The
title tag is one of the most important factors in search engine optimization.
Simply
put, the title tag is a small amount of HTML code that creates the words that
appear in the top bar of your Web browser. All search engines give a lot of
weight to these tags when they gather information about your web site.The words
you place in the title tag are also what appear in the clickable link on the search
engine results page.
How do you write a title tag?
Use
Your Visible Text Copy as Your Starting Point
I personally believe an
effective title tag is easier to create after the "visible copy" for the site
has been written.
A good approach when writing copy for a Web site is
to think of the main phrases that best reflect your business, while also using
the keyword phrases people might be using with a search engine to find your product
or service. Then compose the text around them.
When you write your title
tag, look at these same phrases, and compose your keyword-rich title accordingly.
Some SEO professionals believe you should repeat an exact keyword phrase pulled
from your copy and use it in your title.
Title Tags Should Contain
Specific Keyword Phrases
Put the most important keywords at the beginning.
It is permissible and effective to repeat keywords and/or phrases - in
different forms or changing word order. Make sure that you don't put the same
words right next to each other. To play it safe, it is a good idea not to use
any given word more than two times.
It
is ok to use your company name in the title.
The people who already know
your company and seek it out by name will be able to find you in the search engines,
and so will those who never heard of you, but who seek the products or services
you sell. Don’t forget to add a good descriptive phrase or two!
Other
considerations:
Page titles will show a maximum of 60 (7-10 words) to
90 characters. Don’t waste precious space with “stop” words like the, of, and,
or – and welcome to.
Today's search engines are not case-sensitive; so
I generally like to use initial caps in the title because it looks the cleanest.
Don’t use ALL CAPS because it looks somewhat “spammy.”
As you
can see, it is important to use, and not too difficult to write, an effective
title that will help you bring people to your web site and to your business.
