Why Include OG Metadata

Introduction

Open Graph (OG) metadata is an essential aspect of modern web content. It enables social media platforms to correctly display previews, enhances SEO performance, and improves content visibility when shared across different networks.

Benefits of OG Metadata

OG metadata ensures that shared links display proper titles, descriptions, and images on social platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

2. Improved Click-Through Rates (CTR)

A well-formatted OG preview can increase user engagement by making shared content visually appealing and informative.

3. SEO and Search Engine Compatibility

While primarily used for social media, OG metadata can also positively impact search engine indexing by providing additional structured data.

4. Customizable Content Display

Site owners can control how their content appears when shared, including:
Title (og:title): Defines the page title for the shared content.
Description (og:description): Provides a brief summary.
URL (og:url): Specifies the canonical link.
Image (og:image): Determines the preview image.

Best Practices for OG Metadata Implementation

Use high-quality preview images (recommended size: 1200x630 pixels).
Ensure metadata is dynamically updated for different pages.
Test OG metadata using Facebook's Sharing Debugger and Twitter Card Validator.

Example

---
Title: "Ultimate Guide to Open Graph Metadata"
Description: "A comprehensive guide to Open Graph metadata, including best practices for optimizing social media sharing and SEO."
Author: "Christopher Steel"
Date: "2025-02-15"
License: "CC BY-SA 4.0"
Tags: 
  - "OG metadata"
  - "SEO optimization"
  - "social media sharing"
  - "structured data"
  - "open graph protocol"
URL: "https://universalcake.com/resources/open-graph-metadata-guide"
Path: "/resources/open-graph-metadata-guide"
Canonical: "https://universalcake.com/resources/open-graph-metadata-guide"
Sitemap: true
Keywords:
  - "Open Graph meta tags"
  - "SEO best practices"
  - "social media optimization"
  - "website metadata"
  - "digital marketing"
DC_Title: "Ultimate Guide to Open Graph Metadata"
DC_Creator: "Christopher Steel"
DC_Subject: "A guide to implementing Open Graph metadata for better social media engagement and SEO."
DC_Description: "An in-depth exploration of Open Graph metadata, covering best practices, technical details, and its impact on digital marketing."
DC_Language: "en"
DC_License: "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/"
Robots: "index, follow"
OG_Title: "Ultimate Guide to Open Graph Metadata"
OG_Description: "Learn how to optimize your content for social media sharing with Open Graph metadata."
OG_URL: "https://universalcake.com/resources/open-graph-metadata-guide"
OG_Image: "https://universalcake.com/assets/images/open-graph-guide.png"
OG_Type: "article"
OG_Site_Name: "Universal Cake"
OG_Locale: "en_US"
Twitter_Card: "summary_large_image"
Twitter_Title: "Ultimate Guide to Open Graph Metadata"
Twitter_Description: "Maximize your content's reach with Open Graph metadata for SEO and social media."
Twitter_Site: "@universalcake"
Twitter_Creator: "@ChristopherSteel"
---

Several social media platforms and search engines use metadata similar to Open Graph (OG). While Twitter has its own Twitter Card metadata, many other platforms have alternative metadata formats. Below are some notable ones:

1. Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest, WhatsApp – Open Graph Metadata (OG)

Standard: Open Graph (OG)
Used by: Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest, WhatsApp, Discord, Slack
Purpose: Controls how content appears when shared, including the title, description, preview image, and link.
Example:

OG_Title: "How to Use Open Graph Metadata"
OG_Description: "Optimize your content for social sharing with Open Graph metadata."
OG_URL: "https://example.com/guide/open-graph"
OG_Image: "https://example.com/images/og-preview.png"
OG_Type: "article"
OG_Site_Name: "Example Site"

✅ Best for: Rich previews across multiple platforms.

