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Setup the correct metadata

Metadata is the title, description and image that Maglr adds to every published page. Search results, the browser tab and link previews on social media show these values. Maglr fills them in automatically, and you can overwrite them at three levels:


  • Page: the title, description and thumbnail of one page, set in Page settings.
  • Project: the default title and description for all pages in a project, set in Project settings.
  • Navigation environment: the default description, brand name and environment name for all projects in a navigation environment, set in the environment's Texts tab.


For each value, Maglr uses the most specific level that has one filled in.


Setting default metadata in the navigation environment


The navigation environment sets the default meta description, the brand or website name and the environment name for every project in that environment. It has no meta title field. These fields are set per language.


To set the navigation environment's metadata:


  1. Go to Settings → Navigation environment.
  2. Click Edit settings on the environment.
  3. Open the Texts tab.
  4. Select the language tab you want to edit.
  5. Go to the SEO description section.
  6. Fill in Brand / website name, Name publication environment and Meta description. The meta description can be up to 250 characters.
  7. Click Save navigation.


Repeat steps 4 to 6 for each language your environment uses.


  • Brand / website name is used as the site name in social media link previews. If it is empty, the environment name is used instead.
  • Name publication environment is used as the title of the environment's overview page.


Image: meta title & description in the navigation environment


Setting metadata for a project


The project's meta title and meta description are the defaults for every page in that project. For a page without its own meta title, the project meta title is added after the page title, for example Page title - Project meta title.


To set a project's metadata:


  1. Open the project.
  2. Click Project settings (the wrench icon) in the left sidebar.
  3. Open the SEO tab.
  4. Fill in Meta title and Meta description.
  5. Click Save.
  6. Click Publish to make the change live.


Image: meta title & description in the project settings


Setting metadata for a page


A page's own meta title and meta description overwrite the project and navigation environment values for that page only. A page meta title is shown exactly as you type it, without the project name added.


To set a page's metadata:


  1. Open the project.
  2. Hover over the page and click the wrench icon (Page settings).
  3. Open the SEO tab.
  4. Fill in Meta title and Meta description.
  5. Click Save.
  6. Click Publish to make the change live.


The SEO tab in Page settings also has a Canonical link field, which tells search engines which URL is the original version of the page.


You can also set a page's meta title and meta description in the editor. In the Pages panel, click the wrench on the page. In the Settings panel that opens, fill in Meta title and Meta description under Search Engine Optimisation, then click Save. These are the same fields as in Page settings → SEO, so the change goes live when you publish the project.


Image: meta title & description in the page settings


Metadata fallback order


For each published page, Maglr picks the title and description from the most specific level that has a value.


Title:


  1. The page's Meta title (Page settings → SEO), shown exactly as typed.
  2. If the page has no meta title: the page title followed by the project's Meta title (Project settings → SEO), for example Page title - Project meta title.
  3. If the project also has no meta title: the page title followed by the project title, for example Page title - Project title.


The navigation environment has no meta title, so it is not part of the title order for project pages.


Description:


  1. The page's Meta description.
  2. The project's Meta description.
  3. The navigation environment's Meta description for that language.
  4. The navigation environment's Short description of publication(s) (Texts tab → Overview page section) for that language.


If all of these are empty, Maglr adds no description. Search engines and social media platforms may then choose their own text to show.


Changing the page thumbnail


The page thumbnail is the image shown in link previews on social media and in the navigation of your publication. By default, Maglr uses an automatic screenshot of the page. You can replace it with an image of your choice.


To change a page's thumbnail:


  1. Open the project.
  2. Hover over the page and click the wrench icon (Page settings).
  3. Open the Page thumbnail tab.
  4. Under "Choose an alternative thumbnail", click Select and choose an image.
  5. Click Save.
  6. Click Publish to make the change live.


Link previews crop the thumbnail to a landscape format, so a portrait or square image is not shown in full.


Image: changing the thumbnail of a page


When metadata changes appear in search engines and social media


Changes to page and project metadata and to page thumbnails go live on your published pages after you publish the project. Search engines and social media platforms then update their own copy on their own schedule. This can take from a few days to a few weeks.


Facebook lets you refresh a link preview yourself. LinkedIn can take some time to refresh a link preview. For details per platform, see how to refresh link previews on Facebook, X and LinkedIn.


Frequently asked questions


Why does my page title show the project name after a dash?


When a page has no meta title of its own, Maglr builds the title from the page title followed by the project's meta title, for example Page title - Project meta title. If the project has no meta title either, the project title is used, for example Page title - Project title. To show a title without the project name, fill in Meta title in the page's Page settings → SEO tab and publish the project. A page meta title is shown exactly as typed.



Changes to page and project metadata and to page thumbnails reach your published pages only after you click Publish in the project. After that, search engines and social media platforms keep showing their stored copy until they refresh it, which can take from a few days to a few weeks. Facebook lets you refresh a link preview yourself. For details per platform, see how to refresh link previews on Facebook, X and LinkedIn.


Can I set a different meta description per language?


Yes. In the navigation environment, the meta description is set per language. Go to Settings → Navigation environment, click Edit settings on the environment, open the Texts tab, select the language tab, fill in Meta description in the SEO description section and click Save navigation. Repeat this for each language.


What happens if I leave all meta fields empty?


If no meta title is filled in at page or project level, the title Maglr shows is the page title followed by the project title, for example Page title - Project title. If no meta description is filled in at page, project or navigation environment level, and the environment's Short description of publication(s) (Texts tab → Overview page) is empty, Maglr adds no description. Search engines and social media platforms may then choose their own text to show.

Updated on: 16/10/2026