Searching for the Perfect Title Tag

The Title Tag is part of the SEO basics that should be familiar to anyone who has even a superficial engagement with the topic of search engine optimization. Yet, surprisingly many non-optimized page titles can still be found, even on large commercial websites. Gary Illyes from Google responded to a question about the ranking factor and reiterated that Meta Titles remain important. This hasn't changed since 2006. This topic should still be taken seriously.

Figure 1: Google's statement on Title Tags as a ranking factor

As discussions on many SEO websites demonstrate, there is still confusion and debate even within the SEO community about what the optimal SEO Title should look like. We summarize the basics for you and provide examples of successful and less optimal page titles for various use cases.

The Length of the Title Tag

As a 'best practice,' a length of up to 65 characters is generally considered optimal. The main reason for this is that Google typically displays no more than 65 characters in the search results, sometimes even fewer. Although there are examples where Google shows more characters for long search queries, this is more of an exception, and 65 characters or the pixel width is still considered a guideline. In this case, 569 pixels should not be exceeded. For example, the letter 'm' is wider in terms of pixels than the letter 'i.'

This ideal is not without its difficulties: within the 65 characters or 569 pixels, spaces, the brand, and individual page information must be included. Especially with long product names in online shops or longer article headlines on news sites, the extent of 65 characters can be quickly exceeded. This does not necessarily have dramatic consequences, as Google indexes about 150 characters, in some cases significantly more. Even if the additional characters are not visible in the search results, they are still considered.

So what argues against long SEO Title Tags? It is well known that Google assigns greater importance to keywords at the beginning of the page title. A Meta Title with a large number of keywords risks diluting the relevance of individual keywords on the one hand. On the other hand, keywords that appear in the 10th, 20th, or 30th position in the page title are hardly considered significant anymore. Those who deal with the topic of search engine optimization know that the number of generic keywords that can be optimized for a single page is very limited. It is rarely beneficial to optimize for more than one or two strong keywords. So why inflate the page title with ten more keywords? In this context, the benefit of excessively long SEO Title Tags can at least be questioned.

Also, in light of the increasing importance of social media, long Title Tags are simply impractical, hard to share on Twitter, look spammy, and are likely to be shared less often.

HTML Title Tag in the Source Code: 

The html Title Tag is incorporated into the header area of the page:

<title>
Micro Sparrow X4 E-Scooter Children's Buy Online | fahrrad.de
</title>

Structure of the Title Tag

As explained above, the most important keyword should ideally appear at the beginning of the Title Tag, as the position is seen as a clear signal by search engines. From the user's perspective, it is also advisable to choose the Meta Title identical to the h1-heading. In search results, the page title attracts enough attention to create a certain expectation for the user. If the main headline deviates significantly from the page title, it can lead to uncertainty or, at worst, leaving the page. The brand is found at the end of the Title Tag on many websites, and for good reason: At this position, it is visible and aids branding, but does not hinder the optimization of the Title Tag for the most important keywords, which are placed at the beginning.

The following will show specific application examples and approaches to creating an optimal structure for Meta Titles.

Emphasizing the Brand in the Title Tag: If the branding effect on a website is particularly important, such as on a company page, it may be advisable to not place the brand at the end. If the page title exceeds 65 characters on individual pages, the brand will disappear in the search results. In this case, Title Tags like

[Main keyword] at [Brand name] – [additional keywords]

are a good solution. In an online shop that places great importance on the brand, the Meta Title Tag could be:

[Product name] by [Brand] – [Call to Action]

Short brand names have a clear advantage in this regard, as they require few characters in the Title Tag and leave more space for keywords:

Figure 2: OBI uses the page title as a call to action

SEO Title Tag in Online Shops: Product pages in online shops are a kind of special case, as they not only inform but also encourage their visitors to make a purchase. For a high click-through rate in unpaid search results, it can be worthwhile to include a short call to action in the Title Tag. Discounts or special offers can also increase the click-through rate, provided the expectations raised are actually fulfilled on the respective landing page. The product name should be placed at the beginning of the page title to ensure that the search engine considers it the most relevant. The call to action is then placed before or after the brand; for example:

[Product name] – [Call to Action] at [Brand]

If the brand doesn't play a role, it can be omitted, leaving more characters for a more detailed product name. Figure 3: Mister Spex leaves out the brand name - Title Tag offers great potential due to its length

Meta Title Tags on paginated pages: The topic of pagination of websites is problematic in terms of duplicate content in the page content. Often, all pages of an article that spans multiple URLs have exactly the same Title Tag. The same applies to the result pages of product categories in an online shop. If there is no 'view all' page offered to the search engine as the preferred page (using the canonical tag), all paginated pages should differ by at least specifying the page number. A widespread solution is to add the page number to the page title:

[Page title] – Page X

The first page does not receive this addition. To give the first page the highest relevance to the respective topic, the page number can also be placed at the beginning of the page title. On article pages, it is also advisable to give each paginated page an individual page title formed from the first subheadline of the page. This approach may involve greater effort and optimizing the subheadlines but can pay off in practice.

Special Characters in Title Tags

In general, using special characters in Meta Titles or Meta Descriptions is not easy. On one hand, it can make the SERPs in the search results visually more appealing and noticeable, but on the other hand, it can seem untidy and affect the readability of the Title Tag. It's a very fine line.

But are special characters even allowed? How does Google view this? About a year ago, John Mueller made a statement on the subject. Figure 4: Google's statement on using special characters in Meta Titles

Google seems to have no objection to using special characters beyond the brand separator when they are like '*' or '#'. A user had asked whether there was anything wrong with using special characters beyond '-' or '|' in the title, and whether characters like '*', '#', or '%' could also be used.

In summary, the Title Tag still plays an important role for Google and should not be ignored. Optimized Title Tags should also continue to be monitored to see if Google adopts the optimized Title in the SERPs or if further adjustments need to be made.

Do you need professional support in optimizing your website or online shop? We are happy to assist and manage all optimization measures according to your wishes, from analysis to the implementation of SEO measures. Contact us!