You know what’s a big deal?
Google.
We're all at the mercy of Google. You know this by now.
As internet users, the results we get when we search for keywords on the web is determined by Google, and as businesses with websites, the words we choose to use in our site content are influenced by what Google tells us that internet users are looking for. Basically, Google dominates the way we use the internet.
Google’s Algorithm Explained
The truth is, no one actually knows the secret, inner workings of the Google Algorithm. It's all educated guesses by professionals who have been in the industry for years, because Google won't tell anyone their secrets.
However, there are a few fundamental practices recognized industry-wide that have been proven to yield positive results in search engine rankings. One of these practices is the strategic use of page titles.
What is a Page Title?
Page titles are what you see at the very top of a website page and in your browser tab, and they typically describe what that particular web page is about at a high level. In addition to helping your site visitors figure out what a page is about, Google’s web crawlers—those little robots that scan the interwebs reading ALL that content—pick up the “page title” attribute in the code embedded in the web page. Still with me? Since page titles describe what a page is about, Google counts this as significant information to add to search results- making them extremely important.
How Do I Add a Page Title?
Content management systems like Drupal, WordPress, and HubSpot all have easily accessible page title fields (usually at the top—go figure).
If your site is custom coded, page titles should be located between the <title> and </title> tags.
How Do I Use Page Titles Strategically?
- Make sure your page titles are relevant to the content on your web page
- Use keywords you want to be found for in your page titles (within reason and without causing duplicate titles)
- Keep page titles under 60 characters to ensure they display properly in search
Strategic page titles can be implemented in a matter of minutes to have a positive impact on your page rankings.
Want to learn more about dominating search engines? Check out our search engine optimization resource page!
Written by Lindsey Bowshier
Lindsey is the President of Tribute Media. Her degree is in English and Communication with an emphasis in Journalism, her background is in copywriting and content marketing, and she's had pretty much every job at Tribute Media since she joined the agency in 2014. Outside of work, Lindsey participates in a "super-cool-not-at-all-nerdy" writing group. Her favorite writer is Dorothy Parker.
