What Are Meta Keywords in SEO?
When discovering search engine optimization (SEO), there are numerous words and factors that might prove to be confusing, particularly to those who are unfamiliar. One of those is meta keywords. Although they once played a significant role in SEO, their role and usefulness have evolved.
In this article, we will dissect what precisely meta keywords were, how they were applied, why they were not significant and whether they are significant nowadays.
Understanding the Basics of Meta Keywords
What Are Meta Keywords?
Meta keywords are a kind of meta tag, which is evident in the HTML code of a webpage. These tags were initially supposed to inform the search engines about the content of the page.
For Example: a webpage on best running shoes could have included the following as its meta keywords; running shoes, best running shoes, sports shoes, sneakers.
Google, Yahoo and Bing were some of the search engines that applied these tags to rank and understand web pages in the early days of SEO. It was a very basic concept: when your page contained some keywords, the search engines assumed that your text was relevant to those words.
The Role of Meta Tags in General
Before delving into the meta keywords, it is best to have a general idea of what meta tags are.
Metatags are brief messages, which are used to explain the content of a webpage. They are not visible on the webpage but in the background code. They are used by search engines to obtain hints concerning the information of a page.
Typical examples of meta tags are:
Meta title (title tag) – This is the clickable headline which is shown in the search results.
Meta description – The brief overview of the information presented below the title in the search results.
Meta keywords – This is a list of keywords of importance to the page which is now obsolete.
The Rise and Fall of Meta Keywords
The Early Days of SEO
Search engines were not as developed as they are today in the late 1990s and early 2000s. They used meta keywords to their advantage to determine the content of a page.
The owners of the websites soon discovered that all they needed to do was add the appropriate keywords into the meta tags to rank higher in the search engine. This simplified the process of SEO–but also simplified it a great deal.
Keyword Stuffing and Abuse
Due to the visibility of meta keywords in the HTML code, most of the website owners started abusing it or stuffing it with a long list of irrelevant or repetitive words in an attempt to attract more traffic.
A shoe site may have included dozens of options such as buy shoes, cheap shoes, best shoes, red shoes, blue shoes etc.
The effect of this method was to get bad search results as the websites that did not actually provide useful information could still score highly since they could fill their meta tags with the commonly used search words.
Search Engines Fight Back
In order to prevent this manipulation, such engines as Google and Bing enhanced their algorithms. They began to concentrate on real page content, user experience and the use of natural keywords rather than use of meta keyword tags.
In 2009, Google formally stated that it stopped using the meta keywords tag in its ranking algorithm. Such search engines as Bing and other large search engines trailed behind.
Currently, Google search does not directly use meta keywords to rank.
Do Meta Keywords Matter Today?
The Truth: Google Doesn’t Use Them
This is to be understood plainly; Google does not rely on meta keywords to rank. Adding them or simply disregarding them, it is not going to make a difference in the performance of your site in Google search results.
That does not imply that meta keywords are useless, however. Even now, there are some rare instances when they can be put to use.
When Meta Keywords Can Still Help
Internal Organization
Meta keywords are an internal management tool that is used by some of the web site owners. As an example, when you are dealing with hundreds of pages, you can use meta keywords to categorize and group content by subject.
Minor Search Engines
Although Google controls the search market in the United States, there is still a possibility that smaller or local search engines will make mention of meta keywords. The quantity of traffic these engines produce is however normally very minimal.
Content Management Systems (CMS)
Other CMS systems or SEO software still have a meta keywords field. It does not hurt using them, provided that you do not use them to boost ratings.
What You Should Focus on Instead
Create High-Quality, Relevant Content
Production of original, helpful and engaging content is the best solution to increase SEO in the current world. Such search engines give credit to pages that are useful and really benefit the users.
Write material that is responsive, problematic or insightful. Quality always comes first.
Use Keywords Naturally
Although meta keywords are no longer important, optimization of keywords in your text is important.
Insert your keywords without exaggeration:
- In your page titles
- In headings and subheadings
- At the beginning of your content, in the first couple of sentences.
- In image alt text
- In a very natural readable manner throughout the body of your article.
- Do not stuff the keywords, this is not only bad, but also can reduce your ranking.
Bill Yeager, Co-Owner of High Point SEO & Marketing in CT, is a leading SEO specialist, Amazon international best-selling author of the book Unleash Your Internal Drive, Facebook public figure, a marketing genius, and an authority in the digital space. He has been personally coached by Tony Robbins, a fire walker and a student of Dan Kennedy, Founder of Magnetic Marketing. Bill has been on several popular podcasts and the news including Sharkpreneur with Kevin Harrington, FOX, NBC, and ABC by way of his Secret Sauce marketing strategies. Bill enjoys fitness, cars, and spending time with his family when not at work.
