When the average site owner thinks of tags, the first thing to come to mind will probably be SEO. The modification of tags is one of the most commonly known SEO techniques, possibly because it has been in the SEO arsenal for so long. This leads to a view of tags as technical, complicated features of your site.

Tags have their technical sides, certainly. Anything that needs to be accessed through code will be daunting if code is not something you commonly deal with. Some of the outcomes of tags, however, are not so completely removed from ‘normal experience’. Title tags are a perfect example of this.

Not everyone realises that title tags are the first thing most users will encounter about your site. This is because they are used as the listing itself within the SERPs. In the real world, the first contact between your business and your customers is not likely to be handled in the same way as your computer network. It’s likely to involve a lot of creativity, a few marketing techniques, and a little research on what would appeal to your customers.

Title tags should be written in this way. Your title tags should walk a fine balance between technical ability and aesthetics. Here are just a few things to consider:

• Keywords are important, and not just for search engine spiders to crawl over. Including the main keyword for that page is a sure-fire way to indicate that your pages are relevant to a user’s search.

• Every word counts in your title tag. Not only is your space limited with a title tag, the time you have to catch your user’s attention is limited as well. Including your main message within five words or less can be difficult, but it is achievable.

• Finesse is essential with your title tags. The writing of title tags is a specialist skill, and it can help to have a professional writer on board.

Sometimes, you will want to include more than one main keyword in a title tag. For example, a toy retail website might concentrate on optimising a page for girls’ toys. The main keywords for that page could be ‘girls’ toys’ and ‘fairy toys’. These keywords can be easily combined into ‘girls’ fairy toys’. Your brand keyword has an obvious place here, too, and can slip into this title tag quite easily, such as with ‘Toyworld sale: girls’ fairy toys’. Note that the selling point of the page is neatly fitted in to form a clear message that also sells the page.

Title tags can be a difficult area even for skilled copywriters, and this is one reason involving your SEO consultant can be of benefit. A well-written title tag will not only attract the attention of the search engines, but also effectively sell your site from within the search engine results pages. When your site is within the top ten, a good title tag can make a real difference. Talk to us at SEO Consult about accessing specialist writing services for your site’s search engine optimisation.

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