30-Second Summary:
One question on everybody’s lips is ‘what is the future of search engines?’ Whilst we don’t know exactly what’s in store for the future of Google search, we can make a few predictions on recent developments such as Google featured snippets, zero click searches 2024 and E-E-A-T.
What we do know is that search engines such as Google are focusing on providing users to useful content, highlighting the importance of curating content for humans, not just search engines. This means ignoring all past SEO tactics that focused on elements such as content length and keyword stuffing.
One trends we have seen in the future of Google search are Google featured snippets. But what are they? Featured snippet are described as “special boxes where the format of a regular search result is reversed, showing the descriptive snippet first.” However, according to Google Search Central, can also “appear within a related questions group (also known as “People Also Ask”).”
Unfortunately, it’s not possible to tell Google that you want to highlight your page as a featured snippet. The system will determine whether it would make a ‘good’ featured snippet based on the search request. So, the more relevant and helpful content you have on your web page, the more likely it will be rewarded with a featured snippet in the SERPs.
Featured snippets appear above organic search results, rewarding the web page with greater visibility. Their purpose is to quickly answer search queries, so ensuring your web pages contain all the key information is the most effective way to increase your chance of earning one. When a user selected the featured snippet, they will be redirected to the section of the page that appeared in the featured snippet to continue their research.
Zero click searches is simply another way of describing featured snippets. They’re optimised in the same way and are also used to encourage users to continue reading about a particular topic directly on the website.
Whilst you can’t tell Google you want your content to appear as a featured snippet, there are a few ways you can increase your chances of your content appearing above the organic search results.
Google can determine whether content has been written for humans or for search engines. Whilst it can be tempting to put all your SEO knowledge to the test when writing content for a website, consider how your customers will view it instead. By this, we mean ensuring your content has a clear and natural structure that reads in the same way it would be explained.
In the same way, it’s important to not stray too far from the topic of your content. Whilst some topical tangents are expected, particularly when speaking about broader subjects, ensuring your content provides the answer users are looking for in a concise manner will increase its chances of becoming a featured snippet.
Including imagery on your web pages is a great indication to Google and other search engines that your content is written for humans, not search engines. For example, if your content details instructions, provide an image to visually display each step alongside a written summary.
Implementing schema markup wherever relevant on your website is also a beneficial way to show Google what you are trying to achieve from your content. Local business schema, product page schema, video page schema, organisation schema and article schema are all great indications that can help to organise your content.
Now you understand what are zero click searches and what do featured snippets display on the SERPs, the future of Google search is clearer. With the search engine focusing on providing people with the information they want in as minimal clicks as possible; its important brands make it simple for Google to interpret said content to recommend it to users.
For more on our blog read about how to link build for casino & gambling websites and is above the page fold dead?
