7 Best Title Tag Practices for SEO in 2020

A title tag is a Hypertext Markup Language or mostly known as HTML, is an element that describes web pages content. Title tags are displayed in SERPs or Search Engine Results Pages. 

It is vital to have a good title tag that will describe what your page is all about both to users and Google. Title tags should be a concise and accurate description of a page’s content. Further, every page of your site must have a title tag that is unique to the page. There are many ways to write a title tag. With that said, here are some practices for SEO this year.

Title Length

Search engines such as Google, Bing, and Yahoo will display at least 50-60 characters in the search results. If your titles are too long, search engines will cut it off and add an ellipsis (“…”) and possibly may omit the essential words. Thus, it’s recommended to keep your titles under 60 characters long.

Avoid writing your titles with all the letters being in the UPPERCASE. Aside from your viewers having a hard time reading your text, writing everything in uppercase tells your reader that you’re shouting or angry. It’s basic netiquette to not write everything uppercase.

Don’t forget that some extended titles can work better for social media sharing in some cases. It is good to be mindful of how your title will appear in the search results. Think like a visitor and use your judgment when creating your titles.

Use the Unique Title on Every Page

Utilizing unique titles help search engines understand that your content is valuable and unique. It will drive higher click-through rates on a specific page. It’s impossible to craft a unique title page, but using code-base templates and modern CMS or Content Management System will make it possible.

For instance, if you have hundreds of product pages, a database of product categories, and other names, you can use that data to generate a title in this likely format:

[Product Category] – [Product Name] | [Brand Name]

Avoid default titles, such as “New page” or “Home.” These titles can cause Google to behave in a way that says your page has duplicate content on your website or even across other websites on the web. Besides, these titles always reduce click-through rates.

Don’t Overuse SEO Keywords

Although there aren’t any penalties in Google’s algorithm for having long titles, don’t push the limit and rely on long titles. It’s also a big no if you’re into keyword stuffing, especially if it’s in your title. 

Here’s an example of a bad, long, and keyword stuffed title:

Cheap Widgets, Widgets for Sale, Best Widgets, Buy Widgets, etc.

These titles are bad for search users and can get you into trouble with search engines. Avoid titles that repeat variations of a keyword or list of keywords. Search engines interpret variations of keywords, and it is unnecessary to put every keyword into a title.

Use the Advantage of Your Brand

If you have a well-known and reliable brand, then adding it to your titles may help boost click-through rates. It is still recommended to put your brand at the end of your title. Be mindful of how your search results are displayed. Google can also add your brand automatically to your title display.

Put the Important Keywords

Keywords that are closer to the beginning of your title tag can lead to having more impact on search rankings. Also, user experience shows that people always scan the first two words of a headline. For that reason, it is recommended that titles appear first with the unique aspect of the page, such as the product name. Avoid titles like this:

Brand Name | Major Product Category – Minor Product Category – Name Of Product

The example above is a front-load repetitive title with lots of unnecessary information. Moreover, if search engines will cut off a title like this, the different portion will likely to disappear.

You can have an SEO Specialist that can help develop content, including phrases or keywords, to increase the traffic to your site. SEO specialists are responsible for reviewing and analyzing websites that are optimized to be picked by a search engine.

Call to Action

Call-to-action is helpful to let people attract then click, even if they aren’t often found in your keyword research. CTA’s or Call to Actions include words such as download, buy, listen, watch, and learn.

Using these action verbs often entice a user to do a specific action. When a user sees it in the results, you can get that extra help in generating traffic and probably will increase the click-through rates of your website.

Write for your Customers

Title tags are crucial to SEO. Remember that your primary job is to attract and gather clicks from target visitors who are likely to find your content reliable and valuable. It is vital to think about the user experience when you are creating the title tags. It should convey the most accurate and positive message as much as possible.

Make sure you think about the things on the page that make it necessary and valuable for your clients, visitors, and target audience. Your title tag should highlight the importance your page provides to them.  For articles or blog posts, a good title tag can share qualities with a good headline. Alternatively, you can also use the headline you have already written. 

Takeaway

Title tags are short, yet have an essential role to play in any SEO strategy. There are a lot of practices to achieve a good title tag. You need to consider the length of the characters, avoid keyword stuffing. These simple practices can help to improve your ranking in SERPs.

Also, keep in mind that the title tag is part of a great SEO strategy. When you utilize your title tags correctly, you can attract users. In this way, it will increase your click-through rates. The good title tag you have the more search visitors will check your site.