Meta tags are bits of code in the HyperText Markup Language (HTML) code that work behind the scenes, where a website's visitors can't see, to control how search engines and web browsers see and represent that website. Providing information to search engines is one function of meta tags. Search engine optimization (SEO) is the practice of altering the website code to improve the site's ranking in search results.

Important points to remember about meta tags include:

1. Meta tags go in the "head" section of an HTML document. Web-authoring applications often generate meta tags automatically.

2. The title and description meta tags are most important.

3. Search engine spiders don't rely on the keyword meta tag for search engine rankings.

4. Other meta tags have useful functions that have nothing to do with SEO, such as directing specific browsers to use a given piece of code.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Find meta tags information on how meta tags work and the best way to use them

There are a few well-known and frequently-used meta tags, including title, description, keywords and author. But many other meta tags exist for specific situations. Consult a meta tags list to find other meta tags that could be useful for your website.

I recommend: Learn how to use HTML meta tags at SearchEngineWatch.com. Find out how meta tags influence keyword rankings at High Rankings. Consult a list of HTML meta tags at the meta tags directory at W3Schools.

Get suggestions on which meta tags to use and what content to put in them

Your web-authoring software may generate meta tags for you. If not, use an online meta tag generator to produce the code for your site's meta tags, after you input the pertinent information specific to your website.

I recommend: Use a free meta tag generator at AddMe!, a website with information on promoting your website. Generate meta tags for your site and get information on specific meta tags and how they work at HowRank.com. Download a free meta tag generator from SiteUp, if you want one that formats your meta tags and lets you choose their content.

Evaluate your website meta tag content

An online meta tag analyzer can tell you whether your metatags contain errors or whether your page title, description and keywords are relevant to your page's content. It can also alert you when you use too many meta tags. SEO suggestions on how to improve your code are another result you will get from a meta tag analyzer.

I recommend: Use a meta tag analyzer to learn how to improve your meta tag content and check other aspects of your site at Submit Express. The free meta tag analyzer at Scrub The Web offers basic and members-only features.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Want to find meta tags that your competition is using on their website? Visit the site and use your browser's text menu to view the page source code to see the HTML code, including meta tags near the beginning of the file.

Title Tags are one of the Most Important Factors in SEO

Picture thousands of tiny Google Robots scouring the web for relevant content to match up with millions of searches. When Googlebot finds your website, the most important information it collects, are the Page Titles.

Place the title for each page between the two title tags in your HTML code.

Page Titles are Displayed:

• In the top bar of your web browser for the page you are currently viewing.
• On the top line for each entry in the Search Results.
• As the default text used for bookmarking a web page in your browser.

Start with a Great Headline, then SEO

When your site shows up in the search results, the Title is the first chance you have to get noticed and make an impression. A Title that promises a benefit to your potential customers increases the chances of being selected.

Without a title that encourages a click-through, all your SEO efforts to boost your site in the search results will have been wasted.

Powerful SEO Device

Before you can optimize your title tags, you'll need to research your most valuable SEO keywords. Strategically incorporating your keywords into your title tags is a powerful SEO tactic. Be sure to use the same keywords in the title throughout the content of the page.

Top Title Tag Tips for SEO

• Place the most important keywords at the beginning.
• Write titles using capitals, like the title of a book.
• Keep titles down to 65 characters long.

Avoid these Title Tag Mistakes

• No Title at all. There are over 35 million web pages called: 'Untitled Document.' They have absolutely no SEO value.
  
• All Page Titles the same. Misses a huge SEO opportunity. Optimize each page with its own unique title tag.
• Wasting space with filler words. Use concise phrases. | Make every word count. | Use the 'vertical bar' character to separate phrases.
• Keyword stuffing. No one will click on a title in the search results that just consists of a bunch of keywords. Google doesn't like it either.
• Sales pitches. You'll turn off potential customers before they even get to your website.

Optimizing your title tags is an essential step for strategic SEO. A title that stands out in the search results will be noticed by your potential customers and bring in more business to your website.