So you've built a website, and spent hours upon hours creating the perfect content for your audience. You've put in the hard work, ensuring your website is visually appealing, user-friendly, and packed with valuable information. But what good is all that effort if your target audience never finds their way to your digital masterpiece? That's where meta descriptions come in—a vital element often overlooked but with lots of potential. These concise snippets of text play a crucial role in helping users notice your website among hundreds of others. In this article, we'll delve into the world of meta descriptions, what they are, how to write them, and how to easily apply them to your WMS sites.
What are meta descriptions?
According to Google documentation, meta descriptions are tags that “generally informs and interests users with a short, relevant summary of what a particular page is about”. It is essentially your sales pitch to your target audience about why they should click into your site. Notice how under Google searches there’s usually a short description of what’s in the site? Here’s what shows up for the search “McGill University courses”:
Notice how the snippet of text under “Courses and Programs" displays relevant information for someone looking for courses that McGill has to offer (and how the keywords used in the search are highlighted in the snippet). Based on what’s in the meta description, Google will display it in the search snippet if it decides that it offers users a better description than it can scrape from the site content.
How to write a good meta description
Keep it under 160 characters
Stay under the 155-160 character limit, as anything longer than that will most likely be cut off by search engines such as Google. Make sure you put important information and actionable keywords towards the start of your description for better visibility.
Make it actionable
Use active language that isn’t too cryptic or confusing to the reader, and make sure to consider the motivations of your audience. Make sure people know what to expect when clicking into your page.
Use a call to action
Include text that encourages users to click into your site. Here's a few examples:
- Find out about …
- Browse the courses that …
- Learn about the requirements for …
Use keywords (in moderation!)
When words in the meta description match the search query of the user, search engines such as Google will be more inclined to use your meta description in the snippet, and it will also highlight the relevant words that match with the search keywords. Google will also sometimes highlight synonyms! However, make sure that it sounds like a human wrote it. If you stuff too many keywords inside like “Browse courses, McGill courses, Undergraduate courses, McGill courses here!”, it will sound very robotic and forced.
Example meta descriptions for the Web Services site
Here are a few examples of meta descriptions written for the Web Services site:
- Home page
- Get expert help with your website design, development, and maintenance at McGill University. Learn more about our comprehensive web services today.
- Resources
- Enhance your web presence with McGill University Web Services' extensive collection of resources. Get the tools and knowledge you need to create a successful online platform.
- Training and Events
- Discover a range of training opportunities and events at McGill University Web Services. Enhance your knowledge in web development, accessibility, SEO, and more.
How to apply meta description changes to your WMS site
To update the meta tags on your WMS site as a site admin or manager, simply go to the “new/edit draft” section and scroll down to find the “Meta tags” menu item. Then replace the contents of the “Description” field to your new meta description. That’s it!
More resources
Looking to take your search optimization to the next level? Feel free to explore some the following resources to dive even deeper: