A meta description is a snippet of HTML code that summarizes what a webpage is about. It sits in the <head> section of your page's source code and tells search engines like Google what to display as the description text beneath your page title in search results. While it has zero direct ranking weight in Google's algorithm as of their 2009 confirmation, it plays a major role in whether someone clicks your result or a competitor's. The optimal length is 150–160 characters. Google truncates anything longer with an ellipsis, and mobile displays cut off even sooner at around 120 characters. You want every character to count. The best meta descriptions include your primary keyword naturally, match the searcher's intent, and give a clear reason to click. Think of it as ad copy for organic search. Google doesn't always use your meta description. If they decide your written description doesn't match the user's query, they'll pull text from your page content instead. We see this happen 30–40% of the time across our portfolio. That's normal. You still write a strong default because when Google does use it, you control the message. Common mistakes: leaving it blank (Google generates one from random page text), keyword stuffing (looks spammy and Google ignores it), or duplicating the same description across multiple pages (wastes the opportunity to differentiate). Every page deserves a unique meta description that reflects its specific content. At Ottawa SEO, we treat meta descriptions as conversion tools, not SEO checkboxes. A well-crafted description on a page ranking fourth can outperform a bland one on a page ranking second purely based on click-through rate. Write for humans first, include your keyword once if it fits naturally, and make someone want to visit your page instead of scrolling past it. That's the real job of a meta description.