Meta Description Tags and Rankings

[PMC-312087]

Hi there,

I have a lot of pages set up on my site but most have no content. If I add the correct meta description tags to those pages, will that help rank for the root domain? I am slowly getting the content added for each page but wanted to see if I could boost rankings in the meantime.

http://www.petmedicalcenter.com

Example: most of pages under "Services" are blank.

Thanks for the help!

[RyanKent]

Meta descriptions have no effect on your ranking. ZERO.

They are visible in search engine results and can impact your click-through-rate. If Google considers CTR in their algorithm (a debatable topic) then you could have a very minor, indirect effect that way, but it is quite a stretch.

[PEnterprises]

I would think they do use ctr in their Algo. It would make sense and is an important factor in ppc. If someone searches for something and everyone is clicking the third listing and assuming bounce and re search rate isn't high that would make sense don't you think?

[RyanKent]

It's a fine topic for discussion. The counter argument is there are reasons CTR should not be part of the algorithm such as users manipulation.

Either way PPC is very different from organic search results. Bounce rates and returning to Google for new searches are also different topics.

Even if CTR was a factor, meta descriptions are only one component. There are page titles, urls, breadcrumbs and other factors which can affect CTR. Even if meta descriptions were a factor, Google often will replace your meta description with another one of their choosing.