How does one effectively write a summary?

1. 60

   Johanna Andersonposted 12 years ago

   I have published two hubs, and both of them have lost points for not having summaries.  I'm not against writing a summary, if I can do it without simply being redundant.  Would you be willing to critique these and give concrete examples of what good summaries would look like?
   
   Another little problem--I don't know how to copy and paste the link to the hubs into this box. Here are the links as best as I know how to give them to you:
   
   
   http://johannaanderson.hubpages.com/hub … undraising
   
   
   http://johannaanderson.hubpages.com/hub … my-Seating
   
   Thanks,
   Johanna

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   1. 61

      couturepopcafeposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      "The adoption process can be a financial drain for many families. Learn how fundraising for adoption can help alleviate some of the financial burden during the adoption process. Find 'how to' tips and solutions in (your name)'s informative article from a family (or say from the '____' family) who has successfully used fund raising for adoption."
      
      I've use the keywords 'fund raising' twice and used the space between the words on one occasion, allowing for the way people search.
      
      I've used the keyword 'adoption' and/or 'adoption process' three times.
      
      I've used your name. (I almost always use my name because it gets it circulating more for my book promotion).
      
      I've inserted the words 'how to' because this is a big search word.

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   2. 88

      kschangposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Instead of a real summary, I'd give a "teaser".
      
      "Ever tried to sleep on long flights in economy class? Not exactly your bed at home. Here are 4 tips to get your forty winks so you can arrive bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and ready to explore strange and exotic lands! "

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2. 89

   WryLiltposted 12 years ago

   You don't "lose points" for not having a summary - HP only recently bought in having to write your own summary. Before that they'd take your first few sentences. Sometimes summaries aren't even what show up in searches, depending what keywords are used to find your articles.
   Just write a few sentences summing up your article. For instance in one about dogs "There are many dog breeds. This article looks at some of the most popular."
   
   To find out how to make the links, click on "formatting" at the bottom right when you're creating a new post.

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3. 87

   DonnaCosmatoposted 12 years ago

   A good word picture for the summary is "movie trailer." Think of how the trailer gives you tantalizing little peeks of the movie; do the same with your summary. Give the reader a few morsels to make them want to click on your article rather than a competitor's.

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4. 82

   Mark Ewbieposted 12 years ago

   Yup.  A long list of options is presented to a possible reader by the search engines.
   
   That summary is very important in giving them an idea as the whetehr your page is worth the effort of clicking into.
   
   What's it about?  What would make YOU read it?  Two or three sentences.
   
   Maybe, subtly, include your main title keyword, although I don't know if that is essential.
   
   If I wrote "Grand Page About Toys" my summary might say "This is a page about toys and how grand they are... etc."
   
   Caveat.  My traffic is laughable.  I am a failure.

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5. 91

   Pcunixposted 12 years ago

   I DETEST writing summaries.  Most of my hubs have that text lazily copied from some part of the hub and the rest contain a few sentences that embarrass me every time I read them.
   
   Had I the financial ability, I would farm that odious task out to someone else.

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6. 31

   Writer Foxposted 12 years ago

   The "Summary" on HubPages is more commonly known as the Description Meta Tag.  This description is usually used on the search engine results pages underneath the page title of a website.  Do a search on Google for any query, and you'll see a description given for every link on the results.  Google will use your description when it is relevant to the search query.  If not, Google will pull content from your webpage and display that instead.  The purpose of the description tag is to get the web searcher to click thru to your webpage. Therefore, it must be written like sales copy, which it really is.  To learn more about the description meta tag and how to write one, go to this link http://tinyurl.com/7d6ut5a and scroll down just a bit until you see "SEO Description Tag."  It's an important part of the on page optimization of every Hub you write.

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   1. 60

      Johanna Andersonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks for all the great answers.  I really had no idea what the summary even was until I read your replies.  I thought the summary part of the hub was the conclusion. 
      
      Now that I know what a summary is, where do I place it in the hub?  I haven't seen any spot in the capsules that is earmarked for the summary.
      
      Thanks, Johanna

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      1. 89

         WryLiltposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         On the right hand side when editing, under the Add More Capsules section.

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         1. 60

            Johanna Andersonposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            Thank you so much.  I don't know where I would be without you experienced hubbers.  You have helped me a lot already.  I am sure I will have more questions soon!

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            1. 89

               WryLiltposted 12 years agoin reply to this

               We're here to help!

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7. 93

   Sherry Hewinsposted 12 years ago

   If I have an intro that I think really draws people in, I will either not write a summary or just copy and paste that intro as the summary.

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