Featured snippets are the highlighted search results often shown at the top of Google listings. They provide quick answers to search queries.
Winning featured snippets is a proven way to increase your clickthrough and conversion rates from Google searches. This powerful placement makes your content and brand highly visible.
Here are the most effective strategies to optimize your pages and improve your chances of ranking featured snippets in 2022.
Key Points
- Target searches where Google already shows featured snippets
- Craft page content that directly answers the question
- Include keywords from the search query across the page
- Optimize content for voice search and conversational tone
- Add structured data like FAQs and HowTo schema
- Build links and domain authority in your niche
- Closely monitor rankings for your focus keywords
- Improve page speed, mobile-friendliness, and on-site duration
- Update stale content with fresh statistics, examples, and trends
- Outreach and pitch influencers to reference or link to your content
- Use tools like RankSense and DataStudio to analyze top pages
- Experiment with formatting, length, and multimedia elements
What Are Featured Snippets?
Featured snippets are special search results displayed prominently at the top of Google results for certain queries.
They consist of:
- A page title or headline
- A short summary excerpt from the page content
- A direct URL link to the full page
Featured snippets aim to provide quick, concise answers so searchers can find key information without additional clicks.
They are extremely desirable due to high visibility and clickthrough rates. Data shows that featured snippets can achieve the following:
- 72% higher CTRs than #1 organic results
- 34% overall increase in traffic
- 5-15% boost in overall site clicks
Ranking them should be a top priority for SEO.
How Google Selects Featured Snippets
Google’s featured snippet algorithm analyzes pages for relevance to the specific search query. Key factors include:
Direct Answer Match
Pages that provide a clear, succinct answer or summary related to the question intent typically rank featured snippets.
Page Authority
Google favors showcasing content from authoritative sites and pages that rank well organically. Strong overall SEO helps.
Page Structure
Well-organized content, easy-to-scan formatting, and elements like tables often outrank denser text.
Voice Search Optimization
Natural, conversational content performs better for featured snippet selection by Google.
External Links & Citations
Pages earning links from other trustworthy sources perform better than orphaned content.
Think like Google – tailor your content to directly respond to search intent through authoritative, scannable, voice-optimized content judiciously linked to external references.
How to Start Winning Featured Snippets
With an understanding of how Google selects featured snippets, we can now focus on optimization strategies.
Step 1 – Identify Relevant Keywords and Questions
Start by brainstorming a list of keywords and natural questions that prospects search that are highly relevant to your products, content, and offerings.
Prioritize ones where Google already shows featured snippets for competitors – this validates the opportunity.
Use keyword research tools to identify high-volume, low-competition phrases to target like:
- What is X used for?
- How does X work?
- How much does X cost?
- Why does X happen?
- What are the benefits of X?
Featured snippets present excellent opportunities for “answering engines” like blogs to outcompete other result types. Add a mix of informational and commercial phrases.
Step 2 – Create Content Directly Answering the Question
With your target keyword questions identified, create or update existing pages to directly answer the question clearly and thoroughly.
This may require rewriting titles, introductions, headers, and page structure to match the question intent closely. Avoid generalized content – be very precise.
Imagine if a user only read the brief snippet excerpt – would they have the complete answer? Ensure essential facts, supporting details, context, and insights are included.
Answer the 5 Ws – who, what, where, when, and why thoroughly. Include useful data, stats, and examples that reinforce the answer.
Be scannable and concise. Avoid fluff and repetition. Featured snippets favor brevity. Use short paragraphs, bullet points, tables, images, and videos to communicate critical information quickly.
Step 3 – Strengthen Page SEO and Authority
In addition to question-specific content, featured snippets heavily weigh overall page SEO authority.
- Optimize page titles, meta, and headers with primary keywords
- Improve internal linking from other related pages
- Earn high-quality backlinks where possible
- Check page speed and mobile-optimization
Also build domain authority over time by:
- Publishing lots of in-depth, unique content
- Getting external sites to reference your content across the site
- Securing backlinks from authoritative websites
- Ranking well for a range of semantic keywords
Higher domain authority improves the chances Google will select your content for featured snippets.
Step 4 – Enhance Content for Voice Query Compatibility
Voice search usage is rising. To maximize visibility, ensure your content is voice-friendly.
Some tips:
- Use natural language and questions in content
- Avoid excessive use of pronouns like I, we, us
- Include keywords repeatedly to reinforce the relevance
- Add audio transcripts for multimedia
- Improve readability for long-form content
The more conversational and easy-to-say-aloud your content, the better chance it ranks voice results.
Step 5 – Add Structured Data Markup
Further, optimize pages for featured snippets with structured data markup. Schema types like FAQ and HowTo support question-and-answer intent.
For FAQ markup:
- Add JSON-LD or microdata
- Use
<script type="application/ld+json">Tags - Identify key questions and succinct answers
- Add relevant metadata like date, author, logo
For HowTo schema:
- Use
HowToandHowToStepmarkup - Add relevant metadata like summary, total time, etc
- Outline each numbered step in the process
- Include images for each step where applicable
These schema types reinforce pages as authoritative answers.
Advanced Tactics to Improve Featured Snippet Chances
Beyond core optimization, further tactics can help land featured snippets:
Refresh and Expand Older Content
Add new data, stats, examples and trends to outdated posts. Expand sections that are light on essential details and tangents. Make content fresh and directly reflects current searcher needs.
Create Top List Articles
Listing-style posts like “10 benefits of X” naturally lend themselves to featured snippets by summarizing key points concisely. Lean into this format.
Outreach to Publishers for Links
Earn links and references to your content from other authoritative sites related to the topic. Links signals trust and relevance.
Use Data From Google Tools
Search Console and Data Studio provide insights on rankings and traffic data to optimize. Prioritize top pages and search phrases.
Add Visual Media
Images, data visualizations, videos, and other media increase shareability and engagement. Media-rich content can improve featured snippet eligibility.
Experiment with Different Page Lengths
Try short-form simple answers, medium-form guides, and long-form comprehensive content to see what ranks. Length can impact selection.
Track Featured Snippet Performance
Once you publish your optimized content, monitor its performance in search.
- Check Google for a featured snippet for your target keywords
- Use rank-tracking tools to monitor progress over time
- Review Search Console and Analytics data on CTRs
- Set Google Alerts for your URLs to catch ranking updates
- Update underperforming content with better answers
Be patient – it can take months to start ranking featured snippets. But with ongoing refinement guided by data, you can consistently improve results.
Ranking featured snippets takes strategic content tailored directly to searcher intent combined with strong overall SEO foundations.
With this guide’s tips, you have the blueprint to claim authoritative featured snippets that boost your site’s visibility and conversion rates in Google.
It comes down to understanding what information searchers seek and providing the most concise, comprehensive answers possible in easy-to-digest formats.
Want to brainstorm winning featured snippet content strategies? Reach out to me – I love collaborating on SEO!