Missing Meta Description — Control Your Search Engine Snippet

What is the meta description?

The <meta name="description"> tag provides a brief summary of your page content. Search engines often display this text as the snippet below the title in search results.

Why is it important?

Search engine results

• Google shows the meta description as the page snippet in ~63% of cases
• A well-written description can significantly increase CTR from search results
• Without it, Google auto-generates a snippet from page content — often poorly

Social media fallback

• When og:description is missing, social platforms fall back to the meta description
• It serves as a safety net for social sharing

User expectations

• The description helps users decide whether to click your result
• It's your chance to pitch your page before users even visit

How to fix it

<meta name="description" content="A concise, compelling summary of your page content. Aim for 120-160 characters that tell users exactly what they'll find." />

Best practices

1. 120-160 characters — Long enough to be useful, short enough to avoid truncation
2. Unique per page — Every page deserves its own description
3. Include target keywords — Google bolds matching search terms in the snippet
4. Write for humans — Make it compelling, not just keyword-rich
5. Include a value proposition — Why should users click your result over others?
6. Use active voice — "Learn how to..." beats "This page contains information about..."

Examples

Good:

<meta name="description" content="Learn how to optimize your Open Graph tags for better social media presence. Free tool with real-time previews for Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn." />

Bad:

<meta name="description" content="Welcome to our website." />