One way you can try to get traffic to your blog is by optimizing your site for search engines using the Title tag and Meta tags.  This can help you draw in organic traffic, or traffic from search engines, as opposed to getting traffic from links pointing to your site. You can do this by using specific keywords related to your topic through your blog.  A “keyword” is a word or phrase that is related to your blog topic and is something that a visitor might type into the search box.

Using keywords helps search engines understand what your blog is about.  Search engines use something called “spiders”, which are bots that go through the content on a blog or website and help the search engines learn more information about the website.  Using particular keywords in your content helps the spider realize that your blog is relevant to that term when a reader searches for it.  The better the search engines understand your site, the more it will help your blogs traffic.

What are Meta Tags?

Meta tags are HTML code that you can put on your webpage to help search engines understand what your site is about.  Meta tags don’t actually show up on the page itself, so your readers won’t see them.

Title

The title is the white text that appears in that blue bar at the very top of the screen.  It’s also what will show up when your blog appears in search results.  Make sure that it is something eye-catching, keyword rich, and natural sounding.  You want something that will appeal to both the searchers and the bots, so that they understand what your site is about.  This is one of the most important things, and the right keywords can really help generate traffic.  So think about your title carefully.

Meta Description

The meta description is a short paragraph that describes the site.  Write 2-3 sentences explaining what the post is about that are – again – keyword rich.  Don’t stuff keywords in the description; it should make sense to humans.  The meta description is the text that appears beneath the link to your blog in search results.

Meta Keywords

The meta keywords tag allows you to list several keywords related to your site.  A “keyword” can be a word or a phrase.  A good thing to do is try to think of what potential visitors would search for to get to your site. For example, if you write a blog about vegetarian cooking, what would people who want to read a blog about vegetarian cooking type in the search box?  Different people have different ways of searching for things, so mix your keywords up.  Always make sure that you are using keywords that relate to your blog, and don’t use the same one too many times. Important: Never stuff your keywords and don’t use too many.

How to Use the Title and Meta Tags

Meta tags are just simple HTML code, which you can find here. For Blogspot bloggers, here is a site that can help you edit the HTML and Meta tags on your blog.  If you’re not an HTML wizard, though, then you can look for widgets or plugins.  WordPress has a few, like All in One SEO, but here is a list of other SEO plugins for WordPress.

One Final Tip

In addition to using keywords in your meta tags, you could also try to incorporate them into the text of your website or blog posts.  When writing your blog posts, make sure they are keyword rich.  Use these words in your writing naturally and where they make sense (don’t just stick them in there). It should make sense to your readers.  Don’t use the same keyword over and over again because that won’t sound natural to your readers, and it won’t look natural to search engines.  Vary them throughout your entry.