What are SERPs and SERP Features Examples

What are SERPs?  

Google is the go-to place for businesses and brands that want to drive more organic traffic to their websites. It scans the world wide web and decides which pages are relevant and pertinent. If you want your brand or business to be relevant, that means you want to appear on Google’s SERPs.  

Google Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) are the results you get when you type in a query into Google Chrome’s search box. They are a form of native advertising. As you may have already figured out, being on the first page is the goal that every business and brand wants to accomplish globally. If your business is selling shoes and your website is one of the first three that appear, you’ve won the SEO game. Heck, even appearing on the first page of the results is a win.    

Numerous studies have proven that the results on the first page gather most of the traffic. Securing a position on the first page of SERPs can lead to your brand or business appearing on SERP features. As a result, your business would get immediate exposure and credibility boost.  

SERPs features include organic search results, paid Google Ads, Top Stories, Knowledge Graphs, Reviews, Images, Sitelinks, People Also Ask, Featured Snippet, and video results. Let’s take a closer look.  

Examples of SERP Features  

Organic Search Results  

If your business organically (not by paying for advertisement) appears in the first couple of results, you have an organic search result. This means that Google ranked your website very high and deemed it relevant to the keyword. 

Examples of SERPs Features

Paid Google Ads  

Google Ads was the first deviation from the standard blue links. It was initially known as Google AdWords, and its function resembles SERP features, except that this one isn’t free.  The results that have been paid for appearing at the very top and with the label “Ad”.   

Examples of SERPs Features

Top Stories  

Here you get a bunch of thumbnails linked to news pieces with the publisher’s logo and title.  

Knowledge Graphs  

This feature is a block of information that appears on the right side, showing answers to particular questions about public figures.  

Reviews  

Usually, if your query asks to provide the best of something, SERPs will show you websites or links to content that has been ranked by users. They appear with yellow stars and an image.  

Images  

Images appear when Google deems that visual representation will serve for a better and more comprehensive SERP. If you click on an image that you see, Google will take you to its Images tab, and from there, you can visit the website that published the image you clicked on.  

Sitelinks  

This feature boosts organic search because it displays extra links to areas of the same site. This usually means that Google found the navigation of the site easy to understand.  

People Also Ask  

This feature appears below the first couple of results. It’s usually a list of questions related to the query. When you click on them, they expand and provide answers.  

Featured Snippets  

These appear immediately underneath the search bar. Their purpose is to give answers to specific questions that were typed into the search box. Featured Snippets may also link to the site that is relevant to the query.  

Videos  

These will usually show links to a hosting platform like YouTube, with videos whose titles match the query. The results are organic. 

Related to this topic