This is the closing post of the PrestaShop 8 meta counter series. The first two posts covered the problem (the native 128/512 are not SEO targets) and the technical implementation (the open-source module). This is the real case: a PS8 store with 1,800 SKUs, we audited the state, installed the module, briefed the internal SEO team on the new targets, and measured the effect on CTR and average position in Search Console over 30 days. Real data, real numbers, no gloss.
The context
- PrestaShop 8.1 store since 2023, consumer goods sector, B2C in the Spanish market.
- 1,800 active SKUs, ~80 products with significant organic traffic (more than 50 clicks/month in Search Console).
- Team: 1 SEO manager + 1 product description writer. Both had the instruction ‘don’t exceed the counter’ and followed it.
- Child theme over the official one, V2 product form activated, RankMath SEO installed but without specific validation rules.
The initial audit
To diagnose the scope, we exported the metas of the 80 products with organic traffic via direct database query:
SELECT p.id_product, pl.meta_title, pl.meta_description,
CHAR_LENGTH(pl.meta_title) AS len_title,
CHAR_LENGTH(pl.meta_description) AS len_desc
FROM ps_product_lang pl
JOIN ps_product p ON p.id_product = pl.id_product
WHERE p.active = 1
AND pl.id_lang = 1
AND pl.id_shop = 1
ORDER BY len_title DESC
LIMIT 200;Results for the 80 products with traffic:
- Titles > 60 characters: 41 products (51%).
- Descriptions > 160 characters: 27 products (34%).
- Titles between 80–128: 18 products. These were the most affected — Google was truncating the title in half.
- Descriptions between 280–512: 12 products. Mobile snippet was cut off in the first sentence.
- Extra qualitative data: in 14 of the 18 titles > 80, the long-tail keyword (the product differentiator) was placed at the end.
The SEO team was unaware of the problem: they worked with the rule ‘don’t exceed 128’ that the back-office counter showed them. The conversation with the SEO manager summed up as ‘but the counter let me’.
The implementation
- Zeyvro Meta Counter module installed (15 minutes). Back office → Modules → Upload → drag the zip → Install. Zero configuration. The SEO counter appeared below each meta field in the back office immediately.
- Team briefing (45 minutes). The change was explained: new counter, targets 60 and 160, color coding. A 1-page reference sheet with the new limits and good/bad examples was provided.
- Prioritized rewriting. List of the 41 products with title > 60, sorted by Search Console traffic (most clicks first). The team dedicated 1 hour per day for 5 days to rewriting. Average time per product: 8 minutes. Total: ~5.5 hours for all 41.
- Description rewriting: 27 products, 6 minutes each. ~2.7 hours.
- Total team hours: ~9 hours, spread across one week, without stopping other tasks.
The real friction was in step 2 (briefing). The team had internalized the 128 counter over 2 years. The first 5–10 products they rewrote while constantly consulting the reference sheet; by product 15 they had the new number internalized. The adaptation curve was one day.
Metrics at 30 days
Measurement period: 30 days after completing the rewriting. Comparison against the previous 30 days (same period of the prior year, same seasons). Search Console data aggregated across the 80 products with organic traffic:
| Metric | Before (30d) | After (30d) | Δ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total impressions | 184,520 | 192,840 | +4.5% |
| Total clicks | 3,214 | 4,018 | +25.0% |
| Average CTR | 1.74% | 2.08% | +19.5% |
| Average position | 14.8 | 14.2 | +0.6 pos. |
| Products with truncated SERP title (visual) | 41 / 80 | 3 / 80 | — |
| Descriptions rewritten by Google (instead of meta) | ~22% | ~9% | — |
The main change was absorbed by CTR. Impressions barely moved (Google positions take longer to shift), but the percentage of people who click when seeing the SERP rose noticeably because they were now seeing the full title and the description wasn’t truncated before the CTA.
The number that surprised the client most: the percentage of descriptions Google was rewriting dropped from 22% to 9%. When Google rewrites the description it’s because it considers the meta doesn’t answer the search intent — going over 160 characters and truncating halfway through the first sentence is a common trigger. By adjusting to 160, Google ‘approves’ the description and uses it as-is.
The real cost
- Module cost: €0. Free, MIT.
- Team time: 9 hours in one week, spread without stopping other tasks.
- Manager time: 1 hour initial audit + 1 hour team briefing.
- Total person-hours: ~11 hours to gain +25% sustained organic clicks.
What did NOT improve
- Average positions moved only 0.6 points. Rewriting meta doesn’t significantly move position — it does move CTR at a fixed position.
- Products with low traffic (<50 clicks/month) didn’t have enough data for individual conclusions. Likely they benefit the same way but variance is high.
- The counter doesn’t solve meta quality. A mediocre 60-character title is still mediocre. The tool enables; it doesn’t write.
When NOT to install it
- If your store has <30 products. Manual audit is faster than the setup.
- If your team won’t rewrite after installing it. The module doesn’t rewrite existing metas — it only tells you when new ones are right or wrong. Without rewriting there’s no effect.
- If you’re already migrating from PS8 to another platform. Wait for the new one.
The module
Zeyvro Meta Counter v1.0.0 is available for free in our store. Direct download, 15-minute installation, no configuration. Open source repository under MIT license.
If you replicate this case in your store and the result differs from what we describe here, write to us at hola@zeyvro.com. Real cases are what refines the content — not manuals.