It used to be that people saw "meta tags" and thought of the meta keyword tags you could insert as part of any page or post on your website, but because of the vast number of people who abused these meta keyword tags (adding scores of keywords that truly had nothing to do with their post or their page in the first place, just to boost search engine rankings!), most search engines (Google included) no longer pay attention to meta keyword tags. And as more and more people make an effort to learn about search engine optimization, they often discover that meta keyword tags are no longer valuable, and they imagine that this means meta tags in general are not valuable. Because of this confusion - and the fact that it causes so many people to neglect meta tags completely - understanding how to use meta tags to your advantage will give you a big head start on your competitors.
While meta keyword tags are no longer a useful part of search engine optimization, meta tags (or "meta title tags" - also known as "title tags" - and "meta description tags") are still hugely beneficial.
Starting with the one more people know about and understand…
Title tags: Title tags are the titles that go at the top of any webpage or blog post on your site. The keywords you use in these title tags are not only used by search engines to determine how relevant your page is to a particular search, but are also a big part of getting people to click on your link. Use your title tag to incorporate keywords and to also induce clicks, and you will experience a much greater level of success with your website.
Meta description tags: While people will see your title tag when they visit your page (as it will be the title of the page itself), they will not see your meta description tag on your page. Instead, the meta description tag is the description you create for the search itself. Search engines will use this description to determine how valuable your page will be for a particular search, and will also display this description when your page shows up in a search.
When you use title tags that will draw the eye, and supplement these with meta description tags that tell the person what they will find on your page (more importantly, that tell the person they are about to find exactly what they are looking for!), you will find yourself ranking much higher on search engine searches - and what's more, you will find that a lot more of the people who are seeing your site on search engines are actually clicking on the link and spending time on your site!
Take the time to understand how to use meta description tags to your advantage, and you will be far ahead of your competition in no time at all.
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