Whilst I was working on a client’s new website, we started talking about how to rank on Google. Part of our discussion led to looking at Google search results and he asked the question, ‘What are Google Featured Snippets?’ Today on the blog I’m going to help you understand exactly what they are, where you will find them, what they look like and the types of content being used by Google to create them… so you can start to create a better SEO strategy.
We will look at;
Google featured snippets and where they sit in search
The 4 common types of Google snippet
Other Google snippets of interest
How Google snippets affect your website SEO
Website content ideas to get you noticed
What are Google Featured Snippets?
Google featured snippets is the term for a small area of code in between paid ads and organic search results, that Google use to highlight relevant ‘quick answers’ to a search query. To source this material Google relies on their huge index of crawled websites and share what they deem to be the most relevant answer, in a format that is easy to understand, quick to digest and keeps the user in the Google system and not bouncing off to another site.
Snippets used to appear on the right-hand side of desktop views, and you can still find some today, mainly snippets that share Google My Business information.
In the last few years Google have been playing with moving their featured snippets just under paid ads and before organic search results, in effect creating a rank position #0. This would bring desktop search in line with mobile search and even voice search where usually only one answer is presented to the user.
This move has been a bit controversial among those who have been ranking at organic position #1, or on the first page in general, because their organic rank visibility is now much lower down the page and in some cases positions #3 and beyond are way below the fold, meaning they get fewer click-throughs. However, Google pull their featured snippets directly from their organic index, so it is entirely possible to have your content featured as a snippet and a quick result search will show that… You see, Google are not creating all their snippets themselves, there is no need. Instead they draw from the information we provide them.
Let’s talks stats to see what the effect of a change in rankings has really meant for organic SEO.
Ahrefs studied 2 million featured snippets and found that featured snippets are likely to get on average 8.6% of click-throughs on page one search results, whereas organic position #1 receives 19.6%, which is down from 26% of all clicks before featured snippets where introduced and on those pages that do not yet have snippets.
Ok, ok I see what you mean. 19.6% down from 26%.
BUT.
The same study also suggested that they are almost 100% sure that Google are drawing from the top 10 ranking positions to form their snippets, meaning that in some cases people who are in organic position #10 can be bumped up to position #0 – rare, but possible! With this comes a chance for lower ranking results to get higher visibility on Google.
Snippets also change regularly, so you always have an opportunity to be featured and they do not yet appear in every search, so there’s still relevance in aiming for a strong ranking regardless.
Now you are telling me that, ‘snippets only get 8.6% click-throughs, so what’s the point?’
I can see your thinking.
BUT.
Ranking for position #1 is extremely difficult in most cases and takes a very deep understanding of SEO and content creation. But let’s say you make it to position #10… you may have little click-through in natural organic rankings, but if you get picked up and used in snippets, boy does that change!
Also, I think that there is a psychological affect to having your site featured in a snippet… a kind of validation of your online authenticity and expertise. It may not earn a click-through, but it brings awareness to your website and business name, and as users see your site popping up more and more, then they will start to realise a level of perceived trust, which is good for marketing.
So, in my opinion it is not all doom and gloom… it is about adapting your SEO strategy to not just aim to reach page one for results, but to get featured in a snippet.
Why are Google making this change? Google ultimately want their user experience to improve and for the search answer results to be more intuitive, timelier, more helpful, and clearer. Google also work extremely hard at trying to understand their user’s intent, so that they can pre-empt their decision-making process and provide them an answer much more succinctly. You can see this in the pre-emptive text that appears in the search bar as you type, you can hear this in Alexa’s answers if it does not understand your question.
The 4 common types of Google Featured Snippet
The numbered list
Numbered list Google snippets are quick answers to search queries that effectively ask ‘how’ to do something. The list is numbered in steps that form the process of how to complete the task asked about. A search query example of this could be ‘how to wire a plug’.
The Bullet list
A bullet list Google snippet is a quick answer to a search query that effectively asks ‘what are’ questions. The list is unordered in its response but shares the examples of items you need to consider. A search query example of this could be ‘best tools for social media management’.
The definition or paragraph
A definition, or a paragraph Google snippet is a quick answer to a search query that effectively asks a ‘what is’ question. The response could be a meaning to something, a brief synopsis of a book, or a movie, or a concise history.
The chart or table
A chart or table Google snippet is a quick answer to a search query that effectively asks for a data-centric answer. An example of a search query requiring this type of snippet response is ‘what is 3 inches in centimetres?’, or ‘(what is the) number of unemployed (in the) UK’.
Other Google snippets of interest
Google have been trying out lots of different types of snippets and you can see examples of these when you search for things using the search engine. These include;
Product snippets – There are occasions where sharing products to users give the best results for a snippet. They generally appear in a carousel and are drawn from Google shopping results.
