It’s no secret that a simple search on Google does not yield simple results anymore. Over time Google’s search engine results page (SERP) has become more complex. In this blog post, we will go over some of the top features you see when you do one of those simple searches.
Featured Snippets
Featured Snippets are when Google’s SERP shows a small snippet of information before the normal link listings. My search for What age did Queen Elizabeth become Queen? shows me the answer to the question with a link I can find out more information before any other results. This type of feature has widely cut down on organic traffic to some websites. In this example, there is no need to click on the article on History.com because I already got my answer.
Image Pack
Images in the search results might be one of the most common features. The size of the image pack can change based on your query. Below is the image pack for Maltipoo puppies. This is a much smaller image pack because I could be searching for Maltipoo puppies to buy or wanting to learn more about Maltipoos in general.
When I change the query slightly and search for Maltipoo puppies images, I get more images, plus the top link is for Pinterest, which is home to plenty of Maltipoo pictures!
Knowledge Cards & Panels
Below you will see a search for how deep is the Atlantic Ocean which yields results for both a knowledge card and knowledge panel. These boxes contain information for people, places, organizations and things search queries. The information can come from a variety of sources with one of the most common being Wikipedia. The knowledge card is on the left-hand side of search results while the knowledge panel is on the right-hand side.
Local Pack
Local pack, also commonly known as the local 3-pack shows results that are nearby or for a location you included in your search. A restaurants near me search yield the following SERP results.
In order for your business to be visible in the local pack, it is important to create and optimize your Google My Business (GMB) profile. In addition to optimizing your listing, it is important to try and obtain reviews for your business. Lastly, you will want to add local business schema to your website so to help Google best understand where your business is located.
People Also Ask
A feature we have found to be very beneficial for SEO is the People Also Ask, also sometimes referred to as Related Questions. Here you will find questions in accordion form. Simply click on the question and you will see a short blurb from an article that answers the question.
Utilizing FAQ Schema is extremely beneficial for helping your article, blog post, or page appear in this section of Google’s SERP. It has helped a local dentist client receive over 40,000 organic visits a month. Learn more about FAQ Schema here.
Sitelinks
Sitelinks are additional links under a typical search result. For example, a search for Netvantage Marketing has our website as the first result, with subpages of our website listed underneath it. This allows users to quickly navigate to an internal webpage from the search results if they choose to do so.
Top Stories
Pretty self-explanatory here, the top stories feature shows some of the latest articles and stories related to a search query. These results are pulled from Google News sources.
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