Your ranking on Google search results has a direct impact on the number of potential customers you can reach. If your business is not listed among the top 3 results, it can result in losing a significant volume of customers. In this article, we’ll provide you with everything you need to know about Google Search Engine Result Pages (SERPs) and why you should care about your rankings.
What is a SERP and how does it work?
SERPs are the pages where Google displays the results of the search queries you enter. When someone types in a query to the search engine, Google first determines what the intended search is. Then, they choose which websites they believe are the most relevant to show to the user. The SERPs are automatically generated, and they change whenever the algorithm behind Google’s search engine detects a change in the user’s demand.
There are two types of content displayed here: advertisements (paid results) or organically ranked pages (organic results)
Paid Results
Paid results are the first links displayed on the search engine results page through a strategy called pay-per-click (PPC) marketing. With PPC, a business pays a fee to rank their page at the top, usually above or at the right side of organic links.
Organic Results
Organic search results are placed beneath the ads on search engine results pages. Their placement on Google SERPs is determined based on its algorithm.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the tactic businesses use to climb the rankings organically. It is a fundamental pillar in digital marketing since it helps your brand improve its internet visibility at little or no cost.
If you want to formulate a winning marketing strategy, you need a holistic approach combining PPC and SEO to produce the most agreeable outcome from your campaigns.
What are intended SERPs?
Google recently launched a feature that displays clustered results from the same domain name. The largest search engine tested the indented SERPs format in 2021 before officially rolling it out in October of the same year. During the first week of its release, Mox reported that users could already find indented results in around 40 percent of Google SERPs.
Indented SERPs are prevalent on the first search results page, giving your brand more exposure. This will further benefit you if your site already has a good SEO ranking since your web pages are most likely to get indented along with the main search engine results page, pushing your competition further down.
What is a SERP feature?
SERP features are results that are beyond the traditional organic search results. These are tables, widgets, and information panels that Google places on a search results page to enhance the user experience by providing more information without clicking through a web link.
There are at least 15 SERP features that exist today on Google, but according to Mailchimp, all of them generally fall into the following search results design categories:
• Knowledge graphs: Data that appear in panels or boxes (e.g., maps and weather)
• Rich snippets: Adds extra visuals to a result (e.g., stars in product ratings)
• Paid results: Results that are bought by bidding on relevant keywords (e.g., Google Ads)
• Universal results: Elements that provide more information on organic search results (e.g., featured snippets and image results)
Top SERP features and how to rank them
SERP features have made SEO more challenging. The additional information displayed on the search engine results page means that fewer people click on the links to get what they need. According to SparkToro, zero-click searches account for more than half of Google searches, significantly affecting organic click-through rates (CTRs).
However, when you secure a SERP feature, it can increase the CTR to 114 percent, reported Hubspot. Features are gold mines for clicks, and according to Semrush, an online tool that we at Muriendas Web Solutions use, they even receive 8 percent more clicks than the number one slot in search results.
The following are the most common SERP features and how your site can rank for each search results design:
Featured snippets
Featured snippets are the most common SERP feature for desktop and Google mobile search results. These excerpts appear at the top of the page displaying information regarding the user’s query.
To get your content featured here, we do the following:
Research long-tailed keywords phrased as a question and use those in your content.
Tip: A SERPs keyword research tool makes this easier.
Put the questions on the content headers.
Write a concise answer to the question.
Related Questions
The Related Questions SERP feature displays questions that Google believes might relate to the search.
To rank in the Related Questions feature, you essentially have to answer the biggest question surrounding your main topic. A good practice is to keep the answer around 30 words in length.
Local Packs
A local pack appears in SERP when the user includes a location name or when Google determines that the searched item is nearby. It usually consists of a map, pinned locations, and the top three businesses that Google algorithmically determines as the best fit for the query. If your priority is local SEO, this feature best suits you.
To be included in the Local Pack SERP feature, you need to be in the top three spots of the keyword in question. We make sure we are doing the following practices:
List your business in Google My Business or Google Business Profile.
Optimize your Google Business Profile listing with relevant keywords.
Continuously monitor and respond to reviews.
More tips on how to get to the top of Google
Climb to the top of Google SERPs by keeping the following practices in mind:
Do Keyword Research
Identify the keywords that are relevant to your business. This will help you create optimized content that search engines will love. Using a SERPs keyword research tool makes this procedure more accurate and seamless.
Analyze and Refine
Search engines constantly update their algorithms to provide high-quality results to user queries. Continuously monitor, analyze and refine your data to adapt to the constant shifts in search engine algorithms effortlessly.
Partner With an Affordable SEO Company
The best thing you can do for your business is to leave your internet marketing efforts in the hands of professionals. Experts can help you create a solid search engine marketing plan in less time and effort.
Don’t Forget To Optimize for Mobile SERPs
Mobile SEO is important now more than ever. According to Statistics, mobile searches account for half of the searches on various search platforms.
However, be mindful that mobile SERPs are different from their desktop counterparts.
SEMRush reported that 37 percent of web links on the first page of desktop SERPs lost their visibility on mobile. Don’t let this happen to your site – ensure it is optimized for mobile SERPs. So regularly assess your mobile performance and closely monitor your Google mobile search results rankings. This will help you create strategies to boost your visibility on all devices.
Start Dominating the SERPs Today
The more you know about the search engine results pages, the better your strategy to secure one of its top positions. Ranking high on the SERPs can mean the difference between increasing conversions or gaining nothing at all. So take time to do keyword research, finesse your link-building strategy, create compelling copies and optimize your content to reap the benefits of having a high search results page ranking.
Better yet, let capable pros handle all of that for you. Partner with Muriendas Web Solutions and take your campaigns to the next level. With an affordable SEO company by your side, you never have to worry about the SERPs acronym. Contact Muriendas today and let us help you conquer search rankings to become visible to your target customers.
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