From Single Grain

As 2020 begins, a growing number of SEO professionals are sharing their predictions for the largest changes to come. One, is the everchanging landscape of Google’s search engine results page (SERP). As Google continues to update the layout of its search results, so must marketers adapt their search and web strategies.

When looking at the SERP landscape today, the answer boxes and featured snippets have begun to dominate the space. These zero-click results have had a major influence on how marketers and publishers are adjusting the way their content is created. Additionally, the “People Also Ask” feature that was first launched back in 2010 has taken on a greater importance. In fact, these now expand into further examples of what users might be asking when one interacts with the content.

Aside from the zero-click results and increased space of paid ads, which has drastically grown, Google continues to test new features. A new carousel showing video content just above “People Also Ask” was introduced in early 2019, giving users the chance to interact with brands’ content in a new and convenient way.

To summarize, we as marketers need to follow these trends and updates to the search results and adjust our messaging accordingly. Google has made it clear that their intention is to provide users with the most relevant answers to their questions in the quickest way possible. The messaging must align with this ongoing trend and be easy to consume, especially with the knowledge that Google will rank said content much higher in the results.