JC Serrano
Oct 12, 20223 min
Updated: Oct 25, 2022
Meta descriptions may not be a Lawyer SEO ranking factor, but they can influence click-through rates. Think of meta descriptions like book summaries, which give your audience a preview of your law firm content.
While headlines or titles could be enough to catch people's attention, you should underestimate the potential pull meta descriptions can have. With so much competition in the SERPs, you want to make sure you stand out as much as possible—meta descriptions are one of the only things people see before clicking on your page.
Let's look at some easy but effective meta description optimization tips for Illinois Attorney SEO:
Keep in mind that people need specific answers and solutions to their questions. Meta descriptions can be a way to differentiate individual results in the SERPs. For example, there might be five results with the same title, so the meta description would be a great way to help them make a choice.
In other words, a strong meta description may help you stand out from the crowd of pages competing for the same keyword in the SERPs.
Following our discussion of the benefits that meta descriptions have for Illinois Lawyer SEO and law firm marketing, let's look at the best ways to write and optimize them:
1. Stick To A Character Limit
Generally speaking, each meta description shouldn't be longer than 160 characters. If your meta description is too long, it will be cut off and replaced with an ellipsis (...). Any necessary details at the end may not be shown to searchers.
Remember: By "most crucial," this includes the general theme of the content and your most important keywords.
That being said, put the most crucial section of your meta descriptions near the beginning. That way, they're more likely to get cut off.
2. Be Concise
The meta description should include an accurate summary of what the searcher can expect when they click on your website. You want to be concise while still being compelling. Keep the detailed explanation for the page's content.
Remember: People don't have the time to read long, rambly, and incomprehensible meta descriptions.
Again, this is because the SERPs have so many results to choose from. If they don't get what you mean, they'll just move on to another one that better describes the content they're looking for.
3. Use Your Main Keywords
Meta descriptions should contain keywords to draw attention to the crucial subjects and information. After all, keywords are based on what people are already looking for.
Conversely, you shouldn't overuse keywords in your meta descriptions. Too many make your meta descriptions difficult to read or overly wordy. This could negatively affect your Illinois Lawyer SEO instead of helping it.
Furthermore, meta descriptions don't affect rankings, so you shouldn't focus too much on including as many keywords as possible. Instead, stick to one or two.
Decide on the keyword that best describes your page rather than utilizing several.
4. Avoid Duplicates
Duplicates are detrimental to your Lawyer SEO. Search engines could read them as a sign of spam or low quality. As a result, it's crucial to make sure each page, including the meta descriptions, is unique.
You can easily keep track of your meta descriptions by putting them in a spreadsheet to help you spot potential redundancies. Additionally, this is an excellent approach to limiting keyword and character length.
5. Hint At The Potential Value Of Your Content
People need a reason to click on your page. There are so many other options in the SERPs, so users will click on the ones they'll get the most out of.
Remember: The most effective content in law firm content marketing is one that's valuable to your audience. People will gravitate to those that'll help or benefit them in some way.
That said, you also don't want to resort to clickbait. Getting more clicks isn't worth it if people get disappointed, close your page, or won't convert. So, just deliver high-quality content and represent that quality in your meta descriptions.
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