A title tag is an HTML element that specifies the title of a web page. They are displayed on search engine results (SERP) as a clickable title for a given result. It is important for usability, SEO and social sharing.
By itself, the Title plays a role both from the point of view of Google referencing and that of Internet users. In SEO, this meta tag is one of the most important because it gives search engines relevance information on the page for its display on user queries. This is one of the most important criteria in natural referencing and one of the most important tips and advice to respect in SEO.
Theoretically present on each page, it allows search engines to enter the theme treated , and guarantees a good click rate from Internet users who will see it. It is supposed to introduce the content of the page and make you want to discover it.
Held to respect certain criteria and to allow its content to be more visible, the Title tag is an important element from an SEO point of view. It is as much as the optimization of the meta description for example. It serves both natural referencing and the conversion rate.
How to properly write a Title tag according to the targeted keywords? What are the constraints and criteria to be respected? How to make this title a key element of its content? So here are some tips to optimize it for your target queries and increase your ctr.
What is a Title tag?
First, we talk about tags because we are interested in the HTML language. The latter allows Google and other engines to interpret certain tags as being important elements of a document.
Thus, the Title materializes in the following form:
<title>Title of my page</title>
In terms of navigation rendering, it is found in the tab of the page visited . Clearly, it is not visible in the body of the page, but is displayed at the top of the browser. It is seen by the Internet user on the SERP before clicking, as well as on his browser while he visits the page.
For those who don't know anything about HTML, extensions make their work easier, directly offering a “Title” field to avoid going through the code. The Yoast or SEOpress tool (for WordPress in particular) offer it.
What is its role in SEO?
As said before, a search engine uses the Title tag to understand the theme that will be developed on a page. It is thanks to that that he will decide to position it on such or such request. Clearly, if it is off topic, there is a good chance that your page will not receive the expected visibility.
Google and other search engines use this tag to evaluate and rank your page thematically and intentionally . The Title is therefore an SEO tool of primary importance with the content. See our article on the importance of content size in SEO.
It will also be included on the results pages relating to a query. It suffices to carry out a search to note that the first sites proposed display a Title corresponding to the search formulated.
It is therefore necessary to take care of the writing of this tag so that it also encourages the Internet user to consult the content and to click (ctr) to visit your website to generate traffic.
The h1, will complete it using synonyms with relevance.
Each url must have its own title. Home page SEO optimization is independent of others. The reuse of the same element on all those of the site is to be avoided, and is one of the common errors.
Title tag optimization
Being an important element for search engines and meeting certain constraints, it is possible to optimize the Title tag to get the most out of it.
Note : as with the meta description tag, if you forget to fill it in, Google will do it for you arbitrarily by revealing what seems most relevant to it. Rather than entrusting this mission to Google, without guarantee of the result, take care of writing your titles to optimize your chances of being clearly visible on the SERPs. There is little chance that Google will choose the appropriate optimization for your page...
How long should a Title be?
The display of this title is limited in size on the SERPs, so it is useful to stick to a certain amount of words so that it is displayed in full , without being arbitrarily shortened by search engines.
The display limit is 512 pixels . This space is used to display approximately 55-60 characters including spaces. It is therefore important to condense your title as much as possible to ensure optimal visibility in search engine results.
To get an idea of the final rendering, extensions allow you to have a preview of the result through a preview.
The integration of keywords
It will be very important to include interesting keywords . On the one hand so that the Internet user quickly understands what you are talking about, and on the other hand to benefit from a better positioning in the results offered by search engines.
We will still avoid going overboard by inserting only keywords. The Internet user will not find his account there. It is therefore necessary to know your niche well or to use tools capable of submitting a list of important lexies for your sector of activity.
We will favor the main keyword by placing it as far to the left as possible (from the start).
In E-commerce, the SEO title of the product page can include the name of the product, the brand and its characteristics in order to provide as much information as possible to potential customers.
For example:
- Stove sweeping: how to do it yourself?
- Reversible air conditioning: which power to choose?
We will also use questions that Internet users may ask themselves to formulate texts that will catch their attention.
The presence of figures also represents a lever and an interesting trend in terms of optimization. The numbers stand out easily from the text and often attract attention, especially if the Internet user is in the research phase.
For example:
- 3 ways to sweep a chimney yourself.
- 10 models of economical reversible air conditioning.
The effect that figures produce on Internet users no longer needs to be proven. However, they should be used correctly and sparingly.
Note : too often, the main page of a website is called “Home“. There are more subtle ways to send an interesting signal to Google… A title that can be optimized, what's the point of depriving yourself of it? Take the opportunity to write a Title tag directly related to the main keyword of your niche.
A Title = a URL
It is important to write unique titles for each page . This tag allows engines to capture and evaluate your content, your articles may be considered as "duplicate content" (duplicate content), thus penalizing your natural referencing.
You should see this point as an opportunity to address a multitude of subjects relating to your sector of activity. Each of the contents will thus be the possibility of treating a theme or a key expression in an exhaustive way, thus allowing your site to benefit from a good natural referencing.
Similarly, for websites addressing several countries, the mixing of languages should be avoided, especially in the titles . It will be better to create several versions of the same site, each in one language, so as not to confuse the search engines.
The Title tag is an important visibility lever
In conclusion of this presentation, we can highlight the important role that this element plays, both in terms of SEO and traffic . A good Title tag allows you to obtain an interesting position on the results pages of the engines, just as it encourages the Internet user to take action.
We will therefore try to write a title directly related to the proposed content , to respect the recommended maximum size (512 pixels, or about sixty characters), while taking into account the human and his needs.
Like the meta description or the Hn tags, the Title must be neat and studied to serve your SEO. It is not enough to line up a few keywords for the expected result to be there.
So here is a start of tracks and elements of advice to manage to charm Google and make it rain clicks.
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