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SmallerGoogle and other search engines use page descriptions to help determine search results. Descriptions are often displayed as the text below a link in search results.
- The page description should reflect what people will find on this page. It should be accurate and/or compelling enough for users to want to find out more.
- It should include targeted keywords that people might be looking for if they visit that site. For example: "The Office of Financial Aid offers Ball State students and prospective students help with loans and scholarships. It also helps students apply for financial aid." (Notice the use of words like "loans," "scholarships," "apply," and "financial aid." These are all keywords that people use to search for this type of information.)
- It should contain no more than 250 words. The most important targeted keywords should be used as early as possible in the description.
- Don't get too tied to "institutional lingo." Think about what words your audience uses. For instance, university officials might refer to May ceremonies as "commencement," but our Web audience use the term "graduation." Find out what search terms people are using on your site by going to http://www.bsu.edu/webapps/sitetrack (use your Ball State username and password).
- Do not repeat keywords (this technique is sometimes called "stuffing"). For example, repeating words like "scholarships, scholarships, scholarships." Google does not like that and will move pages or articles using this technique lower in the search results.
- The Google search engine is continuously indexing new and updated content on the site. In order for the search engine to find new sites, at least one link to the new site must be present on an existing site.
This illustration shows where page descriptions are input within Ball State's content management system. You can get to this screen in the Development Center by going to the Page Editor, clicking on a page that you wish to change, and then choosing "Edit Page Information" under the "Options" menu.
