Tom Hallett

A web page’s title (title tag) is probably the most important on-page factor that Google will look at when it decide to rank a page.

But title tags are not only important for SEO. They affect how users interact with your site, and can mean the difference between someone clicking through to your site, or visiting one of your competitors instead.

Read on to find out what a title tag is, and why it’s important not to ignore them on your website.

So what is a title tag?

Right click on this web page and (depending on your browser) choose ‘view source’.

Now look for the words between the  <title> and </title> tags in the HTML code. This is the page title – commonly known as the title tag.

Where will I see a page’s title tag?

As well as in the page’s HTML code, you’ll see the title tag in the following places:

1. In your web browser, usually at the very top above the toolbar:

The title tag for this site in the Firefox browser

2. In the search engine results pages (SERPs):

The title tag for this site in Google

3. The title tag is also usually the default title when you bookmark  a page on your web browser, and on online bookmarking services like Digg and Delicious.

The title tag for this site when saving a bookmark in the Chrome browser

The title tag for this site is included by default when saving a page in Delicious

As you can see from these examples, the current title tag for the home page of this website is SEO, Web Copywriting & Internet Marketing Tips | Tom Hallett, Southampton, Hampshire.

Why is the title tag important?

There are 3 main reasons why you need to spend time on your web page title tags:

1. Title tag text will be the link text to your site from the search engine results pages and other places where your site is bookmarked. So they need to entice people to click through to the page.

2. Google and the other search engines place great importance on the content of your title tags when they decide how to rank your website. So they need to include important words that sum up the content of the page effectively.

3. The title tag is the first thing that appears when a web page is loading. So it can reassure users that they are on the right page as soon as the page starts to load up. And, it can keep users on your site if the page is slow to load. If the first thing they see is ‘untitled page’ they’ll more likely to click on the back button.

If you run a small business website, it’s likely you’ll write a lot of your own copy (words). But are you making the most of the opportunity to get found in the search engines?

Here’s some top tips on writing with SEO (search engine optimisation) in mind. And it’s not as hard as you’d think.

Use your customers’ words

Before you write or rewrite a web page, do some research to find out what words your customers are using. You might call a spade a spade. But they might call it a shovel.

Ask current customers, see what words your competitors are using, and take advantage of Google tools like the Keyword Tool and Insights to compare search volumes and get ideas on alternative words and spellings.

Write naturally

There’s nothing worse than a web page stuffed full of keywords so it doesn’t make sense to humans – and the search engines know that.

So write naturally with your customers – not the search engines – in mind. By all means, mention your keywords when you have to. And use plurals and synonyms to attract searches on variations of your keywords.

Remember titles…

As the copywriter, you don’t just need to think about the words on the page – you also need to write your web page title tags.

The title (also known as the title tag) appears between the <title> and </title> in the source code of your page (try right-clicking on any web page and selecting ‘view source’). In most web browsers you’ll then see this title in the very top of your browser (in the grey bar in Internet Explorer 7).

The title is also the link to your site in the search engines results pages (SERPs). So make sure it describes your page and entices potential customers to click through to the page.

The title of a page is probably the most important on-page (i.e. within your control) factor that search engines take into account when deciding if a page is relevant to a search query. So make sure it includes important keywords and is unique.

…and meta-descriptions

The meta-description lives between the second set of speech marks in the <meta name=”description” content=”This is your meta-description”/> part of your page’s source code.

Most search engines don’t use it as a ranking factor. But they’ll show it in the SERPs if they think it’s relevant to a particular search query. So spend some time writing a good meta-description that includes variations of your keywords and other information that will entice users to click through. But don’t make it too long – 2 sentences is usually enough.

Add content regularly

Regularly adding new content to your site is a great way to get ahead of your competitors in the search rankings.

Each time you add a new content-rich page to your site, you are increasing the chances of your site being found by new variations of keyword and key phrases.

For example, in the last few weeks this site has been found by these key phrases in Google:

• Overuse of capital letters
• Can search engines read capital letters
• DIY SEO Google Maps

Now, these are not keywords I have targeted when writing content for the site. But by regularly adding content, I’ve been found by these and many other ‘long tail’ phrases.

Each phrase may only amount to 1 or 2 visits. But times that by all the other variations of keywords and phrases, and it can add up to a lot of search traffic.

Regularly adding new content also tells the search engines to come back and crawl your site more often. This then leads to more authority, when they see fresh relevant content added on a regular basis.

Be an authority figure

If you run your own business, you’re probably an expert in your field. So share your knowledge on your website.

Not only will you get known as an authority in your industry. Good useful content will also attract inbound links from other websites – ‘votes’ for your website in the search engines’ eyes.

Or offer to write guest articles on other relevant blogs and websites in exchange for a link back to your site in the article. Another great way to get good inbound links to your site.

Does your company have a Google Maps business listing in the Google local business centre? If not, you’re missing a trick.

A listing on Google Maps is totally free and is a great way to for people to find you. And you don’t even need a website to get listed.

Changing times

We’ve all changed how we look for services. A few years ago, the local telephone directory or yellow pages was the first place we looked when we needed to find details about a business. Now, the web is our first port of call. And naturally, Google is the site we go to first for info.

Having your business listed on Google Maps means you’ll get found for relevant searches from potential customers. Not only in Google Maps, but on the main search engines results pages too for some searches. For example, do a search for builders in Sherborne and you’ll get a map like this:

You’ll notice that some of the listings don’t even have a website. But they all do have that all important contact number. And more information is available when you click through to the maps listing.

If your website also appears in the search results below, that’s 2 places on the page where potential customers can access your services.

Claiming your listing

You might find that your business already has a Google Maps listing. If that’s the case, Google is probably using information about your company from another website such as Yell.com.

But don’t fear – you can claim your listing by signing up, claiming your listing and then amending the current details. Google will then send a postcard to the business address with a PIN number. When you get the postcard, just log into your account and enter the PIN.