Location snippets – If you are asking the question ‘where is’ then Google are much more likely to share results from Google maps, in order to help you find the location of the business(es), or destination you are looking for.
Video snippets – Google own YouTube, so it is not that unsurprising that in the rise of interest in video content that Google are starting to share videos and primarily YouTube videos in their featured snippets.
How Google Featured Snippets affects your website SEO
One remarkably interesting thing about Google snippets is that they change from device to device, because Google’s search results change based on, the user, their location, their previous device usage. So, Google are gathering and poring through reams of data about their users as individuals in order to create relevant search results for them.
And they are not the only company to do this, Amazon and Facebook are examples of just a few who utilise user data to create a better user experience. This is why we get personalised book recommendations on Amazon that will differ from the next user and on Facebook we will see ads based on the types of things we have been looking at online, or buying, or searching for.
With this in mind it is more important than ever to consider exactly how your potential customer base will use Google to find your products or services, and to start creating website content that helps these people find you.
““It is more important than ever to consider how your customers use search to find your product and services online, so that you can create a SEO ranking strategy that actually gets traction.””
Furthermore, the format of your website content is important too. Given that we know what the four most common snippets are, we can start to create content that helps fulfil these Google needs. This will give us much better opportunity to get our content noticed above the competition during the ranking process – because you may have noticed, featured snippets aren’t always from organic position #1, sometimes it’s position #2, or #3!
The other thing to consider is where else you put this new content on your website, is it in product/service descriptions, or on your blog (and I recommend you start one if you haven’t already – see my Marketing Manager Tip below) and do you consider also putting that content onto platforms like YouTube, or social media? Yes, these things are also being indexed by Google… I see twitter results come up in search all the time.
5 Google featured snippet content ideas (+ a bonus tip)
‘How to’ videos on product or service descriptions – Create a simple video, ideally less than three minutes to capture the process of how to use your product, or how your service works. One of the key decisions people make when buying into something is seeing the product or service in use. This is why you often see hoover television adverts that show you how their hoovers suck up even the smallest of crumbs, or how they tackle pet hair. Another great example of a company that often makes video content to help answer ‘how’ questions is Vanish with their ‘stain removal tips’ series.
Put this on your website and on YouTube, as both options will give you an opportunity to rank on Google and if you rank high enough your video could become a snippet.
Write a list blog post that answers a ‘How to’ question about your niche – I come from a world where this feels an easier content piece to create. You see I used to own a craft supplies business and through my website, or at shows I would always get asked questions like ‘how to use…’, or ‘which supply/tool to use for what project’. In answering these questions by email, or in person I would quite often get a sale from that individual as a result. Imagine if you broadcast that explanation to a wider audience on your site, you could reach more people and get more sales leads from it.
If you create ‘how to’ content that is based on a wider Google search, then your content ranks higher still and gives you an opportunity to try to rank for a snippet winning spot.
Create content that answers a frequently asked question – Ok, so let’s imagine that you have already tried a piece of content that answers content number two in our list. If you have, then there is one other content type that you could just as easily produce and that is in answering a frequently asked question.
I have found over the years of selling online and particularly at shows, that for the one or two who ask the question, there will be a bunch of people who don’t ask the question but still need to know the answer. Not knowing the answer often stops them from buying into what your selling, because they do not understand its relevance to them.
Creating this type of content for your website is immensely powerful in terms of your customer service and in the case of snippets, it could be really useful for Google to index and use for other people who are searching for that result online.
Create content that uses the keywords most shown in snippets – In the Ahrefs study we mentioned earlier, under point 8 (‘which words trigger featured snippets?’) we can get a sense of the most commonly used keywords that get used in features. Creating content using these words could increase your chances of getting selected by Google.
Currently the two highest used keywords are; ‘recipe’ and ‘best’.
An example could be, ‘The best recipes for making bread’. This could be a list snippet.
Another example using the same keywords could be, ‘the best recipe for your website SEO’… so it doesn’t have to be food recipes necessarily to make use of the ‘recipe’ keyword (however, do your Google research to see if your topic idea gives a relevant volume of results, because Google are only going to snippet from the most searched topics and avoid the obscure).
Add locations to your website events – if you have an events page, then try to create Google map locations for each event you will be hosting. Alongside this get your whole business on Google Maps, so you can be found easily.
Bonus tip: Get your products listed on Google Shopping – Google have their own Merchant Centre that will help you get your products listed. In some cases, you may also find shopping platforms help to list your products as part of your subscription, Etsy being one of them.
Google Snippet Conclusion
Google featured snippets are here to stay, although their form and their regularity in appearance may change over time and in each individual search use. Either way they remain a great opportunity to get more visibility for your website, products, and services online. Take some time to think about how you can create a strategy that includes reaching for snippet ranking positions with your site and content SEO and take your first steps into targeted website changes that count.
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