SEO title Tips

Google's most recent results page layout changes meant more than just a search experience update. With the change came adjustments to how each individual result is displayed, which may almost certainly necessitate a refresh for a core search engine optimization (SEO) element: the venerable title tag.

So first off, for both the old and new hat SEO folks, what is the title tag and why is it important?

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A title tag tells both users and search engines what the topic of a particular page is. If your document appears in a search results page, the contents of the title tag will usually appear in the first line of the results ... This can help users recognize if the page is likely to be relevant to their search.

Title tags are part of the meta tags that appear at the top of your HTML inside the < head> area. Think of title tags like the title of the chapter of a book. It tells people and search engines what your page is about. A title tag is THE MOST IMPORTANT SINGLE TAG in your page. It tells the search engines what your page is about. It is still vitally important to your SEO strategy.

Much may have changed in Google over the years, but the importance of the title tag can't be overstressed. It's used (most of the time) as the clickable text in a search result, it is the headline to your ad, the start of a (search) conversion funnel, and a facet of internal linking.

Your website's title tag says who you are, what you do, why anyone should bother to click, and why Google should care. It is your opening line when you first meet someone, or a welcoming greeting on your return. It is important. (Did I make that clear?)

Tip 1: The Long

Much has been debated over the maximum length of a title tag. Review the mean recommendations of 10 different online resources and the average is around the 65-70 character mark.

However, this study proved that character count is a somewhat spurious measure, and that the sum of character's width should be the primary driver of optimal title SERP display.

Fast forward to Google's most recent redesign and you'll see less is apparently more, with the title displayed appearing to be 10-15 percent shorter.

Though some (or many) folk will disagree, I'm not as concerned with the maximum display limiter of the new display of the title tag enough to spout change for change's sake, so with the caveats I mention below (See Tip 3) don't worry too much about adapting title tag length to this latest update.

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