One of single most important on-page factors in SEO is the title tag. To start, the title tag is an HTML tag that should exist and be unique on every web page. This tag is so important in SEO because it serves as the main title of the document. The search engines expect this document title to summarize what the corresponding page is all about.
The code looks like this:
The title tag appears in the top of your browser:
The title tag appears in the search engine results (the meta description usually appears below the title tag):
The title tag carries a lot of weight in the search engine algorithms. A title tag should:
* Accurately describe the page content
* Include the keyword phrase or phrases that the page is optimized for
* Be less than 60 or 65 characters long
* Be unique on each page of the website
* Have NO html in it
There are several different ways that title tags can be constructed. First and foremost, the title tag should be written for the searchers with the search engines in mind. This means that the title tag should have a marketing touch, while at the same time carry a structure optimal for search engines. For the following examples, let’s assume my goal is to optimize the homepage of car dealership. Since it’s the homepage, I know I want to include the company name. I also want to fit a popular keyword phrase in the title. This way, if people search for the company, Joe’s Car Company, or the keywords phrase, new york city auto dealer, my website appears in the results.
Good ways to structure the title tag:
Joe’s Car Company – The Top New York City Auto Dealer
Joe’s Car Company | The Top New York City Auto Dealer
New York City Auto Dealer | Joe’s Car Company
The previous examples are pretty simple and straight forward. I inserted a “-” or “|” in each tag to make it easier to read for the searcher. Title tags get a little more confusing when trying to mesh a few different keyword phrases while still having the tag make sense to the searcher. In the next example, I’ll add in the following keyword phrase: car company new york city.
Joe’s Car Company New York City-The Top New York City Auto Dealer
Notice that here the keyword phrases joe’s car company and car company new york city are meshed together in on long phrase, joe’s car company new york city.
Additional considerations:
* Keyword stuffing in the title tag is a pretty common and poor practice. Focus on one or two keyword phrases in your title tags. Don’t form title tags with nothing by keyword phrases.
* Poorly structured title tags will decrease your click through rate, not matter what ranking your website has.
That’s about it for title tags. In summary, keep them short, neat and keyword focused.
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