Do you remember when SERPs displayed 10 blue links and nothing else? For most, this is a distant memory.
Today, search engine results have evolved and now display quite a bit of rich content on the page. Things like Google Ads, product lists ads, carousels, knowledge graphs, and featured snippets can all be seen.
No longer is it just enough to rank well in SERPs. You must make sure you take steps to maximize your position.
A great way to do this is with rich snippets. These can be used for optimizing your listing, getting more space in SERPs, and gaining attention on the page to make your listing stand out.
Rich Snippets Defined
Rich snippets are the extra information that appears on search listings below the description or meta title. For example, star ratings for reviews, locations and times for events listings, or recipe results’ calories and cooking times.
The extra information shows up due to the structured data used in your code on the page listed. Google will use these snippets to help improve the SERP listing and to offer important information on the SERP page.
Featured Snippet vs. Rich Snippet vs. Rich Result
The terms rich result and rich snippets are often interchanged, and there’s some confusion regarding these differences. You also have to consider featured snippets and SERP features.
Put simply, rich snippets and rich results are the same. However, snippets are considered a type of rich result.
- Rich Snippets: This result appears next to a search listing to help enhance it. Examples include cooking times and review stars.
- SERP Features: These include anything that isn’t a standard blue link listing, such as image carousels, local pack, PLAs, knowledge graph, etc.
- Rich Results: Bits of information on SERP pages that are created from structured data. One type of rich result is FAQs; however, these are also SERP features.
The Impact on SEO
Rich snippets provide your listing with more “real estate” on the SERP. This means your listing gets more attention. Studies have also shown that people searching for something are more likely to click on rich results than non-rich results.
Different Types
There’s a huge array of snippets in search results today. These appear based on the page’s content. Some examples include:
- Events snippet
- Review snippet
- Movie snippet
- Recipe snippet
- Product markup snippet
- Music snippet
Tips for Acquiring Rich Snippets
By now, you should understand the benefits of snippets. However, you may still wonder how to get them.
To have a snippet to appear in SERPs, you must have structured data markup included in your page’s code. Google will then crawl the page and translate the code to appear as the different snippets mentioned above.
If you aren’t sure how to acquire rich snippets on your own, it’s a good idea to get help from professionals. They can ensure you benefit from what rich snippets have to offer.
By, Peter Roesler, President of Small Business SEO. 25+ years in marketing! Yippee.
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