Title Tags Appear Different in SERPs
You read that right. Google has recently taken to rewriting title tags for some pages in search engine results pages (SERPs) and people have started to take note. Let’s talk about what that change looks like and what this might mean for how your pages appear in search results and the potential impact that can have on SEO.
Understanding Page Titles & Meta Descriptions
First things first: let’s talk about page titles and meta descriptions. 
What is a Page Title?
A page title is exactly what it sounds like and is sometimes referred to as a title tag. Each page of a website will have a page title and this is what appears at the top of your browser window when you’re on that page. It’s also what appears at the top of a search result for said page.
What is a Meta Description?
The meta description of a page gives a brief overview of what can be found on that page. On a search result page, this information appears below the page title and URL.
The Importance of Page Titles & Meta Descriptions
Page titles and meta descriptions are a big part of SEO. They are added to the backend of a website with the intention of making it easier for searchers to find the page. In short, they give a user a summary of what can be found on that page, so they know whether they want to click it. When the page title and description are accurate representations of what can be found on that page, it gives your page a better chance of answering the question the searcher has, which can lead to potential conversions for your business.
Page Title Rewrites
Now that we’re up to speed, let’s get into the issue at hand. Last month, I began seeing a difference between how our page titles were written on the backend of our sites and how they appeared in a Google Search. I did a little digging and noticed that I wasn’t alone. Other SEOs were noticing the same thing was happening. Okay, so there’s a trend, which means something was up.
How This Change is Different
As an SEO strategist, I’ve been aware of Google sometimes tweaking page titles and meta descriptions in SERPs. Usually, it’s not a big change. The idea is that Google’s algorithm gives searchers a hand by showing the content most relevant to their searches. Sometimes Google even adds the name of the business to the page title in the SERPs when one wasn’t present. However, the new change is different.
Pulling Content From Other Pages
One SEO consultant suggested that Google could theoretically generate any text from your entire website for a page title, even if that content is being pulled from a different page. If your initial thought was like mine, it’s something along the lines of, “Yikes.”
Here’s the deal: the minor changes we’re used to seeing from Google are often done in an effort to enhance the readability of a result, which may lead to a searcher clicking on your result. Traditionally, Google does a bunch of A/B testing before fully rolling out major changes and this would, in the opinion of many SEOs (myself included) amount to one of them. This may also simply be something the folks at Google are trying out and will ultimately decide isn’t worth the trouble. It all remains to be seen.
What if the Change is Permanent?
If this does, in fact, turn into something Google does permanently, it could be a good thing. A few years ago, Google increased the title text and meta description length, only to change it back to 60 characters max for titles and 160 for descriptions. At the time, I was handling about 10 digital marketing clients and had to go through every single page to change these, then change them back. It wasn’t great. If this is a permanent change with Google, something like this could potentially be alleviated because Google could take care of optimization automatically. I would’ve paid them to do it for me at the time.
Strengthening Your Content Never Hurts
Google’s John Mueller has stressed that titles are important and used as a ranking factor, but aren’t worth fretting too much. It all comes down to what’s been true for as long as search engines have been around, which is that content is important. Whether Google launches this change permanently or not, ensuring the content on every page of your site speaks to your user, explains what you do and where you do it, and you’re using your keywords well, you’re going to be in a better position overall.
Hire an SEO Pro
One way to make sure the content and SEO on your site is strong is through a content audit. We offer comprehensive content audits as well as content strategy and ongoing digital marketing, so hit us up for more information.