Site Tip · Getting found on Google

Write your own Google headline

Search for your own business on Google. The blue headline people click on is a line you can write yourself. If yours says only "Home" or just your company name, you are skipping a free chance to tell searchers what you do.

What a page title is

The page title, sometimes called the title tag, is a short line of text stored in your page's code. Visitors do not see it on the page itself, but it appears in the browser tab and as the blue headline in search results.

Google usually shows the title you write, though it may sometimes adjust it. That is why it pays to write it on purpose.

What a good title looks like

A good title tells a searcher two things right away: what you do and where you do it. Think of a title like "Emergency Plumber in Princeton, New Jersey." A person scanning results knows in a second whether that page fits what they need.

Compare that to a title that says "Home." It says nothing. Your business name is still useful, so it can go at the end.

• Lead with the service people search for.
• Add your city or service area.
• Put your business name at the end, if there is room.
• Keep it short, since long titles get cut off in results.

How to change yours

How you edit it depends on how your site was built. Most website builders and content management systems have a field labeled "SEO title," "page title" or something similar in each page's settings.

Start with your main pages: the homepage and each service page. If you are not sure where to find the field, your web person can update them in a few minutes.

• Open the page's settings or SEO panel.
• Replace the default text with a clear title.
• Save, publish, and view the page in a browser tab to confirm.

Mistakes to avoid

Do not give every page the same title. Each page covers something different, so each deserves its own. A page about drain cleaning and a page about water heaters should not share a headline.

Do not stuff the title with a long string of keywords. It reads badly and does not help. Write it for a person.

Changes may take days or weeks to show up in Google, and there are no guarantees about rankings. If you would like help writing titles for every page, Modestius builds and fixes websites for small businesses.

Questions owners ask

Will Google always show my title?

Usually, but not always. Google may adjust it, so make sure the title matches the content of the page.

How long should a page title be?

Short enough to read at a glance. Put the most important words first, since the end may be cut off.

Should I include my business name?

Yes, if there is room, usually at the end. The service and location should come first.