How unique should meta descriptions be?
-
This is something I've been wondering for a while but can't seem to find any advice on. My website features ~60 different companies, each having their own profile page. When optimizing for SEO, how unique should each page's meta description be? Put another way, can I be penalized if the descriptions are all identical except for the company name I include?
Any thoughts, resources, or best practices are appreciated!
-
Thanks, and I agree with you. The similar descriptions are because I'm not personally setting them each time, so I wanted to provide a template to other users so we at least have something custom for search results pages instead of the default text from the beginning of the post.
-
True.
Also, a good description helps to improve CTR. So, you may not be penalized by using all the same but a word different instead you might not be getting the best CTR possible.Just try to be as much informative as possible and think what would you think as a Google Search User if you see several ranking positions with very, very, very similar descriptions?
Best Luck.
GR. -
It is not a problem that they are all the same
The problem would be if the content inside was exactly the same, there if it would penalize Google
-
I believe the meta description is becoming less and less of a SERP factor (especially since it does not affect rankings directly, and you should write it to improve CTR). You should not be flagged for duplicate content for doing what you described with the meta descriptions in my opinion, just make sure the actual content on each page is unique and not duplicating other pages.
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
What is the best meta description for Category Pages, Tag Pages and Main Article?
Hi, I want to index all my categories and tags. But I fear about duplicating the meta description. for example: I have a tag name "Learn Stock Market", a category name "Learning", and a main article "What is Stock Market". What is your suggestion for meta description of these three pages that looks great for seo google?
On-Page Optimization | | mbmozmb0 -
Should you aim for Google to use your meta tags?
When updating meta titles and descriptions, I'm taking note of whether Google is displaying the set tag or changing it to copy from the page. Does this affect the ranking position if Google is having to change the tag? How much should I worry if Google is choosing to change every other page? Thanks!
On-Page Optimization | | Omar_aw0 -
Duplicate URL errors when URL's are unique
Hi All, I'm running through MOZ analytics site crawl report and it is showing numerous duplicate URL errors, but the URLs appear to be unique. I see that the majority of the URL's are the same, but shouldn't the different brands make them unique to one another? http://www.sierratradingpost.com/clearance~1/clothing~d~5/tech-couture~b~33328/ http://www.sierratradingpost.com/clearance~1/clothing~d~5/zobha~b~3072/ Any ideas as to why these would be shown as duplicate URL errors?
On-Page Optimization | | STP_SEO0 -
The Keyword density in a landing page is very low . by adding meta keyword tag can improve keyword density?
The Keyword density in a landing page is very low . by adding meta keyword tag can improve keyword density?
On-Page Optimization | | socialhi50 -
Duplicate meta data for 301 redirected items
Google webmaster tools tells me that I have duplicate title tags for two items. They have the same product ID. When there is a change in SEO URL, the system does an automatic 301 redirect of the first item towards the second item, like in the example below:
On-Page Optimization | | Madlena
22"x28" White Foam Board School Project Kit|Geographics.com
/p48998/foam-board-school-project-kit-22-x-28/product_info.html /p48998/white-foam-board-school-project-kit/product_info.html What are we doing wrong that Google asks for different meta data for a 301 redirect? Thanks!0 -
Meta Descriptions - Duplicate Content?
I have created a Meta Description for a page that is optimized for SERPS. If I also put this exact content on my page for my readers, would this be considered duplicate content? The meta description and content will be listed on the same page with the same URL. Thanks for your help.
On-Page Optimization | | tuckjames0 -
Any SEO effect(s) / impact of Meta No Cache?
Hi SEOMoz Guys, Hope you guys are doing well. I've been searching online and bumped into this archived page (http://www.seomoz.org/qa/view/34982/meta-nocache-affect-ranking). I would like to get an updated take on this issue whether or not the meta no cache code on a page bears negative/positive or no SEO impact / effect. <meta http-equiv="Pragma" content="no-cache" /> <meta http-equiv="Cache-Control" content="no-cache"/> Thanks! Steve
On-Page Optimization | | sjcbayona-412182 -
How many meta tags are appropriate?
How many meta tags are appropriate? There is a page that ranks above me that has many more than I do. It has (I have removed the content of each to give a description of the type of content): I only use meta tags for keywords and description, robots. Should I have more? Thanks.
On-Page Optimization | | scanlin0