Titles and descriptions that survive the results page

Most of the rows in your fixes file are rewritten titles and descriptions. This chapter explains what makes those two lines work, so you understand why the rewrites look the way they do — and can write your own for new pages later.

The title — your six most important words

The title is the blue link on the results page and the label on the browser tab. Rules that survive contact with reality:

• Length is measured in pixels, not characters. Around 60 characters is the safe zone; longer titles get chopped mid-word, often cutting off the very thing that made someone want to click.
• Front-load the words people type. If customers search “what is moringa”, a title that starts near those words beats one that buries them at the end.
• One page, one subject, one title. Two pages sharing a title compete with each other, and the engine demotes one of them. Your report lists these pairs when they exist.
• The brand goes at the end, after a separator. People search for what they need first and who sells it second.

The description — the only advert you write for free

The grey text under the blue link. It does not directly move rankings, but it decides whether a human clicks you or the result below you.

• 70–160 characters. Shorter looks empty; longer gets cut mid-sentence, and a cut-off sentence takes your reason-to-click with it.
• Say the concrete thing. “500 mg per capsule, 120 count, UK-made, free tracked delivery” beats “high quality products for your wellness journey” every single time.
• Match the page. If the description promises something the page does not deliver, people bounce straight back — and engines notice patterns of that.

The invisible length trap

One subtlety your report already handled for you: special characters (an ampersand, a pound sign, curly quotes) are counted longer by search engines than they look on your screen. A description that seems to fit can still be cut on the real results page. The rewrites in your fixes file were measured the way engines measure — so paste them as they are, without “improving” the length.

Headings — the same idea, inside the page

Your main heading (the big one at the top) tells the engine the page’s subject in one line; the smaller headings below map its sections. One main heading per page, in a sensible order, each one saying something a human would search for. Where your report flagged heading problems, the fix is usually just renaming or re-ordering what is already there.

YOUR REPORT NAMES YOURS — the free check runs live at auditlodge.com