Featured snippets are one of the most sought-after and rewarding SEO opportunities in 2023. They are the special boxes that appear at the top of Google’s search results, providing a quick and direct answer to a user’s query. They can help you boost your website’s visibility, traffic, authority, and conversions, if you know how to get them.
But what are the benefits of featured snippets exactly? And how can you optimize your website for them? In this blog post, we will explore the benefits of featured snippets and share some tips on how to target and win them for your website.
What are featured snippets and why are they important?
Featured snippets are short snippets of text that Google extracts from a web page and displays at the top of the search results, along with a link to the source page. They are designed to provide users with a quick and direct answer to their query, without having to click on any link.
Featured snippets are important for several reasons:
- They increase your website’s visibility and brand awareness. Featured snippets occupy a large and prominent space on the search results page, often referred to as “position zero”. They can help you stand out from the crowd and attract more attention from users.
- They improve your website’s click-through rate (CTR) and organic traffic. Featured snippets can entice users to click on your link by providing a relevant and valuable answer to their query. According to a study by Ahrefs, featured snippets get approximately 8.6% of all clicks, while the first organic result gets 19.6%. This means that featured snippets can steal clicks from the first organic result and increase your traffic potential.
- They enhance your website’s authority and trustworthiness. Featured snippets can signal to users that your website is a credible and reliable source of information for their query. They can also help you establish yourself as an expert or leader in your niche or industry.
- They boost your website’s conversions and revenue. Featured snippets can help you generate more leads and sales by providing users with a clear and compelling call-to-action (CTA). They can also help you reduce your bounce rate and increase your engagement by providing users with a satisfying user experience.
How to target and win featured snippets for your website?
Targeting and winning featured snippets for your website is not easy, but it is possible if you follow some best practices and strategies. Here are some steps that you can take to optimize your website for featured snippets:
- Identify the types and triggers of featured snippets. There are four main types of featured snippets that Google shows depending on the intent and format of the query: paragraph, list, table, and video. You need to match your content type and format with the type of featured snippet that Google shows for your target query. You also need to target long-tail keywords that have question words or prepositions in them, as they tend to trigger featured snippets more often.
- Find and prioritize featured snippet opportunities. You need to find keywords that have featured snippet opportunities for your website. You can use tools like Ahrefs’ Site Explorer or Moz’s Rank Tracker to see which keywords you already rank for in the top 10 results with featured snippets. You can also use tools like Ahrefs’ Content Explorer or Moz’s Keyword Explorer to see which keywords your competitors rank for with featured snippets. You then need to prioritize these keywords based on their value and difficulty, using metrics like search volume, keyword difficulty, organic traffic potential, CTR, and conversion rate.
- Create and optimize content for featured snippets. You need to create high-quality and relevant content that answers the query directly and concisely. You also need to use headings, subheadings, lists, tables, images, videos, and schema markup to structure and format your content. You also need to use keywords and variations in your content, especially in your title tag, meta description, URL, headings, subheadings, lists, tables, images, videos, etc.
- Monitor and measure your featured snippet performance. You need to track and analyze how your featured snippets are performing in terms of rankings, traffic, conversions, etc. You also need to identify any issues or opportunities that may affect your featured snippet performance. You can use tools like Google Search Console, Ahrefs’ Rank Tracker, Moz’s STAT, etc. to monitor and measure your featured snippet performance.
- Test and experiment with your featured snippets. You need to constantly test and experiment with different aspects of your featured snippets, such as the content, the format, the length, the keywords, etc. You also need to monitor the results and measure the impact of your changes on your performance. You can use tools like Google’s Rich Results Test, Google’s Search Console URL Inspection Tool, Google’s Structured Data Testing Tool, Google’s Structured Data Markup Helper, etc. to test and experiment with your featured snippets.
- Keep up with the latest trends and updates on featured snippets. You need to stay updated on the latest developments and changes that Google makes regarding featured snippets, such as new types, formats, features, algorithms, etc. You also need to follow the best practices and guidelines that Google provides for featured snippets. You can use resources like Google’s Webmaster Central Blog, Google’s Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines, Google’s Featured Snippets Help Center, SEO Blogs and Podcasts, etc. to keep up with the latest trends and updates on featured snippets.
Conclusion
Featured snippets are one of the most amazing and rewarding SEO opportunities in 2023. They can help you reap the benefits of increased visibility, traffic, authority, and conversions for your website.
To target and win featured snippets for your website, you need to follow these six steps:
- Understand the types and triggers of featured snippets
- Find and prioritize featured snippet opportunities
- Create and optimize content for featured snippets
- Monitor and measure your featured snippet performance
- Test and experiment with your featured snippets
- Keep up with the latest trends and updates on featured snippets
We hope that this blog post has given you a complete guide on how to target and win featured snippets for your website. If you need more help with featured snippets or any other aspect of SEO, feel free to contact us. We are a team of SEO experts who can help you dominate Google with featured snippets and other SEO strategies.