What are Featured Snippets in Digital Marketing?

Featured snippets, often called 'position zero', are selected search results that are featured on top of Google's organic results, below the ads. Google uses them to directly answer a user's query without the user needing to click through to a website.

They're taken directly from web pages that Google algorithms consider to give the best answer to a user's question. Google displays this information in a box with a link to the page.

You will generally find them in response to 'how-to' and question-based searches. Any website can be featured, giving you an advantage in SEO as it can enhance your website's visibility, create brand awareness, and increase your click-through rate.

Featured snippets play a crucial role in digital marketing. Their primary function is to enhance your website's visibility on the SERP, which in turn drives more organic traffic to your website.

When your content is pulled as a featured snippet, it's elevated above organic search results to 'position zero', increasing the chances of a user clicking through to your site. This leads to better click-through rates and potentially higher conversions, a core objective within the field of digital marketing.

Finally, being featured as a snippet is a sign of authority and relevancy in your field, which is vital for building trust with your audience and establishing a strong online brand presence.

Examples of featured snippets can differ as they come in various forms, including paragraphs, lists, tables, and videos. The type utilized depends on the search query.

Paragraph snippets are the most common type, usually answering who, why, and what questions. For instance, if a user types 'what is digital marketing?' a short definition of digital marketing from a ranked webpage would be shown in this type of snippet.

List snippets usually appear for search queries that are in form of 'how-to' or require a step-by-step answer while table snippets are often used to compare data or statistics. Finally, video snippets are selected to answer 'how-to' queries that require visual instructions or demonstrations.