2. Twitter – Twitter Cards Metadata (Alternative: Mastodon)

Standard: Twitter Cards (twitter:*)
Used by: Twitter (X), Mastodon
Purpose: Defines rich previews for tweets, including images, descriptions, and content summaries.
Example:

Twitter_Card: "summary_large_image"
Twitter_Title: "Guide to Open Graph Metadata"
Twitter_Description: "Optimize content for social media with metadata."
Twitter_Site: "@example"
Twitter_Creator: "@author"

✅ Best for: Optimized previews on Twitter & Mastodon.

3. Instagram – Embedded OG Metadata

Standard: Open Graph (OG)
Used by: Instagram (Stories & Posts)
Purpose: Pulls metadata from OG tags for link previews in Instagram DMs and external link shares.
✅ Best for: Link previews in direct messages.

4. YouTube – Video Metadata (Schema.org)

Standard: Schema.org + OG Metadata
Used by: YouTube
Purpose: Uses structured metadata for thumbnails, video titles, and descriptions.
Example:

OG_Title: "How to Optimize YouTube Videos"
OG_Description: "A guide to improving YouTube video metadata."
OG_Image: "https://example.com/images/video-thumbnail.png"
OG_Type: "video.other"

✅ Best for: Video previews in embeds.

5. Reddit – Embedded OG & Schema.org Metadata

Standard: OG Metadata + Schema.org JSON-LD
Used by: Reddit
Purpose: OG metadata controls link previews in Reddit posts.
✅ Best for: Engaging link previews on Reddit.

6. TikTok – Schema.org JSON-LD

Standard: Schema.org JSON-LD
Used by: TikTok
Purpose: SEO & discoverability for embedded TikTok videos.
Example:

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "VideoObject",
  "name": "TikTok SEO Guide",
  "description": "Learn how to optimize videos for TikTok.",
  "thumbnailUrl": "https://example.com/tiktok-thumbnail.jpg",
  "uploadDate": "2025-02-15"
}

✅ Best for: Search engine indexing of TikTok videos.

7. Telegram, Discord, Slack – OG & Embed Metadata

Standard: OG Metadata + Custom Embed Previews
Used by: Telegram, Discord, Slack
Purpose: Controls previews for shared links in chat platforms.
✅ Best for: Branded, consistent link previews.

Alternative to Twitter Cards?

If you’re looking for an alternative since Twitter (X) may change its metadata handling, consider:

Mastodon – Supports Twitter Card metadata (twitter:*).
Bluesky – Uses custom metadata, though not yet widely documented.
LinkedIn – Fully supports OG metadata instead.

Which Metadata Standard Should You Use?

Platform	Metadata Format	Best Used For
Facebook	Open Graph (OG)	Social previews
Twitter (X)	Twitter Cards	Tweet previews
LinkedIn	Open Graph (OG)	Business sharing
Instagram	Open Graph (OG)	Link previews in DMs
Reddit	OG + Schema.org	Social sharing
Mastodon	Twitter Cards	Tweet-like posts
Discord/Slack	Open Graph (OG) + Embed	Rich previews
TikTok	Schema.org JSON-LD	Video indexing
YouTube	Schema.org + OG	Video previews

Final Thoughts

If you want broad coverage: Use Open Graph metadata (OG:*).
If focusing on Twitter/Mastodon: Use Twitter Cards (twitter:\*).
For videos: Use Schema.org JSON-LD.
For SEO & structured data: Always include Schema.org metadata.

Would you like me to generate a universal metadata YAML file covering all platforms? 🚀

References

Facebook Developers. (n.d.). Open Graph Markup. Retrieved from https://developers.facebook.com/docs/sharing/webmasters
Google Search Central. (n.d.). Best Practices for Structured Data. Retrieved from https://developers.google.com/search/docs/advanced/structured-data
Twitter Developer. (n.d.). Twitter Cards Markup. Retrieved from https://developer.twitter.com/en/docs/twitter-for-websites/cards/guides/getting-started

License

This document, Why Include OG Metadata, by Christopher Steel is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License.

CC License