Title tag best practices when domain and brand are the same

[NextGenEDU]

I know the old standard for title tag optimization is to use your brand name in the title for a multitude of reasons, all of which are indisputable  The most important reason being any strength and awareness can aid in click-thru.  But does this hold true for exact match domains?  Considering the way a search result is displayed, any awareness and strength derived from using the brand in the title is automatically included in the search result of an exact match domain without having to sacrifice valuable characters in the title.  The organic value (or value beyond simply seeing the brand displayed and nothing else) can't have that much of an impact, can it?

For Example, given the result attached, is it worth it to repeat dog.com in the title if it is already showing in the result?

dog.png

[malachiii]

I think you provided a great example on describing your question.  For this particular case, i think they did it absolutely correct.  if the domain and branding are the same, use the domain.com and then use descriptors of the top content you want to focus on within the website.  From there link or use high value assets to promote the content within the brand.

[irvingw]

I disagree. 4 instances of DOG in the title tag and 4 instances of DOG in the meta description is way too spammy.

I would have two instances in the title tag and two in the meta tag at most.

Dog Supplies | Food, Bed, Toys and Treats for Dogs | Buy Online

Featuring a large selection of dog supplies, we carry every major brand of food, bed, toys and treats for dogs of all sizes and breeds.

don't forget using the plural

[malachiii]

I can completely understand your opinion on the spam issue.  I think in the particular case it wouldnt be regarded as spam (i may be wrong)  Your solution is great as well.  and the additional plural is great.

[RyanKent]

Both Malachi and Irving share valid points. I will agree with both of them in concept but suggest a different implementation.

The reasoning definitely holds for exact match domains. When users want SEO information most will search Google for "SEO" without thinking of "SEO.com". It is very important to brand your site at every opportunity, and the title tag is one of the most influential opportunities available to a site owner.

In the example shared, irving is right the title seems spammy. It also is targeting too many keywords. Five keywords is simply too many. One is ideal, but you can stretch to two depending on the competitiveness of the keyword. My page title recommendation is: Dog Supplies | Dogs.com

Dog Food, Dog Toys, Dog Bedding, Dog Treats would each be separate categories and/or pages within the site, and each would have the appropriate title such as Dog Food | Dogs.com.

These titles show a clear focus for your page and brands your site, all in a pleasing, non-spammy manner.

[irvingw]

Hey guys,

My suggestion was based on an assumption that this is a title tag for a home page.

Dog Supplies | Food, Bed, Toys and Treats for Dogs | Buy Online

Main keyword for this page is "dog supplies" however the homepage also mentions what type of supplies are sold on the site so it makes sense to include them in the title tag instead of leaving it out because those are your secondary keywords. Then, as you stated the category pages should target the type of supply in this case dog food:

<title>Dog Food | Biscuits, Bones, Treats and MORE for Dogs</title>

Listed above is the secondary keyword, and tertiary keywords. Also the plural because "food for dogs" is different than "dog food"

Again simply putting <title>Dog Food | Dogs.com</title> i think is selling yourself a little short, because the title tag is extremely important to SEO as long as you have room after putting the main keyword first you should utilize that space for SEO (better chance to rank for "dog biscuits" "dog bones" and "dog treats" due to better optimization, and also for better CTR. A person looking for dog food may be like "oh this place seems to sell more than just basic dog food, or oh cool i need biscuits too i can get them all here"

That's a whole other topic though, writing and experimenting with different messaging in title tags to increase CTR through persuasive copy to make yourself stand out among the competition.