John Mueller’s explanation of how title tags impact rankings might be surprising, but there’s a logical reason behind it.

Google’s John Mueller provided a surprising explanation regarding the ranking impact of title tags, challenging the common SEO belief that they are a crucial ranking factor and clarifying their proper role.

He also touched on the correct usage of meta descriptions.

Title Elements

Title tags provide a general description of a webpage’s topic. According to Google’s SEO Starter Guide, the key to writing compelling titles is making them unique to each page, clear, concise, and accurately descriptive of the page’s content. For example, a good title might include:

• Your website or business name.
• Relevant details like the business’s physical location.
• A brief mention of what the page offers to users.

The official W3C documentation further explains the role of the title tag, stating that “the title element represents the document’s title or name.” It advises authors to craft titles that identify their documents, even when used out of context, such as in a user’s history, bookmarks, or search results. This means a document’s title often differs from its first heading, as the title must stand alone when removed from its original context.

Meta Description

The meta description is designed to summarize a webpage’s content, so it’s aptly named a “meta description.”

According to the official W3C HTML documentation:

“description

The value should be a free-form string that describes the page. The value must be correct for use in a directory of pages, like, in a search engine. There should not be more than one meta element with its name attribute setted to the value ‘description’ per document.”

Google’s SEO Starter Guide explains that meta descriptions are “occasionally” used to generate the snippet displayed in search results.

It’s important to note that the official HTML documentation and Google’s guidelines do not endorse using the title tag or meta description as a place to stuff keywords or insert calls to action. These practices, often invented by SEOs, are likely why so many title tags and meta descriptions get rewritten—because they are not correctly optimized according to best practices.

The Ranking Impact of Title Tags

Google’s John Mueller responded directly, confirming that altering the title element might impact rankings. He didn’t explicitly state that the title tag is a ranking factor, but he acknowledged that changing it could influence rankings.

In his response, Mueller confirmed the possibility that modifying the title element could affect rankings:

Here’s the question posed:

“We have a website with satisfying ranks, and now our product has added new features. We need to modify the page meta title and description. Does that affect the current rankings?”

Mueller’s response was cautiously affirmative, suggesting that changing the title tag might lead to changes in search rankings:

“Yes, or better, maybe. Changing things like titles or headings on pages can result in changes in Search.”

So, why did Mueller say “maybe”?

He didn’t delve into specifics, but his response indicates that altering title elements doesn’t automatically guarantee a change in rankings.

Based on my experience, title elements are a form of content, and changing content can indeed impact rankings.

Mueller’s comments on meta descriptions implied that while they might not directly influence rankings, they could affect the snippet in search results. This perspective aligns with what the digital marketing community generally understands.

Here’s what he said about meta descriptions:

“Similarly, changing the meta description on a page can result in changes in how the snippet of a page is shown in Search. This is expected, and usually, something that SEOs or site owners focus on to improve things in search.”

Title Tags Maybe Can Change Rankings

Mueller’s response may surprise those who have long believed that title tags are a crucial ranking factor—a belief ingrained in SEO practices for over 20 years, dating back to the early days of search engines. Despite advancements in search algorithms, some in the SEO community still uphold the tradition that title elements play a significant role in rankings.

Mueller confirmed that altering the title element could impact search results, reflecting the mixed experiences people have had with changes in rankings, whether positive or negative.

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