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Lesson · Beginner

Metadata basics

Give a page a truthful title, concise description, encoding, viewport behavior, and canonical identity without unsupported SEO claims.

Editorial preview — publication review is still required.

Author
Editorial team
Reviewer
Publication review pending
Review tier
180-day

Essential metadata

Metadata helps browsers and retrieval systems identify and present a page. It does not guarantee ranking, indexing, or a particular search snippet.

<head>
  <meta charset="utf-8" />
  <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1" />
  <title>Bike repair services in Harbor Point</title>
  <meta
    name="description"
    content="See tune-up and repair services, typical turnaround, and booking options."
  />
  <link rel="canonical" href="https://example.com/services" />
</head>

Use a unique, descriptive title for the page. Write a description for the reader rather than repeating keywords. The canonical URL should identify the preferred version and normally refer to the current public page.

Common mistakes

  • Reusing one title across every page.
  • Claiming a canonical forces a search engine to choose it.
  • Publishing preview URLs as production canonicals.
  • Adding metadata that contradicts visible content.

Exercise

Write a title and description for a contact page. Compare them with the visible heading and confirm they promise only what the page actually provides.