{"id":1547804,"date":"2025-01-14T08:39:09","date_gmt":"2025-01-14T13:39:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.practicalecommerce.com\/?p=1547804"},"modified":"2025-01-15T04:31:08","modified_gmt":"2025-01-15T09:31:08","slug":"what-to-know-about-meta-descriptions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.practicalecommerce.com\/what-to-know-about-meta-descriptions","title":{"rendered":"What to Know about Meta Descriptions"},"content":{"rendered":"

A meta description summarizes the content on a web page. Google has long stated that meta descriptions do not impact rankings, yet business execs often misunderstand their function.<\/p>\n

Here’s what to know about meta descriptions from a search engine optimization perspective.<\/p>\n

Not a ranking factor<\/h3>\n

When ranking web pages, Google doesn’t consider meta descriptions, although they can appear<\/a> in the snippets of organic listings, informing searchers of what the page is about.<\/p>\n

Note the example below for a Google search of “practical ecommerce.” The snippet shows the query (“practical ecommerce”) in bold text, likely increasing the clicks on the listing. Thus meta descriptions containing popular keywords typically attract more attention \u2014 and clicks.<\/p>\n

\"Screenshot<\/a>

A search for “practical ecommerce” produces a snippet using the page’s meta description.<\/p><\/div>\n

Not always in search results<\/h3>\n

Nonetheless, Google usually ignores a page’s meta description and uses body content in the search snippet. Google confirms this in a “Search Central” blog post<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Google primarily uses the content on the page to automatically determine the appropriate snippet. We may also use descriptive information in the meta description element when it describes the page better than other parts of the content.<\/em><\/p>\n

A search snippet is query-dependent \u2014 Google attempts to generate a snippet relevant to the searcher’s word or phrase. Including all potential queries in a meta description is impossible, but a couple of tactics apply:<\/p>\n