Guide · 5 min read
How to write title tags and meta descriptions that get clicks
By MarketPup ·
Your title tag and meta description are often the first thing people read about you on a search results page. They don't need to be clever. They need to say what the page offers and why it's worth the click.
What each one does
- Title tag: the blue headline in search results and the name on the browser tab. It's one of the clearest signals of what a page is about.
- Meta description: the short summary under the headline. It doesn't directly change rankings, but a clear one can earn more clicks. Search engines sometimes rewrite it with text from your page.
Title tags: a simple formula
Main topic, then a detail that sets you apart, then your brand: What it is | Who it's for or where | Brand.
- Dog grooming in Charlotte, NC | Walk-ins Welcome | Example Groom Co.
- Invoice app for freelancers | Free for 3 clients | ExampleApp
Aim for roughly 50 to 60 characters so it isn't cut off. Put the most important words first. Give every page its own title. Duplicate titles make pages compete with each other.
Meta descriptions: answer "why click?"
Aim for roughly 140 to 160 characters. Say what the reader gets, add one concrete detail (a price, a time, a place) and end with a plain next step.
- Full grooms, baths and nail trims for dogs of every size in south Charlotte. See prices and book online in under a minute.
- Send invoices, track payments and get paid faster. Free for your first 3 clients, no card needed to start.
Mistakes to avoid
- "Home" as a title. It tells people and search engines nothing.
- Keyword stuffing. "Dog grooming, dog groomer, grooming dogs" reads as spam and wastes space.
- Claims the page doesn't back up. If the description says "free", the page should say so too.
- One description copied across every page. Write one for each important page, or leave it out on minor ones.
Check your work
Open the page, use View Page Source, and search for <title> and name="description" to confirm what search engines read. Then check Google Search Console's Performance report after a few weeks: pages with many impressions but few clicks are the first ones to rewrite.
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