SERP features explained
Featured snippets, People Also Ask, AI Overviews and the rest of the results page. 17 terms, each with what it means, why it matters for SEO and what to do about it.
- Featured snippet
- A featured snippet is a highlighted extract from a web page shown near the top of Google’s results to answer the query directly, with a link to the source.
- Google Autocomplete
- Google Autocomplete predicts what you are searching for as you type, suggesting full queries based on real searches, location and language.
- Google Discover
- Google Discover is a personalised feed of articles and videos in the Google app and on mobile, shown by interest without a search query.
- Image pack
- An image pack is a row or block of image results inside Google’s main search results, linking to Google Images and the source pages.
- Knowledge panel
- A knowledge panel is the information box Google shows for a well-known person, organisation, place or thing, drawn from its Knowledge Graph.
- Paid search results
- Paid search results are ads shown on search results pages, labelled Sponsored on Google, where advertisers pay when someone clicks.
- People Also Ask
- People Also Ask is a Google results box of questions related to the search. Each one expands to show a short answer from a web page, with a link.
- Position zero
- Position zero is the informal name for a featured snippet: the answer box Google shows above the first standard organic result.
- Related searches
- Related searches are the query suggestions Google shows on the results page, often at the bottom, to help people refine or broaden their search.
- Rich snippets
- Rich snippets are search results enhanced with extra details, such as review stars, prices or cooking times, usually from structured data.
- SERP features
- SERP features are the results on Google’s results page that are not plain blue links, such as AI Overviews, featured snippets, local packs and videos.
- SERP volatility
- SERP volatility is how much search results change over a period. High volatility often signals a Google update or a shake-up in a niche.
- Shopping results
- Shopping results are product listings in Google Search showing images, prices and stores, from Merchant Center feeds or product structured data.
- Sitelinks
- Sitelinks are extra links to other pages of a site that Google shows under a search result, usually for brand searches.
- Top stories
- Top stories is the Google results section that shows recent news articles about a query, usually as a carousel or list near the top.
- Video carousel
- A video carousel is a scrollable row of video results in Google Search, often from YouTube, shown when video suits the query.
- Zero-click searches
- Zero-click searches are searches that end without a click to any website, because the answer is on the results page or the user gives up.
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