How to optimize for featured snippets
The semantic web, big data, and automatic natural language processing have enabled Google to evolve the user experience of its service.
Today, the search engine goes beyond the simple display of links: it tries to provide a direct response to the Internet user's request.
Objective: to help him access the answers he is looking for more quickly.
It is with this in mind that Google has set up the “ Featured Snippets ”. Any website manager looking for an efficient traffic acquisition method must know this feature and make the most of it.
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| How to optimize for featured snippets |
what is it Featured Snippets?
Featured Snippets are special inserts that are found at the top of results when searching on Google. If, for example, you are wondering about the age of a celebrity, it will appear directly in this frame. Here's an example with Bill Gates:
To achieve this, Google uses trusted sites and the content of links from the first page of results, on which the data is extracted.
The search engine then displays, in the Featured Snipped, the link that seems most relevant to it.
But what types of Featured Snippets are on the Google search engine?
The different types of Featured Snippets
Currently, there are 6 types of Featured Snippets implemented by Google.
1. The Featured Snippets "Paragraph"
These correspond to an excerpt from a text which answers questions such as "how to *?" ", " who is * ? "Or" the definition of * ".
2. The Featured Snippets "Numbered List"
There are also "numbered lists" which are great for listing the steps in a cooking recipe or any other tutorial.
3. The Featured Snippets "Bulleted List"
As a continuation of the numbered list, Google also offers a “bulleted list” insert which presents a classification.
4.The Featured Snippets "Tableau"
Google then offers snippets in the form of more or less complex "tables". These appear when requesting sports rankings, product comparisons or if an Internet user wishes to follow an event in real time.
5. The Featured Snippets "Video"
The 5th type of Featured Snippet that you may come across is a video pulled from YouTube. It is displayed large, at the top of the page, and can be viewed without going to the video platform.
6. “Multiple Sources” Featured Snippets
Finally, there is also the "multi-source" snippet which presents content based on two different sources. This could be text accompanied by a YouTube video, for example.
Getting a Featured Snippet in Google results is an SEO goal that should not be underestimated: a snippet can increase your visibility in the SERPs and considerably boost your traffic.
However, they should not be confused with Rich Snippets , which are just as useful for getting noticed in search results.
Why are Featured Snippets essential for SEO?
According to Ahrefs , a first position in the SERPs as featured snippets allows you to get 31% more traffic. This statistic alone shows the interest of appearing in zero position!
But that's not all, here are 5 other advantages of taking pole position on Google:
1. Improve awareness
First advantage: enriched extracts improve your brand awareness. Obviously, if you are at the top of the results, you become more visible to prospects.
When making a choice, consumers will more easily go to a brand that they have seen regularly.
2. Optimize your voice presence
Did you know that voice assistants (Alexa, Siri, Google Home…) extract responses from featured snippets? Displaying in zero position is therefore the ideal way to generate traffic from an oral request .
3. Boost e-commerce sales
For an e-commerce, featured snippets offer several tools to attract highly qualified traffic.
- The product schedule
The product schema allows you to present relevant information about your products. This ranges from size to price to materials used and other characteristics of an item.
This information, placed at the top of the results, attracts the attention of the Internet user who is looking to buy a product and promotes traffic to your product sheets.
- The review schedule
90% of consumers read reviews of a product before buying it. Featured snippets help you present them to the consumer without them having to click on your site. You instill confidence in him before he even explores the competition. Which can increase your visits!
- The price range diagram
4. For the lead generation
Featured snippets help you attract qualified leads. We tend to believe that, since they provide a quick response, Internet users do not click on the link.
However, one study has shown that optimized snippets get 58% more clicks, compared to other organic results. For some types of results, the CTR can reach 87%.
The advantage of featured snippets is that they help pre-qualify your visitors. The user who clicks wants more information. He is therefore very interested in your offer and ready to continue his purchasing journey ...
5. To boost mobile traffic
Mobile devices offer less screen space. Consequence: the first positions are even more important!
By occupying position 0, your information covers a large part of the mobile user's screen.
How to appear in position 0?
Now that you know more about featured snippets and their benefits for your business, here are 6 tips to reach that 0 position!
1. Target search intent
As we have said, search engines want to give the best answer to the Internet user from the optimized extracts. So you need to determine the search intent that your content will respond to.
This will allow you to optimize your page for a specific type of featured snippets. For example, if you want to respond to a transaction intent, you can insert a comparison table. For informational purposes, favor bulleted definitions and lists in your article.
Also consider using long tail keywords . They make it possible to respond precisely to a search intention, which increases the chances of being positioned at the top of the results.
2. Add a table of contents
As with a book, a table of contents helps Internet users quickly find the answer to their question. The anchor links allow him to navigate to the section of his choice.
In addition to promoting user experience, the table of contents optimizes your content for position 0. With such a structure, search engine spiders fully understand your article and its hierarchy. This makes it easier to display bulleted lists, for example.
But this best practice can also help algorithms identify a caption question. If this question is the subject of a request, your article will have a better chance of appearing in the first results. Which brings us to the next tip ...
3. Ask questions in the headings
Since featured snippets answer questions, why not ask them directly in your content?
In the title of the page, ask the question exactly as the user would. You can also use your captions to cover other aspects.
Be sure to answer the questions right after your H1, H2, and H3, while keeping it clear and concise. Why ? Because optimized snippets don't display more than 60 words. This is why you have to give as much information as possible under the question (or tag).
4. Create videos for featured snippets
It's not just your users who love video, so do the search engines. As for a text, they highlight the part which contains the answer to the query.
To make the videos on your pages reach position 0:
- Host your videos on YouTube
- Include keywords in video metadata
- Add subtitles
- Divide your video into segments
5. Use the inverted pyramid
The inverted pyramid is a technique used by journalists to write a news article that will immediately capture the attention of readers.
The concept is simple: you start with the most interesting information to engage your audience. You go into details later ...
When optimizing a page (or section of a page) for position 0, follow these techniques:
- The first sentence should define the subject.
- The second and third sentences should describe two or three essential aspects of the topic.
- Avoid using superfluous expressions in your definition so as not to overload the text.
6. Do not use your brand name
Do not forget: the contents of position 0 are used to give a rapid response to Internet users and thus improve their experience with search engines. By including your business name or personal pronouns (I or us), you limit your chances.
Be neutral in your wording and do not try to sell your products or services. The key to success is rather to want to inform, in an objective way, your target.