Do meta tags matter in how you rank in the search results?

You better believe they matter, and don’t let anyone tell you differently, even if it’s the top search engine in the world!

Listen. I have been to SEO forums full of big bad bullies ad nauseum. They’ve all been told by various experts that Meta Tags have no ranking factor.

Well then, how is it possible that I can get clients to appear at the tip-top of the organic search results, above or below a 7-pack in which they also appear? And oh yeah, a top Google maps listing to boot!

The answer is pure and simple. Proper meta tags and SEO. I do it all the time, yet the big bad bullies scream “META TAGS HAVE NO RANKING FACTOR”. Hog wash! It has everything to do with relevancy, which gives you rank in response to a search query. If your website is relevant to the search query, you will rank for it.

Rank and Relevancy:

If you want your website to rank on the first page of the organic search results, you must optimize it for those specific keywords. There is no way of getting around that fact. However, not all keywords are created equal and you may not appear for all the keywords and phrases you want, depending on the competition. You would hope to show up in the search results for at least three of them.

Let’s say you are a plumber and your website represents your business online. Your desire is to rank for the keywords that reflect the products and services offered. Therefore, the best way to accomplish this is to optimize your meta tags to have 100% relevancy for title, description and keywords, along with being 100% relevant to the content. Enter SEO.

Search Engine Optimization:

SEO means exactly what it says it is. Optimizing your site for the engines. You want the spiders to easily flow through your site finding all things relevant to each other. The content should have relevance to your title, description and keyword meta tags. The meta tags are for the engines and the content is for your readers.

Oh, I can hear the blood curdling screams now..”but, but Google said…” I don’t care what Google said, and I don’t care what the latest and most prolific article writer wrote. I am telling you from personal experience and working in this field that meta tags do in fact matter when paired with awesome SEO.

Why do websites without SEO get top rankings?

Now you know why the search results can be so crappy at times. You get this mish-mash of unoptimized websites that often may not contain the information you are seeking. Complaints about irrelevant organic search results circulate the internet untethered.

In conclusion, getting top placement in the organic search results takes proper optimization of your website. Do meta tags matter? You bet they do.