A meta description is a short summary of a webpage that appears below the title in search engine results. It doesn’t directly affect your ranking, but it strongly influences whether someone clicks on your link. Think of it as your page’s sales pitch in the search results.
What Makes a Good Meta Description?
- Keep it under 160 characters so it doesn’t get cut off in results
- Include your target keyword naturally (Google bolds it in results)
- Describe what the reader will get from the page
- Include a call to action like “Learn how,” “Get started,” or “Find out”
- Be specific and compelling, not vague or generic
Does Google Always Use Your Meta Description?
Not always. Google sometimes ignores your meta description and pulls a different excerpt from the page that better matches the searcher’s query. Write a good one anyway, since Google uses it for many searches.
Setting Meta Descriptions in WordPress
Install an SEO plugin like Yoast SEO or Rank Math. Both add a meta description field below each post and page editor. They also show a preview of how your snippet will look in search results, including a character counter.
Related: On-Page SEO
Related: SEO
