Think for a moment about the thought process you go through when buying a product or service. One of the first steps in this process is figuring out which features are most important to you.
Today, search engines are trying to figure that out as well. They want to surface the information that is most important to you in an effort to deliver a better experience and get you to the appropriate site as fast as possible. One of the ways they do that is through rich snippets.
Understanding rich snippets, and including them in your regular SEO maintenance routine, can bolster your SEO efforts and attract more buyers to your industrial website.
What Are Rich Snippets?
Rich snippets are short pieces of information that appear on Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) which give users specific, definitive details about a page. They are those juicy, rich details that you want to know before you even visit the website.
Here are some examples of information that consumers find rich and valuable:
- Parents search for “caring for a puppy” because they’re interested in adopting a puppy. The SERP pulls up a tiny photo of an irresistibly adorable puppy, which tugs at their heartstrings.
- A grandmother decides to bake her favorite chocolate chip cookies for her grandchild and she can’t remember what temperature to set the oven. A quick Google search tells her to set the oven temperature to 350° and bake them for about 10 minutes.
- A realtor wants to attend an open house at a certain address with a client. The SERP has an image of a video that lists a viewing time of 2 minutes. The realtor doesn’t have time for a 30-minute video. Armed with the knowledge that the video is short, he takes time to watch the clip.
- A woman learns of a new cleaning product on the market and wants to learn more about it before making a purchase. A search pulls up a 5-star rating on the product which influences her decision to buy it.
That is just a sampling of how rich snippets can provide searchers with the information they want most and how it influences whether they visit a company’s website.
The Connection Between SERPs And Rich Snippets
Search Engine Land cites studies that state that you might be able to boost your click-through rates up to four times when using rich snippets. Rich snippets give you the added bonus of increasing your website traffic.
Voice search assistants like Siri and Alexa are becoming trendy as technology advances and people become more familiar with them. Google Home is already using featured snippets for some of their answers. The relationship between voice search assistants and digital marketing should be on your radar as an untapped marketing strategy.
Tips For Success With Rich Snippets
If you are new to rich snippets, here are some tips for getting the best results:
- Content is still king, so make sure you take a critical look at the quality of your website and ensure it stays relevant.
- Use long form content with your main keyword included in the title of the page, along with subtitles that include related keywords.
- When using lists or tables, include HTML Tags along with the content.
- If you have news to share, utilize Google's rich card feature to get higher rankings.
- Use schema.org as a guide to to creating the structure data.
- Check your work with the Structured Data Testing Tool to make sure there are no errors and to ensure that data displays correctly within search results.
Rich Snippets Are Just One Part Of An Industrial SEO Strategy
Adding rich snippets can help you rank higher in search results, increase your traffic, and position your brand as an authority in your field. However, they are just one component of an industrial SEO strategy. If you need some SEO help for your manufacturing business, contact me and the experts on Team Thomas.
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