A search snippet, or Google snippet, is a generated extract of content from a web page that is presented in SERPs, drawn from a search term and collated from stored meta data.
What Are the Different Kinds of Search Snippets and How Do They Appear?
Snippets can appear in a few different formats, each having a different impact.
1. Standard Snippet
A standard snippet is typically made up of your title, meta description and URL. This is a snippet in its most basic form.
2. Rich Snippet
A rich snippet includes the basic information of a standard snippet, but also integrates ratings, pictures and extra information like location and availability.
Featured snippets are selected by Google and appear at the top of SERPs. They are chosen to answer specific questions entered into the search bar. You have to work for this one.
These kinds of snippets come in a few forms including:
Paragraph featured snippets
List featured snippets
Table featured snippets
Video featured snippets
Why Are Search Snippets Important?
Search snippets are important because they can be the difference between a searcher clicking on your website, or moving on to a more enticing one.
If your snippet is visually appealing and contains relevant information with bolded keywords matching the search term/s then the searcher is much more likely to click.
How to Optimise Search Snippets
The techniques used to optimise search snippets vary depending on the type of snippet you are trying to optimise.
1. Optimising Standard Search Snippets
Optimising standard search snippets is pretty simple. Make your title tag unique and around 55 characters. Ensure your meta description accurately represents your site, optimised with keywords, without keyword stuffing and a maximum of 160 characters.
Create a URL that is both readable and hyphenated, with no capital letters, and include your target keyword.
2. Optimising Rich Snippets
Rich snippets are taken from structured markup in a page’s HTML. There are a few different types of rich snippets which website’s must choose from.
Some of the accepted data types include:
Products
Reviews
Event details
Recipes
Prices
3. Optimising Content to Appear as a Featured Snippet
Getting your content to appear as a featured snippet is not easy. Essentially, you must be the best of the best, but there are somethings that you can do to increase your chances.
Excellent keyword research will be helpful here, as well as social media research to find out what questions are regularly asked.
Also, remember the key to appearing as a featured snippet, is providing a comprehensive but concise and easily digestible answer.
Stick to the facts, and utilise images for an added edge.
Tools to Help You With Search Snippets
Some tools that can help with the creation of your search snippets are:
SEOMofo
Yotpo
Google’s Structured Data Testing Tool
WordPress’s Schema App Structured Data
Portent
How Can We Help?
Aiming to get some of your content into Position 0 but struggling to get there? Get in touch and we’ll match you with a team that can help you achieve your goals.
In the meantime, why not check out our training courses where you can find lots of our very best SEO techniques ready for you to learn and implement today.
