or graphics.  Notice that online retailers like Lands’ End or Target don’t let much get in the way of their customer and products.

Make Your Copy Count. Don’t you hate copy that doesn’t really SAY anything?  For example: “Thank you for visiting company XYZ’s website.  We think you’ll find outstanding value in our products and services.  We’re proud to serve markets around the world and provide solutions that fit your needs”.   Yes, but what do you DO?

Of course, good copywriting for the Web entails these things and much, much more.  Hopefully theseoblog.org will ask me back, and I can share some additional tips!