When it comes to search engine optimization (SEO), keywords are essential. They help search engines understand what your website is all about and can improve your rankings in search results. But have you ever heard of meta keywords? In this blog post, we’ll dive into what meta keywords are, why they’re important, and how they work.
What Are Meta Keywords?
Meta keywords are a type of meta tag that’s included in the HTML code of a web page. They’re used to tell search engines what keywords are relevant to that page, making it easier for the search engine to categorize and index the content. Essentially, they provide search engines with a short list of the most important keywords that describe the content on the page.
Why Use Meta Keywords?
Although meta keywords used to be a crucial part of SEO, their importance has decreased over time. This is because spammers abused the use of meta keywords to manipulate search rankings, and search engines stopped putting as much weight on them. However, it’s still a good practice to include them in your HTML code as they can still be useful to search engines on occasion.
Why Is it Important?
Meta keywords may not significantly impact your search rankings directly, but they can help curious visitors understand what your page is about before they click on it. Additionally, they can provide additional context to search engines, which can improve the search result’s relevancy. However, be cautious not to stuff your web pages with irrelevant and repetitive keywords, as this may work against you and result in your pages being penalized by search engines.
How Does it Work?
To add meta keywords to your webpage, you need to utilize specific HTML tags. The typical tag to employ is the meta keyword tag, which integrates the keywords you want to target; you should place it in your HTML’s head section. Additionally, be sure only to include relevant keywords that truly describe what the page is about, as adding too many keywords can be detrimental to search results.
Examples
Suppose you’re creating a blog post about cats. Examples of meta keywords you could use might include ‘cats,’ ‘kittens,’ ‘cat care,’ ‘cat toys,’ and ‘cat health.’ You don’t want to include irrelevant keywords like ‘dogs’ or ‘hamsters’ as they have no relevance to the content of your page.
Common Questions and Answers
- Does adding more keywords improve SEO? No. It is best to include only relevant keywords.
- Can meta keywords harm your SEO? If you stuff your meta keywords with irrelevant content, it can harm your search engine rankings.
- Are meta keywords still used today? Although their relevance has significantly reduced over time, they may still offer some benefits to a website.
- How many meta keywords should I use? Keep your selection to around five to ten keywords to avoid stuffing your web pages.
In conclusion, meta keywords may not be as crucial to SEO as they once were, but it’s still essential to implement them on your webpage to improve its relevancy. However, it’s essential to use relevant, optimized meta keywords, and not overload them with irrelevant content. Hopefully, this blog post has helped you understand what meta keywords are, why they’re important, and how they work.
