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Action plan: how to change the titles of your
web pages to get more visitors
The titles that you use for your web pages are very important.
They are an important factor for the ranking algorithms of
search engines and they are the first thing that web surfers
see when they find your website in the search results.
Depending on which kind of traffic you want to attract, you
should use different title formats on your web pages:
1. News titles (not so good for SEO)
This kind of title is often used by bloggers and news websites.
Here are some examples:
Beat the 'overqualified' tag
Parking fees spark meter madness
Nominate your hero
Karl Malden died
The problem with these titles is that they are not good for
search engine optimization. These titles usually don't contain
relevant keywords and they don't look very attractive in the
search results.
There won't be many people who will type "Parking fees
spark meter madness" in Google's search box so it's not
likely that the page will get many visitors through search
engines.
2. Shopping titles (good for SEO)
Shopping titles usually contain a product name that is used
by web surfers. If they also contain a call to action, you
can get targeted visitors with these titles. Here are some
examples:
ASUS Eee PC 1000HE 10-Inch Black Netbook - 9.5 Hour Battery
Life
ASUS Eee PC 1000 - Buy it now for only $249.95
Buy an ASUS Eee PC 1000 with extended guarantee
Free shipping: ASUS Eee PC 1000 - $249.95
The first shopping title is rather descriptive because it
only lists the features. The other titles contain a call to
action (buy now), prices and additional benefits (free shipping).
People who want to buy an ASUS Eee PC probably will click
on the title with the call to action while people who are
looking for product information might choose the first title.
3. Information seeker titles (good for SEO)
Information seeker titles won't attract buyers but people
who are looking for information about a special topic. Here
are some examples:
How to lose weight as fast as possible
How to repair a broken chair
12 mistakes most parents make when choosing a school
How to find the perfect golf club
5 ways to find the perfect partner
These web page titles are good because they will attract visitors
over a long time period. People are always looking for "how
to" articles and solutions to their problems and you
will get long term, constant traffic with these pages.
Action plan: how to change your current web page titles
Good web page titles can make a huge difference in the number
of visitors that your website gets. For that reason, you should
check the titles of all web pages of your website now:
Make sure that the titles of your web pages are descriptive.
It should be clear what to expect on the pages.
If possible, add a call to action and benefits in your web
page title.
Put the most important information at the beginning of the
title. Search engines might shorten the title in the search
result pages and people might not see the complete text.
If you're not a major brand name, avoid your company name
in your web page titles.
Do not use the same title for all of your web pages. This
is a mistake that many beginners make.
People judge books by their covers and search results by web
page titles. If you want to get as many website visitors as
possible, you should develop engaging titles for all pages
of your site.
In addition to the title of your web pages, many other elements
influence the position of your pages in Google's search results.
You can get a full analysis of all elements of your web pages
here.
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