The search engine results page is truly a modern battleground. Brands are in constant competition to rise in the rankings and optimize their sites to gain just a couple of positions.
Even a minor increase in page visibility can translate to big traffic and revenue boosts, so the stakes are higher than ever when it comes to SEO.
But there is one spot on the SERPs that is way more desirable than the rest: position zero.
Let’s look into this major search engine trend and offer some insights on how to get there.
What is Position Zero?
What we refer to as position zero is more accurately described as “featured snippets” by Google, and they’ve been part of the search engine’s design since 2014.
According to Moz, featured snippets are a promoted organic ranking that appears at the very top of the search engine results page, often highlighted by a rectangular outline and containing bold text that reflects keywords from your query.
The idea behind this feature is to promote the most trustworthy, relevant, and authoritative content possible, and provide users with information immediately.
Rather than forcing users to dig through search results for answers, the featured snippet broadcasts the info front and center, saving everyone some time and effort.
Although these snippets are primarily in paragraph form, Google has expanded the formats that can exist in position zero over time. Here are a few you may have seen recently:
- Short how-to guides that offer step-by-step instruction on a given task (how to tie a bowtie, how to cook perfect pasta, how to mow the lawn).
- Lists of recommendations for specific local keywords (top coffee shops in San Francisco, best museums in New York City, most important National Parks).
- Structured data on a financial, legal, or science-related topic (tax brackets in Texas, car insurance prices in California, average temperatures in Arizona).
- Curated, subjective insights on a product or niche (most comfortable office keyboard, best fitness wearable devices, coolest sneakers of 2020).
With more types of featured snippets making their way to position zero, users are getting better, more relevant information, and saving them a lot of time in the process.
Why is Position Zero Important?
As you might imagine, Google users are way more likely to click on the featured snippet URL than any other link on the search engine results page.
This is a matter of convenience more than anything, but there’s also the implicit trust and confidence we get from seeing Google place extra emphasis on a particular page.
In many cases, we don’t even have to click on the snippet itself, since our questions are often answered in the short paragraph or list we see featured in position zero.
While some marketers originally had concerns about compromising their click-through-rates by having too many featured snippets, they’ve smartened up and seen the advantages.
The lesson here is that your brand benefits from a major boost in organic traffic if you can manage to squeeze your way into position zero, and that’s exactly what marketers are aiming to accomplish in 2020 and beyond.
The question now becomes – how do you earn a featured snippet? More importantly, how do you stay at the top when competitors are also aiming for the same spot?
How to Reach Position Zero
Our SEO intuition would have us believe that getting to position zero requires the same course of action we’ve always taken. Optimize our pages for search, increase engagement, build quality backlinks, so on and so forth.
The thing is, our instincts are only half-right when it comes to featured snippets, which have a slightly different set of criteria than we’re used to.
Search Engine Land makes the important point that your URL does not even have to rank on the first page of the search results to be a candidate for position zero.
That implies that featured snippets are a different beast, and you need to create a unique strategy to get there.
Your roadmap to position zero will first depend on the type of business you run. If you are a brick-and-mortar shop looking to boost foot traffic through organic search, your focus should be on bulking up your profiles based on regional, geographic, and business niche keywords.
For example, auto repair specialists in Baton Rouge, Louisiana will want to aggressively pursue Google Map rank factors with those keywords to attract users in the area.
But if your business mostly operates online (service-based or shipping goods), your strategy to attain position zero needs to be all about offering valuable information and clear answers.
Get to work on keyword research to see what questions web users are asking about your niche, and take note of how featured snippets appear for various inquiries.
This will help direct your focus on up-for-grabs keywords, and highlight weaknesses on existing featured snippets so you can work to take that top spot.
Here are some tips to help on your journey to position zero:
- Embrace long-form keywords that reflect how people talk.
- Structure your data in lists and charts that add value.
- Avoid dense, long paragraphs of text. Keep things short and sweet.
- Include multimedia elements like images and videos.
- Update your FAQ section often to reflect new trends.
We’re not saying you have to ditch your current content marketing or SEO strategy, but tightening your focus on these areas will help earn you some featured snippets.
Why Mobile Ranking Matters
One factor closely connected to position zero is mobile, a platform where users need their answers fast and featured snippets are especially coveted.
Standard type searches are common, but voice searches are the next frontier.
According to research from iMPACT, over 60% of Google searches now happen via mobile devices, with voice search representing a bigger piece of the pie each year.
If you can make your way to position zero on desktop search, the greater chance you’ll be able to do the same on mobile. With the way, things are going, and the amount of cash people are spending through their phones, you’ll want to make this a priority.
Conclusion
Position zero does not have to be an unattainable goal for your digital marketing team. You can optimize your pages to earn featured snippets easier than you think.
You have valuable information and insights that users want to know. It’s all about packaging and delivering that content in a way that fits the Google format, and constantly refining your work.
Trends show these snippets are going to become even more crucial to search engine success in the future, so map out a game plan today!
Sources: