One of the most crucial aspects of search engine optimisation is Google Featured Snippets. To help potential customers find the information they need without visiting your website, Google will pull content from the website and show it on the search engine results page (SERP).
For users, they provide a quick and easy way to get answers to their questions without having to click through multiple websites. In addition, being featured in a featured snippet can increase website visibility and traffic for businesses.
So how exactly do Google’s featured snippets work? In this blog post, we’ll explain the details and explore what businesses can do to optimise their content for featured snippets.
What are Featured Snippets?
Featured snippets are small text boxes that appear at the top of SERPs in response to a search query. They aim to provide users with quick and concise answers to their questions without having to click through to a website. Featured snippets can take on different formats, including paragraphs, lists, tables, and more.
Types Of Featured Snippets
Depending on the information a user is looking for, Google and other major search engines may use one of a few snippets.
It will be easier for you to arrange your content and give it the best chance of being included in a featured snippet if you know which type of snippet best suits your subject. We’ll discuss various featured snippet types and describe how Google employs them to show information over the course of the following few sections. And such types are,
- Paragraph
- Tables
- Youtube Videos
Paragraph
The content in paragraph-featured snippets is presented in paragraph format. The most used and highlighted snippet is this one. Over 81% of all highlighted snippets, according to some experts, are paragraphs. Google pulls a text excerpt from a website and displays it as a paragraph in paragraph-featured snippets.
By concentrating on text content, you can rate featured snippets for paragraphs. Like other featured snippets, they frequently appear as responses to a search inquiry. Google may return a relevant featured snippet with the solution to a user’s question when they search for it. Create high-quality text content that offers succinct responses to users’ concerns to rank for paragraph-featured snippets.
Tables
The information of table featured snippets is presented as a table. Of course, tables are used to arrange facts where vertical divisions and horizontal rows are present.
Creating table-formatted material can help your website for rank for table-featured snippets. For example, you might be able to use an HTML table to present facts rather than using complete sentences. There only needs to be two or more factors in the data.
Youtube Videos
Given that YouTube is one of the most popular search engines on the web, it is no wonder that you want to try and rate your website for video-featured snippets as well.
A featured snippet will contain the video if it offers the most comprehensive response to a user’s inquiry. The Youtube video snippets are most useful for “how-to” queries that place in search engines.
How Do Featured Snippets Work?
Google’s algorithm uses a variety of factors to determine which pages should be featured in a featured snippet. The most important factor is the relevance and quality of the content on the page. In addition, Google looks for informative and concise content that directly answers the user’s query.
Another critical factor is the format of the content. Google tends to favour content that is in a list or table format, as it is easier to read and digest quickly. Additionally, the content must be easily readable, with clear headings and subheadings that make the content easily understandable.
Finally, the structure of the quality content also plays a role. Google looks for content that is structured in a way that makes it easy to extract a concise answer.
Optimising for Featured Snippets
Now that we understand how featured snippets work, let’s explore what businesses can do to optimise their content for featured snippets. Here are a few tips:
Answer Common Questions
One of the best ways to get featured in a featured snippet is to answer common questions that users might have. For example, if you run a digital marketing blog, you might create content that answers questions like “what are ways to achieve top rank in SERPs” or “which hosting plan is good.”
By providing clear, concise answers to these questions, you increase the chances of your content being featured in a featured snippet.
Use Structured Data
Structured data is a way of providing additional information about your content to search engines. By adding structured data to your content, you can help Google better understand the structure and format of your content, which can increase the chances of it being featured in a featured snippet. You can use many different types of structured data, including FAQ schema, How-To schema, and more.
Use Lists and Tables
As we mentioned earlier, Google tends to favour content that is in a list or table format. Structuring your content this way makes it easier for Google to understand and extract a concise answer. Additionally, using lists and tables can make your content easier to read and digest for users, which can lead to increased engagement.
Use Clear Headings and Subheadings
Clear headings and subheadings are essential for making your content scannable and easily digestible. Breaking up your content into clear sections with headings and subheadings makes it easier for users to find the information they’re looking for quickly.
Additionally, clear headings and subheadings can help Google better understand the structure of your content, which can increase the chances of it being featured in a featured
Why Optimise for Featured Snippets?
First of all, doing so will increase the exposure of your website in the relevant Google search results. If you have a position of zero rating, only paid advertisements will appear above you; all other organic search results will be pushed down. Many people say that since users can find their answer in the snippet, they don’t need to navigate through to the website.
While this may be the case for very basic search queries, Google only displays a portion of the text, list, or table for more complex information, forcing users to click the link and visit the landing page to view the entire piece of information.
Final Thoughts
Featured snippets can significantly increase your website’s click-through rate (CTR), but they can be challenging to obtain if you aren’t using the proper SEO tools. However, the same techniques that help you get featured snippets, such as conducting keyword research and organising your content, also help you stay on the first page of Google, so it doesn’t cost to try and get them.
Your company can grow significantly if you pick up some tips and techniques for expanding your reach. Keep in mind that increasing organic traffic takes time, but if you consistently create and carry out plans to do so, your company will have the best chance of succeeding.
