SEO has grown so much that ranking on the first page of search engine results pages (SERPs) is no longer enough.
Google is constantly working to ensure that web searchers find the most relevant information they need without even visiting websites.
Today’s SERPs are rich. With attributes such as featured snippets and map listings, it is no wonder that 50% of online searchers do not click on search results. They can get the answers right on the SERP!
Types of information you can get today without clicking on search results
Be sure to find direct answers if you are carrying out any of the following searches, to name a few:
1. Location of places such as hotels including their prices, availability, and even booking.
2. Celebrity profiles and latest news
3. Language translator
4. Currency conversions
5. Definitions
6. Weather
If you were settled on ranking at number one, you need to think again. To become more competitive, it is time to implement On-SERP SEO.
What is On-SERP SEO?
On-SERP SEO is a strategy that involves more than just the old tactics of finding a good keyword and a few high-quality backlinks to improve organic rankings.
It is about increasing your On-SERP presence so that you get business value from certain keywords even if users do not click on your website in the search results.
Is it worth ranking in search results if users do not click?
That may be the question on your mind right now. You know that people need to visit your website for you to get conversions, right?
The short answer is that it is highly beneficial for your brand image. It helps to appear as an industry expert because it can win you branded searches in future. Think about the image you wish to portray and create relevant content and keywords around that.
However, you can still ensure that you benefit from ranking in the SERPs by:
- Choosing keywords with a high Click-through Rate (CTR)
From the onset, when selecting your keywords, go for those with a high CTR when you want to be displayed in direct answers. You can check the CTR of your keywords using an SEO tool like MOZ.
- Changing your strategy
If you provide all the answers or the complete answer in the SERPs, users will not have a reason to visit your website. The best technique is to display only a part of the answer so that you give visitors a reason to visit your website.
How to build your On-SERP SEO
Do you want to increase your SERP presence? In this article, we will look at different parts of the SERP and how you can optimize your presence to gain SEO relevancy.
Parts of On-SERP SEO
The various parts that you will find in a SERP page are;
1. Meta descriptions and title tags
2. Use breadcrumbs
3. Google My Business
4. Featured snippets and People also ask (PAA) section
5. Schema markup
6. Video and image results
7. Map pack
Let’s look at these features below and how you can leverage them to improve your SERP presence.
- Meta descriptions and title tags
Forgetting to write a meta description or writing one that does not appeal to readers is hurting your SERP SEO. There are some non-negotiable features that your meta description should have. One, it needs to be no longer than 160 characters. Two, it must give a clear value proposition that answers the user’s question, ‘what’s in it for me?’
It is, however, not enough to do the bare minimum with a meta description. You also need to:
- Have an appealing call to action (CTA) that motivates readers to click on your site.
- Ensure you stand out by watching your competition especially from Google AdWords carrying similar keywords.
- Write in appealing text.
- Include numbers or figures that draw readers in.
- Google My Business (GMB)
Great visuals are a plus on Google. You can make your GMB stand out by including all the current and relevant information you can. The following features can also help you stand out;
- Images and videos
Have a square-sized logo image that clearly spells out your brand. Include a cover photo that showcases your business personality. You should also put in different kinds of photos to showcase particular business features.
Ensure that all the images and videos follow the best practices for GMB photos.
You can also add optimized videos to your GMB.
- Include snapshots from Wikipedia
Learn how to create a Wikipedia page for your company if you do not have one already. You will greatly benefit when you showcase that information on your GMB.
- Get as many positive business reviews as you can
Reviews increase the credibility of your business. Monitor and respond to customer reviews. If there are negative reviews, reach out to customers to get better ratings.
- Use breadcrumbs
Bread crumbs are navigational tools that help users know what is on your website and at the same time help Google to understand the structure of your content. Adding bread crumbs to your site enhances user experience and Google loves this. Below is an example:
- People also ask (PAA) and featured snippets
Featured snippets are selected results that appear on top of Google’s organic search results.
For your content to appear in the PAA section, you need to tailor it to answer direct questions. These include:
- Having question and answer sections in your content such as FAQs.
- Structuring your content using headers (H1, H2, H3, and so on).
- Formatting your content in the form of lists.
- Schema markup
Schema markup is a code that you can use on your website to help search engines understand your content. The markup increases the chances of Google top-ranking your content. There are so many types of schema markup and you can use them in just about any of the content on your website, from articles to images, videos, and products.
You can tell whether or not a website has used schema markup based on the search results. A normal result will only include the sites URL, title, and meta descriptions:
A page with schema markup will include extra information and explains it to Google. That increases Google’s chances of listing it as a rich result.
- Images and Videos
Sometimes, Google serves users with images and videos if it feels that that’s the best way to answer certain questions. Images and videos appear anywhere from featured snippets to PAA section or even way down in the SERP.
It is important to optimize your videos and images because if your content doesn’t make it on the SERPs, an image or video you have might just do that.
To increase the chances of your content appearing in search results, include image and video schema markup.
You can also optimize images for search by:
- Choosing highly relevant images.
- Using either of the most common formats which are GIF, PNG, and JPEG.
- Compressing them to reduce load time using a tool such as Compress JPEG.
- Using alt text and keyword-rich file names when saving them in sites such as Pinterest.
- Map Pack
Google 3 map pack is one of the best ways to get on Google’s SERPs especially for local results. You can also have map embeds in other places such as in the content of your press releases to increase SEO.
Final words
Optimizing for On-SERP SEO can see you make big leaps in your business, so go ahead and implement these strategies. While at it, ensure that all the content that you create is of superior quality to avoid high bounce rates should web users click on your result.
