What are meta tags in SEO?
Meta tags are pieces of code that instruct search engines on how to portray your website. These meta tags instruct browsers on how to provide information to users.
Meta tags are only present in HTML, often in the “head” of the page, and are thus only accessible to search engines (and anyone who knows where to look) as opposed to tags that are visible to the human eye (on a weblog, for example). The “meta” indicates that the information provided by these tags is metadata or information about info on your page.
Why is meta tag important in SEO?
As was noted, meta tags provide search engines and users with more information about your website. They may be tweaked to emphasize your content’s most vital points and draw more attention to your site in SERPs.
Making sure your site provides the greatest possible response to a visitor’s query is an important part of providing a positive user experience, which is increasingly valued by search engines. To aid with this process, meta tags ensure that the most relevant details about your site are shown up front in an easily digestible way.
Meta tags play an important part in SEO by doing things like:
- Indicating to search engines what your page is about
- Facilitating comprehension of your website’s content
- Avoiding problems caused by duplicating content
- Promoting engagement and natural search engine traffic
A well-structured site is easily navigable thanks to some meta tags, while other tags instruct search engines on which aspects of your page to prioritize and which to ignore. Although search engine optimization (SEO) is important, not all meta tags are created equal. You’ll discover the whole list in our comprehensive guide to meta tags.
A common initial line of protection against duplicate content is using meta tags. If, for instance, your title tags are identical across many pages, Google will choose the best one to display and ignore the others. This may also differ from the page you wish to include in search engine results.
What are examples of meta tags? (explain each with a little description)
Meta tags are HTML elements that offer information regarding a web page to search engines and additional web services. They are placed in the head section of an HTML document. Here are some examples of commonly used meta tags:
1. `<title>`: The title tag defines the title of a web page. It appears in the browser’s title bar and is also used by search engines as the main headline for the page in search results.
2. `<meta name=”description” content=”…”>`: The description meta tag provides a summary or description of the web page’s content. It is often displayed as a snippet below the title in search engine results and helps users understand what the page is about.
3. `<meta name=”keywords” content=”…”>`: The keywords meta tag used to be an important element for search engine optimization (SEO). It contained a list of relevant keywords describing the page’s content. However, search engines have largely avoided using this tag to determine rankings.
4. `<meta name=”robots” content=”…”>`: The robots meta tag informs search engine crawlers how they should handle the page. Common values for the content attribute include “index” (allowing indexing of the page), “index” (preventing indexing), “follow” (allowing crawling of links on the page), and “nofollow” (containing crawling of links).
5. `<meta name=”viewport” content=”…”>`: The viewport meta tag helps make web pages responsive and mobile-friendly. It sets the width and initial scale of the viewport, allowing the runner to adapt to different screen sizes and orientations.
6. `<meta http-equiv=”refresh” content=”…”>`: The refresh meta tag instructs the browser to automatically refresh or redirect the page after a specified time interval. It can be used for various purposes, such as turning to a different page or restoring dynamic content.
