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How to Write an SEO Title for Your Small Business Website

  • Writer: Rhiannon
    Rhiannon
  • Mar 15, 2023
  • 4 min read

Updated: 2 hours ago

SEO titles (often known as meta titles or title tags), are one of the building blocks of SEO. However, many small business owners don't know what SEO titles are, why SEO titles are necessary or how to write SEO titles. In this guide for small business owners, I will show you how to write an SEO title for your small business website, and provide some SEO title best practices.


In this guide to SEO titles:


What is an SEO Title?

An SEO title helps search engines (and users) understand what your website page is about. Usually around 50-60 characters in length, the SEO title appears in blue or purple in the search engine results (see the example below).


seo title best practices
An example of an SEO title, shown in purple.

If you do not specify an SEO title for your website page, search engines will generate one automatically. However, an automatically generated SEO title won't necessarily target your focus keyword, so I always recommend writing an optimised SEO title for every page on your website.


How to Write an SEO Title for Your Small Business Website

Before you start writing your SEO titles, make sure you have carried out keyword research. See my article on How to Find Keywords for SEO for a more detailed guide on keyword research. Once you have your keywords and allocated them to your website pages, you can start writing your SEO titles.


Writing SEO titles does not have to be difficult, but it can be fiddly. There are three main criteria for SEO titles, which can make writing them tricky:

  1. Character limits: SEO titles should be around 50-60 characters in length

  2. Focus keyword: Your SEO title should contain the focus keyword for that page — ideally at the start of the SEO title

  3. Unique: Each SEO title should be unique, and it should be different from your h1


These criteria are guidelines. It is not always possible to write the "perfect" SEO title, and the most important thing is that you write an SEO title that tells search engines and your audience what the page is about.


Remember: If you don’t write your own SEO title, search engines will generate one automatically based on the website page content. However, these SEO titles may not be completely accurate and are unlikely to perform as well as purpose-written SEO titles.


Tip: I have a spreadsheet, which I use to keep track of my SEO plan. Each row is a page on my website, and the columns list the focus keyword(s) for each page, along with the SEO titles, SEO descriptions and h1 tags. This is really useful for keeping track of your SEO strategy, especially if you have a larger website!


SEO Title Best Practices

Your SEO titles should aim to fit as many of the following criteria as possible. This gives your website page the best chance of ranking in the search engine results. Here are 10 SEO title best practices you should aim to adhere to:


  1. Your SEO titles should be 50-60 characters long to avoid being truncated (cut off) by search engines

  2. Include the focus keyword for that page in your SEO title

  3. Each SEO title should be unique

  4. Each SEO title should be (slightly) different from the h1 for that page

  5. Each SEO title must be relevant to the website page — does it accurately describe the purpose or subject of the page?

  6. Ideally, the SEO title should include your business name (can be paraphrased or shortened if necessary). This helps people to identify your website and remember your business, which can increase the chance of them clicking on your website

  7. Your SEO titles aren't just for search engines — they also help search engine users decide which search result they will click on. Make your SEO titles compelling, so that people are more likely to click on your website.

  8. Avoid keyword stuffing — aim to include any keywords naturally, rather than listing them one after the other

  9. Match search intent — consider what your audience is looking for, and reflect that in your SEO title

  10. Use numbers or brackets where appropriate — for example, "5 Ways To..." or "Beginners Guide to... (free template)" to indicate structure and value.


Get Help With Your SEO Titles | SEO Help for Small Business

Optimised SEO titles are crucial to getting your website (and your business) found in search engines, but they are only a small part of a successful SEO strategy.


As an SEO consultant for small business, I specialise in helping small businesses and independent brands get found in Google Search and drive more organic traffic to their websites. As part of my marketing services for small businesses, I can help you write and optimise your SEO titles so that they target the right keywords and help you drive more organic (free) traffic to your small business website.


To take the first step towards making your small business more visible in Google Search, book your complimentary discovery call and explore how I can help you with my marketing services for small businesses.


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If you have any comments, questions, suggestions or requests, I'd love to hear from you. Contact me and tell me about your top small business marketing challenge, something you found useful or which topic you'd like me to cover next. 

If you have a business in the business support / marketing area and you have an idea for a blog topic that could complement my free guides, please feel free to enquire about writing a guest blog. I will include a link to your website from the article, and you can introduce your brand and offers to a wider audience!

 

I'm especially keen to hear from anyone in social media, Pinterest, email marketing, PR, e-commerce, equestrian or business coaching / consultancy. Plus, if you're happy to do a swap, I'm usually open to contributing an SEO / blogging related article to your blog in return, or appearing as a guest on your podcast.

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