Meta keywords or tags can be determined as single elements of your website HTML structure. These parts are located in the web page header area (typically in the meta description section).
These simple parts of HTML can significantly impact your website’s overall SEO, like they signal to Google how mobile-friendly your website is or in some instances, influence browser behavior.
What’s more interesting is that meta tags are easy to add to your web pages, making them more efficient and worthy of consideration. You can add them in a few clicks without any help from plugins!
In this article, we will discuss how to add meta keyword in WordPress without plugin and how they work to improve your website.
Let’s dig in-
- What are Meta Tags?
- Are Meta Tags Still Viable in 2023?
- How Meta Tags Benefit Your Website?
- Adding Meta Tags Using Header.php File
- FAQ
What are Meta Tags?
At the start of the article, we gave a glimpse of meta tags. In brief, A meta tag is a specific type of HTML tag that provides metadata about a webpage. Inserted within an HTML document’s <head> section, it remains hidden from the user but is accessible to search engines, web browsers, and other web services.
Meta tags encapsulate key information ranging from the page’s description and keywords to caching and content security directives. Meta tags are akin to the DNA of your web page: not visible to the naked eye but instrumental in defining its characteristics and behavior in the digital ecosystem.
These tags don’t just exist for search engine optimization; they serve many purposes that extend into nearly every aspect of your website’s interaction with users and machines.
Are Meta Tags Still Viable in 2023?
As you navigate the ever-changing currents of the content in 2023, you might wonder if some traditional SEO aspects, like meta tags, still hold their importance. The answer is a resounding yes. Despite advancements in search algorithms and shifts in user behavior, meta tags remain a cornerstone in your SEO strategy and web development toolkit.
These invaluable HTML elements influence how search engines index your pages, how users interact with your site in search results, and how your content is displayed on social media platforms.
Moreover, they’re integral for optimizing user experience across devices and even bolstering web page security. In summary, meta tags are far from obsolete; they are dynamic elements that adapt to new digital challenges, making them just as relevant today as they were in the early days of the web.
Read More: 15+ Most Popular Website Security Monitoring Tools
How Meta Tags Benefit Your Website?
There are many ways meta tags can benefit your website and help you extend your reach dramatically.
i) Improve search engine rankings
Search engines like Google use meta tags better to understand the content and purpose of your webpage. Well-crafted meta tags can help you achieve better rankings by providing relevant information to search algorithms.
ii) Enhance user experience
A well-written meta description will appear in search results, serving as a mini “advertisement” for your content. It can improve click-through rates (CTR) by compelling users to click on your website over others.
iii) Control over shared content
When your web pages are shared on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter, meta tags determine how the content appears. Open Graph and Twitter Cards are specific meta tags that control the image, title, and description displayed in social shares.
iv) Localization and targeting
Using meta tags like “geo.region” or “geo.placement” can indicate the geographical focus of your site, helping search engines to show your pages to a more relevant audience.
v) Facilitate content categorization
Keyword meta tags, although less impactful than before, can still contribute to content categorization. This is particularly useful for specialized search engines and directory listings.
vi) Browser behavior
Some meta tags, like “viewport,” influence how browsers render your webpages, affecting the site’s mobile-friendliness—an increasingly important factor for both user experience and SEO.
vii) Security
Meta tags like “Content-Security-Policy” can improve your website’s security by controlling what external resources can be loaded, offering an added layer of protection against cross-site scripting (XSS) attacks.
How to Add Meta Tags Using Header.php File?
You can easily add meta tags with the help of your header.php file. This process requires some coding knowledge but works perfectly fine like plugins.
Step 1: Go to Theme File Editor
To locate the header.php file, first go to your website Appearance and look for the option Theme File Editor.
Step 2: Open the header.php File
Edit the header.php file using a code editor. You can use Sublime Text, Notepad++, or WordPress Theme Editor. Within the header.php file, locate the <head> section. It is where the meta tags should be placed.
Step 3: Add Your Meta Tags
Insert the necessary meta tags between the <head> tags. Here’s an example of how to add a meta description and a meta keyword tag:
Copy Html code –
<head>
<meta name="description" content="This is a description of my website">
<meta name="keywords" content="keyword1, keyword2, keyword3">
<!-- other head elements -->
</head>Step 4: Save and Upload
After adding the desired meta tags, save the header.php file and upload it to your server if you edited it locally. If you use the WordPress Theme Editor, save the changes by hitting the Upload File button.
Open your website in a browser and view the page source (usually by right-clicking and selecting “View Page Source”). Verify that the meta tags appear in the source code.
Important Note: Always keep a backup of your original header.php file before making changes if something goes wrong.
FAQ
What are Meta Tags in SEO?
Meta tags are HTML elements that provide metadata about a webpage. Placed within your HTML document’s <head> section, they offer critical information to search engines, affecting how your website is indexed and displayed in search results.
How Do Meta Tags Impact Search Engine Rankings?
Meta tags, like the meta description, influence how your page appears in search engine results. A well-crafted meta description can increase click-through rates, indirectly boosting your page’s search engine ranking.
Are Keywords in Meta Tags Still Relevant?
While meta keywords have lost much of their weight in SEO, they aren’t entirely obsolete. Some specialized search engines still use them for categorizing content. However, they must be more critical for major search engines like Google.
Can Meta Tags Improve Social Media Engagement?
Specific meta tags like Open Graph for Facebook and Twitter Card tags allow you to control how your content is displayed when shared on social platforms, enhancing user engagement and click-through rates.
What is the "Viewport" Meta Tag?
The “viewport” meta tag controls how your website is displayed on different devices. It’s essential for responsive web design, ensuring your site scales appropriately on various screen sizes.
The Bottom Line
And that’s how you add meta tags for your website. You can also effortlessly add meta descriptions and other header elements using this process. In case you don’t have a plugin to compromise, knowing this technique can be handy to add invisible meta tags.
By editing your theme’s header.php file or employing built-in WordPress functions, you can seamlessly insert meta keywords that contribute to your website’s SEO strategy.
Though their influence has waned in recent years with significant search engines like Google, meta keywords still hold value for specialized search engines and can be an additional tool in your SEO elements.
Let us know in the comments if you have any queries or suggestions on this topic.
Have a good day!