Since Google introduced featured snippets in 2014, they’ve become one of the holy grails of SEO.
Featured snippets are succinct answers to user queries displayed at the top of Google’s search results, occupying the coveted “position zero” in SERPs.
Unlike quick answers and knowledge panels, featured snippets use third-party information to answer queries and include the source page’s title and URL.
Featured snippets come in all shapes and sizes, including:
- Paragraphs
- Numbered lists
- Bulleted lists
- Tables
- YouTube videos
- Images
- Charts
The potential benefits of landing a featured snippet are huge:
- More traffic.
- Greater SERP visibility.
- A healthy boost to your credibility.
Voice search also leans heavily on featured snippets to answer user queries.
Also, because featured snippets aren’t necessarily plucked from the top result, you can sometimes edge out competitors on vital keywords.
Why fight over Position 1 when you can snipe Position 0?
Unfortunately, occupying position zero is easier said than done.
Featured snippets are volatile – a search that yields one featured snippet will show something entirely different an hour later. And we’re still piecing together exactly why some snippets are selected over others.
What we do know is that your content matters.
The brevity, formatting, and – most importantly – subject matter of your content all factor into whether Google considers your website snippet-worthy.
This article will walk you through the seven most “snippable” types of content you can create.
1. Answers to 5 Ws (Who, What, When, Where, Why)
The most common function of a featured snippet is to answer one of the Five Ws (who, what, when, where, or why) of intermediate difficulty.
The complexity of the question is key.
If Google considers the answer part of the public domain, they’ll supply a rich answer from their database.
If the question is too complex to unpack, Google will skip straight to their results.
And if the question is just right, then you might see an answer like this:
Who, what, where, why, and when questions about simple facts in your niche are some of the easiest and most frequently searched for topics.
Just make sure your subject matter is both:
- Simple enough that you can define it in a short paragraph or a list.
- Complex enough that it warrants a whole page to unpack.
The best way to discover new topics is to plug your keywords into rank tracking software.
Type out each of the Five Ws and fill in the tool with wildcards related to your niche. You should generate tons of suggestions related to your keyword.
If you’re struggling to come up with alternative creative ideas, look at Google’s “People also ask” feature for related topics.
When optimizing for long-tail keywords, keep in mind that the average length of a snippable keyword phrase is about six words.
2. How-tos/Instructions
Only 12.29 percent of search queries have featured snippets in their search results.
The lion’s share of those belong to instructions, recipes, and answers to how-to questions.
Instructional content is especially powerful because it encourages click-throughs and more time on page. Plus, users get more out of content that offers to teach them something.
Another benefit of how-tos are their less restrictive formatting.
Depending on the question, you can use text, lists, images, and even videos to instruct your users.
The downside of creating content around what, who, and when questions is that they’re often easily answered in a line or two.
Users who search for answers to these questions might be satisfied by the snippet and feel disinclined to click the link, diminishing your CTR.
How and why questions, on the other hand, easily lend themselves to robust answers.
Featured snippets function like teasers for your answers and encourage users to learn more by clicking the link.
3. Definitions (For Complex Terms)
Another type of question that makes for excellent snippable content: implied questions.
Voice search users will often ask full sentences, but mobile and desktop users are more likely to search for single words and stilted phrases.
Even though these queries aren’t phrased like questions, they imply questions.
For example, someone searching for “CTR” is presumably asking “what is CTR.”
If you can supply a thorough definition to this question, you’ll have great material for a new landing page.
However, Google also recognizes these types of queries as implied questions and often supplies dictionary entries to answer simple terms. You’ll need to focus on slightly more complex queries, such as “CTR,” if you want to score a featured snippet.
But don’t stop there!
Imbue your page with as much related, useful information as you can. If you start writing a page about CTR expand upon your definition with a how-to guide for measuring CTR and best practice strategies for improving your CTR.
Make your resource and rich and detailed as possible – improving your engagement rates might play a role in the selection of featured snippets.
4. Comparisons
Lists, tables, and text that compare and contrast two or more items make for great, snippable content.
Finding topics to compare is easy, whether you’re breaking down the pros and cons of link building tools, researching the differences between different dog breeds, or considering which phone to buy.
Formatting this type of content is often easier too since it easily lends itself to table format.
Simply mark up your page using the
