Page Titles For Search Rankings
Google confirmed the use of the original page title for pages for ranking purposes. According to Google’s John Mueller, the original title of a webpage will still be used for ranking, even if this is altered in SERPs.
In response to being asked if original titles will be relevant for SEO, he confirmed that it’s currently like this although things could change in the future.
This means that if your original title targets an important SEO keyword and that keyword isn’t featured in Google’s replacement, then it’s still being used in the Google search ranking algorithms.
This also means that websites don’t need to change their titles to the ones that Google chooses. The ones replaced by Google aren’t going to necessarily improve Google ranking factors.
The knowledge that original titles are being used by google means that renaming them could adversely affect your SEO rankings.
It is also important to remember that you know your users more than google algorithms so if you’re tempted to change your titles to what google has chosen, this might not be a good idea. Don’t blindly follow the algorithms. Google does not replace your title with a superior title. Instead, focus on what you know your users will like.
Although there might be cases where the algorithms can give you better ideas, when it comes to knowing how to improve Google search ranking it is best to stick to Mueller’s advice not to blindly follow Google algorithms.
As a Kent search marketing agency we would recommend following the advice of Mueller when it comes to Google ranking factors.
Writing great titles for SEO is still vital if you want to improve google search ranking.
How to improve Google search ranking
Google designs its search results based on search behaviour. As a specialist SEO service provider, we know that SEOs should know their customer behaviour when editing title tags and meta descriptions.
Here are two important things to consider when you optimise title tags and meta descriptions:
- Optimise for the search engine results pages’ appearance: Search for the same query that your future customers would use then review how Google displays the results. Make sure you write title tags or meta descriptions that match how Google displays results.
- Optimise for search intent: Keep your user’s search intent in mind when writing title tags and meta descriptions. There are four categories of search intent: informational, commercial, transactional, and navigational.
– Informational: Searches that look for informative details about a product or service
– Commercial: Searches that look for the best prices
– Transactional: Searches with a goal of making a direct purchase
– Navigational: Searches that aim to go directly to a page that the user is looking for
