Making your way to Google’s top-ranking pages is not a cakewalk. You need to use the right strategies and acquire the right backlinks. But, did you know that featured snippets can help you achieve a ranking in Google?
All you need to do is optimize your content. Featured snippets provide answers to the search queries by pulling relevant content from the top-ranking pages.
A featured snippet normally shows up as a block that contains the exact answer to your query. It is right above the first organic search results; it’s called the ‘position 0’ in search.
The featured snippet could be an image, source page title, or a source page URL. Featured snippets are attention-grabbing when they include images. The results from the featured snippets vary depending on the query or industry type. Some reports indicate a 10% increase in website traffic and a 6% increase in click-through-rates.
Different types of featured snippets:
- Paragraph
- Table
- List
- Video
1] Paragraph Featured Snippets
Paragraph featured snippets are the most common snippets with a ratio of 82%. Google uses the source text to provide a relevant answer to the search query for this type of snippet.
The answer could be longer on the source page, but the featured snippet gives an easy and quick response.
Way to optimize content for Paragraph featured snippets:
Comparisons (A vs. B)
- What is?
- Who is?
- How is it?
- Why is it?
Google mostly includes a shorter text, so your answer should be in a max of 50 words. You can also include the question as a heading and the answer, which will garner direct results on the search pages.
2] Table Featured Snippets
It shows a collection of data in a tabular form. You do not need to summarize the whole data in a table form as Google formats it for the snippet. It would be best to format your table to make sure it’s easier for the site visitors to read it.
Way to optimize content for Table featured snippets:
There is no sure way to optimize table featured snippets, but some tips can help you optimize it. You can work on the table instead of depending on Google. This will make it easier to find your content. Moreover, it would be best if you started with a great heading for optimizing tabular form.
3] List Featured Snippets
List snippets are featured in numbers and bullets. The numbered featured snippet is more organized as it explains the step-by-step process of how to use something. DIY and recipes fall in this category.
Bullet featured snippets are used when the content uses bullets to highlight points. Here, the order does not matter. People do use this to optimize specific content pages for special blogs on their websites.
Way to optimize content for List featured snippets:
Optimizing for list featured snippets is somewhat similar to the paragraph snippets. Additionally, you can include a question as a heading. Then answer the question in a max of 50 words under the heading.
You also have an option to outline your steps in ordered list tags in your post for each step using a heading. Google then uses these steps to pull the snippet.
4] Video Featured Snippets
Videos have picked up in the last few years. And, video content has been showing up in featured snippets position zero. When you search for ‘How-to’ queries, Google pulls the relevant videos highlighting the video clips that may be the best solution to the search query.
Way to optimize content for Video featured snippets:
Google is always in favor of video content, so optimizing for video featured snippets is easy. You can start by organizing your content in a step by step format. Then upload a relevant script for the video’s close captions. Use long-tail keywords to optimize the video’s description part.
Ways to get more featured snippets:
- Be specific
Though Google prefers long-form content for optimization, you need to be more specific and concise with your content. Avoid any redundancy in your featured content. This also helps to organize your posts that lead to better retention.
The average of the paragraph-featured snippets is about 50 words, so you need to keep that in mind when you draft your content. You need to follow a blog format or a content structure to get featured.
You can start with a heading and then write a small Para after that. Continue with subheadings but cover how and what in the content format. So, you need to elaborate on your post for featured snippets.
- Use the keyword intent.
Search intent or keyword intent is the goal of the searcher. Most searchers want information on a product/service or want to buy something. To optimize the intent, you need to make sure that one article answers multiple questions.
The best part is you don’t need to create multiple articles with a long structured article. A long article can answer many related questions in a unified way.
- Use high-quality images
Most paras and blogs use images. Again, there is no surety that Google is going to use the images. So, to optimize the images, you need to use high-quality images in your content. Keep the images uniform in all your posts.
- Strive to rank better
Nearly all pages are found on the first page of SERP’S. It would be best if you focused on your on-page SEO strategies for optimization. Diagnose SEO issues and fix penalties. Make your website easy to crawl and navigate. Pay special attention to the speed of your website. Choose a mobile responsive theme for your site.
Use a more user-friendly address and do practice internal linking ways. Make your website or page accessible and readable. If the page is not readable, then it’ll affect the traffic of your website. It’ll also affect your ranking process.
In Brief,
Do keyword research for your site and target all the related keywords. Always aim for the first page of Google SERP and plan your optimizing strategy according to it. Do include words in your content that are more likely to generate featured snippets. Always format your blog posts based on the targeted snippets. Stick to an ideal para length and follow a specific blog structure.
You can also add a Q&A page to your website. To keep track of your featured snippets, use the Ahrefs Rank tracker. Enter your domain, search for organic keywords, SERP features, and featured snippets.
Do draft your new content keeping the featured snippet optimization in mind.
Sudhir Bhushan is a Tech & Social enthusiast. He is also a Web Entrepreneur by Profession and loves to write about the latest trends in Social Media & SEO. You may also follow him on Twitter | Facebook
