{"id":6995,"date":"2025-07-10T20:52:26","date_gmt":"2025-07-11T03:52:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/?p=6995"},"modified":"2025-07-10T20:52:27","modified_gmt":"2025-07-11T03:52:27","slug":"the-seo-debate-should-you-write-or-skip-meta-descriptions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/6995\/the-seo-debate-should-you-write-or-skip-meta-descriptions\/","title":{"rendered":"The SEO Debate: Should You Write or Skip Meta Descriptions?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/write-meta-description-or-skip.jpg\">    <picture>\n                <img src=\"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/write-meta-description-or-skip.jpg\"\n             srcset=\"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/write-meta-description-or-skip.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/write-meta-description-or-skip-300x245.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/write-meta-description-or-skip-768x626.jpg 768w\"             sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, (max-width: 1200px) 75vw, 1200px\"\n             width=\"1024\"\n             height=\"835\"\n             alt=\"write-meta-description-or-skip\"\n             loading=\"lazy\"             decoding=\"async\"\n             class=\"wp-image-7000\" >\n    <\/picture>\n    <\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/?s=seo\">SEO<\/a> is always evolving. Just when you think you&#8217;ve nailed best practices, something new shakes things up. The latest conversation stirring the pot? Whether you should bother writing <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/?s=meta+description\">meta descriptions<\/a> at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>That\u2019s right &#8211; those short bits of text that show up in search engine results under your page title. For years, they\u2019ve been a staple of on-page SEO. But now, some experts are suggesting you might be better off skipping them entirely.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Let\u2019s break it down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Why Some SEOs Are Skipping Meta Descriptions (On Purpose)<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>SEO expert Mark Williams-Cook recently ran a series of tests and claimed that <strong>not<\/strong> writing meta descriptions actually led to a <strong>small <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/?s=boost+traffic\">boost in traffic<\/a><\/strong> &#8211; around 3% on average. His main arguments:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Google rewrites most of them anyway<\/strong>: According to him, Google changes around 80% of meta descriptions. So even if you write the perfect one, there\u2019s a good chance it won\u2019t show up.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Dynamic snippets can perform better<\/strong>: When you leave the meta description blank, Google often pulls a snippet directly from your page that\u2019s more relevant to the searcher\u2019s query.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Saves a ton of time<\/strong>: If you\u2019re managing a huge site with thousands of pages, manually writing meta descriptions can be a major time suck. Letting Google handle it might be more efficient.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s a bold take, and one that\u2019s gaining traction &#8211; especially among SEOs managing large-scale websites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Why Others Say \u201cNot So Fast\u201d<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Technical SEO consultant Jono Alderson pushed back hard on these claims. He wasn\u2019t just criticizing the results, but the entire idea of drawing broad conclusions from small SEO tests. His perspective:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>SEO isn\u2019t a lab experiment<\/strong>: There are too many moving parts &#8211; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/?s=algorithm+changes\">algorithm changes<\/a>, competitors, seasonality, even the weather. You can\u2019t truly isolate one change (like removing a meta description) and attribute all results to it.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Beware of \u201csurface-level\u201d testing<\/strong>: Jono warns that obsessing over what\u2019s easily testable (like meta descriptions) can distract from what really moves the needle &#8211;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/?s=high-quality+content\"> improving content<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/?s=performance\">performance<\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/?s=user+experience\">user experience<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>His point? Just because a change <em>can<\/em> be tested doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s the most important thing to focus on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>So What Should <em>You<\/em> Do?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>If you&#8217;re using <strong>UltimateWB<\/strong>, here\u2019s what this debate means for your website:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u2705 <strong>For Key Pages: Keep Writing Meta Descriptions<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Pages like your homepage, main service\/product pages, or cornerstone blog content deserve thoughtful meta descriptions. Even if Google rewrites them sometimes, you\u2019re still giving it a strong signal about what your page is about &#8211; and you get a chance to craft the message you want users to see.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With UltimateWB, it\u2019s easy to customize your meta descriptions page-by-page, so you stay in control.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\ud83e\udd16 <strong>For Large Sites: Consider Letting Google Handle It<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>If you\u2019re managing thousands of pages &#8211; say, product listings or old blog posts &#8211; it might make sense to skip writing meta descriptions for every single one. Google&#8217;s snippets are often tailored to the searcher\u2019s query, and in many cases, they might actually outperform a generic one you\u2019d write manually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>UltimateWB\u2019s clean, fast-loading code makes it easier for search engines to understand and index your content, even without a meta description.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\ud83d\ude80 <strong>Focus on What <em>Really<\/em> Matters<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>This whole debate is a good reminder of the bigger SEO picture. At UltimateWB, we believe in focusing on what drives real results:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Creating helpful, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/?s=high-quality+content\">high-quality content<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Ensuring <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/?s=fast+load+times\">fast load times<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Providing a smooth, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/?s=user-friendly\">user-friendly<\/a> experience<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Building on a solid, SEO-optimized foundation<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>UltimateWB gives you the tools to do all of that &#8211; whether you write meta descriptions or not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Final Takeaway<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Meta descriptions still have their place &#8211; but they\u2019re not one-size-fits-all either.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>For your most important pages? Write them.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>For large batches of content? Maybe don\u2019t.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>For your overall SEO strategy? Keep your focus on quality, performance, and user experience &#8211; because that\u2019s what truly sets you apart.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>With UltimateWB, you\u2019re in the driver\u2019s seat &#8211; equipped to make smart, strategic decisions that fit <em>your<\/em> site\u2019s needs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>p.s.: Yes, we did write a meta description for this post :-)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ready to design &amp; build your own website? Learn more about&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/\">UltimateWB<\/a>! We also offer&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/web-design-packages\">web design packages<\/a>&nbsp;if you would like your website designed and built for you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Got a techy\/website question? Whether it\u2019s about UltimateWB or another website builder, web hosting, or other aspects of websites, just send in your question in the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/ask-david\">\u201cAsk David!\u201d form<\/a>. We will email you when the answer is posted on the UltimateWB \u201cAsk David!\u201d section.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>SEO is always evolving. Just when you think you&#8217;ve nailed best practices, something new shakes things up. The latest conversation stirring the pot? Whether you should bother writing meta descriptions at all. That\u2019s right &#8211; those short bits of text &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/6995\/the-seo-debate-should-you-write-or-skip-meta-descriptions\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[2906,1762,1898,5055,2836,1777,5054,5053,1909,1975,2864,10,4836,11,1636,1724],"class_list":["post-6995","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-search-engine-optimization-seo","tag-algorithm-changes","tag-boost-traffic","tag-clean-code","tag-fast-load-times","tag-fast-loading-website","tag-high-quality-content","tag-jono-alderson","tag-mark-williams-cook","tag-meta-description","tag-on-page-seo","tag-performance","tag-search-engine-optimization","tag-search-engine-results","tag-seo","tag-user-experience","tag-user-friendly-2"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6995"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6995"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6995\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7001,"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6995\/revisions\/7001"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6995"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6995"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ultimatewb.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6995"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}