Hi all. I'm working on a discussion forum. My understanding is that Google ignores the Meta Description tag for ranking. However, I've also read that Google penalizes you for keyword stuffing - I'm not sure if the words inside the Meta Description add to the keyword stuffing penalty.
I am thinking of using the the words in the first post of a thread as the Meta Description. My reasoning is, if the page for the thread shows up in the search results for Google, the Meta Description
may be displayed by Google, which would help potential users understand what the thread is about.
I see some forums using the the words of the first post of a thread as the Meta Description. The only drawback I can think of is if a user spams the same word over and over again in the first post, which then gets converted to the Meta Description, which Google then considers as keyword stuffing (assuming words inside the Meta Description count towards the keyword stuffing penalty). Otherwise, I can't think of any other drawbacks.
Is it a good idea to use the words in the first post of a thread as the Meta Description? What could be potential negative drawbacks - from Google's perspective - of using the words in the first post of a thread as the Meta Description?
[edited by: tedster at 1:16 pm (utc) on Sep 4, 2012]
[edit reason] remove specifics [/edit]
