Will adding meta description help me get more targeted ads?

[aroach]

I know that Google ignore the meta tags for SERP's and page rank and such but does the Adsense bot read them and take them into account?

[cornwall]

I put all head tags in everywhere as a matter of course, but as a result of some correspondence with Google the inference is that head tags do not help you with getting targeted ads.

Note that is an inference on my part rather than an explict from them!

[Visit Thailand]

I would personally advise meta tags on all your pages regardless of whether AdSense sees them and reads them or not.

[ssjxxx]

I agree. The META tags will help with so many other things, such as search engine placement, so why not just put them in?

[Jenstar]

I am running AdSense on one site that does not have meta tags yet, and AdSense is showing targeted ads. That said, I agree you should have them whether AdSense is reading them or not (I just hadn't had the time to do them for that site yet).

[aroach]

Thanks, everyone.

I really thought that no one and nothing read meta tags anymore so I haven't bothered with them on any new pages. My really old pages still have them.

Guess I better go put them in all my pages.

[Jenstar]

Some SEs still use them, at least to a limited extent, and it is always better to be safe than sorry ;)

[saoi_jp]

The ads can also get thrown off-target by the text immediately above the adsense code.

Standard 3 column vanilla pages, table layout. Center is the content. Right column is AdSense. At the bottom of the content, there's a line of text that contains a keyword that's off-topic. In source html, this is 4 lines above AdSense. The AdSense tended to target that keyword.

AdSense knows the general theme of this site (judging by the ads shown two weeks ago) but is now confused about the page. Deleting the keyword has given some of those section's pages much better targetted ads.