Meta Tags Optimization Tips


Title

Your word count should be between 4-15 words with approximately 20-50% of the words being your primary keywords. We usually recommend short titles (4-7 words) that feature the keywords predominately (40-50%).


Description

Your word count should be between 10-25 words with approximately 20-30% of the words being your primary keywords. We usually recommend descriptions that are about 15 words with 25-30% being keywords.


Keywords

Your word count should be between 5-9 words with approximately 30-60% being your primary keywords. Most engines won't even read the keywords tag and the ones that do don't place much emphasis on it. Developing long keyword tags reduces your primary keywords relevancy for that page in the engines that read the keywords tag.


Body

Your word count should be between 250-850 words with approximately 8-16% being your primary keywords. If you have a smaller web page we recommend the lower percentage (8-10%). Small pages that don't repeat keywords too often can perform well in the search engines.


Headings (H1, H2, etc.)

Your headings play a significant part in some of the meta search engines, but we find that they are not always necessary and can take away aesthetic qualities from your page. These tags are very difficult to place without overemphasizing your keywords.


Link Text

This is the hardest area to get a good rating in. Your link text should be between 10-25 words with 30-60% being your primary keywords. The best thing to do here is use text links that feature your keywords.


Alt Text

Your word count should be between 10-25 words with 30-60% being your primary keywords. Don't type whole sentences for your alt text. Keep it short and sweet and you should do well.


Density

The density rating tells you if you use your keywords consistently throughout the web page. You will want to have 70-80% of your primary keyword usage in the top half of the body. This means that you will have between 20-30% in the bottom half, which adds to the continuity of the web page. Overuse of keywords within a page will result in a "high density" rating that will lower the ranking of your page. Below the most important meta tags are listed and how they affect your website are explained.


Title (<Title>):

The title tag is the most important meta tag and all too often is not utilized properly. As with the description tag the title tag is what will attract visitors to your website. When web surfers query a search engine the results are based on relevance. When the websites are listed they are usually listed in the following manner: (The title is highlighted with blue)

Your web page title will be displayed here - The description of your website will be displayed here... http://www.your-webpage.com/ Click Here to Build Effective Page Titles!


Description (<meta name="Description..."):

The description tag is the next most important meta tag. As with the title, your description will typically be listed in the search engines. The description is highlighted in red above. Like the title, you will have to tread the fine line between creating an effective description that will attract visitors and rank well in the search engines for your keywords.


Keywords (<meta name="Keywords..."):

Due to abuse by many websites in the past search engines have reduced the importance of the keywords meta tag when ranking a web page for keyword relevance. Many have actually decided to not even consider the keywords tag altogether, Google being one of them. While it has reduced in significance, Directories like Yahoo still place a signifcant importance on this meta tag, so you should include it in your WebPages.


Copyright (<meta name="Copyright..."):

The copyright meta tag, as with the rest of the meta tags to be discussed, are hidden. They are not viewable in the search engine results or your web page. The copyright meta tag is essentially an opportunity for you to enter your company name in the meta tags. Some engines will read this tag, which could result in you ranking higher for your company name in the engines then you would otherwise receive.


Robots (<meta name="Robots..."):

The robots tag is a set of instructions for the search engines when they visit your website. You can tell the search engines to index all of your web page, only the ones promoted, or none of your WebPages. This is an important tag in the event you have pages that you do not want indexed on the search engines.


Rating (<meta name="Rating..."):

The ratings meta tag will tell the search engines a little more about your website. Whether it is acceptable for all audiences, or for adult audiences only.


Distribution (<meta name="Distribution..."):

The distribution tag will tell the search engines if your website is intended for a worldwide audience or not. While most websites are meant to be viewed by everyone, few include this meta tag on their web page.