Search Engine Results Page (SERP) is a page loaded with various results that you will find whenever someone searches for a specific query on Google.
Every result contains results in the form of URLs with a title and a brief explanation known as a Meta Description. Such results are considered the best among millions of web pages by Google’s PageRank algorithm.
Search Engines are the means for 93% of the web traffic. Over 90% of the web traffic goes to Google’s 1st Search Engine Results Page.For a website to appear on the top of Google you must have a strong SEO strategy that comes with years of experience. It’s always better to hire an SEO Company in India for the best service and reasonable price.
What Does a Search Engine Results Page Contain?
You must have seen a lot happening on the Search Engine Results Page and some of which you may find strange and appealing such as:
1. Site Links
According to Search Engine Journal, site links are found in over 66% of the US search engine results on Google.
Sitelinks help users to navigate to other pages on a website such as category pages, contact us, about us, privacy policy, sign-in, blog, pricing, etc. Below is the result for Nike on SERP. Here you will see site links such as ‘Men’s Shoes’, ‘Women’, ‘Men’, and ‘Nike SNKRS’ as the popular site links on Nike’s website.
2. Google Ads
Google Ads are the prime revenue generator for Google. If you aren’t’ able to rank using SEO then Google Ads are your savior.
You may have noticed Ads appear above organic results on Google. This is mainly because they have paid to use Google Ads which will place them above all the results. The higher the bid higher the ranking, but the overall ranking depends on various factors.
Beneath is an example of the keyword “Gold Buyers in Bangalore” you will find 3 Google Ads results that get the most clicks on the SERP.
3. GMB Local 3 Pack
Google Business Profile, formerly Google My Business looks like a box on a Search Engine Results Page with 3 or 4 results.
Google My Business results are extremely beneficial for Local Businesses as they get targeted traffic that converts really well. GMB gets more traffic than organic search results on the SERPs.
They are the most helpful source for customers looking for services in nearby areas in the form of addresses, phone number, directions, etc.
Below is an image of the GMB Local 3 Pack result for the keyword “iPhone Repair Bangalore”.
4. People Also Ask
In 2015, Google released a new feature known as People Also Asked. This is intended to solve questions that people may have after searching a specific keyword.
These results are in the form of questions and answers in an open-close format. People Also Ask results save users’ time and you may see this above or between organic search results.
Here is an example of the People Also Ask feature for the keyword “Can You Make Pizza With Wheat Flour?”
5.Reviews and Stars
Google shows reviews in addition to stars below individual organic search results. This is done using software named Schema Markup.
This is a type of structured data that indicates to Google what the web page is about. Along with stars and reviews you may also see review counting, rating, price, and stock/out of stock.
Here is an example of schema markup for the keyword “Game Of Thrones Book”
6.Images
Google shows images for search terms that its algorithm thinks would be best answered with visual images.
When clicked on the images takes you to the Google URL of the image and further allows you to visit the site from the website the image is extracted from.
It does not happen for all searches but it generally shows up for seed keywords. Here is an example of the keyword “Rose Plant”
7.Videos
Nowadays Google shows more videos for searches on SERPs. You may see them below paid Ads, above Local 3 pack, above People Also Ask, or just between organic results.
You may find video results for keywords that contain “How to”. This example shows, video results for the keyword “How to make a paper plane?”
8.Knowledge Panels
‘Knowledge panel’ is usually shown on the right side of the Search Engine Results Page. Google compiles data from various sources on the web known as Knowledge Graph.
Here is the search result for ‘Parrots’ on Google’s SERP:
9.Featured Snippets
Google launched the ‘Featured Snippet’ feature in 2014, for the purpose of providing a short and crisp answer to the questions asked by people.
It gained popularity among SEOs over the past 3 years. This enables any website that is worthy to appear as a featured snippet search result.
For instance, if you search for the term “do rabbits lay eggs” a featured snippet appears.
10.Shopping Ads and Shopping
Not only text ads, but also shopping ads have dominated the SERPs whenever someone searches for products to buy on Google.
To use this feature you must have an E-Commerce Website and require special verification from Google Ads.
Here is an example showing shopping ads for the keyword “Buy Men’s Shoes”
Similar to this there’s another feature that shows organic results for shopping-related queries. For the same keyword “Men’s Shoes” you will find such results.
11.Maps
Google Maps was launched by Google in the year 2005. This enabled people to reach specific locations or get a specific address. Further, this became popular with the rise in GPS-enabled mobile devices that assisted users to reach from point A to point B.
Here is an example of the keyword “How to reach Ooty from Bangalore”
12.News
The news feature was launched by Google back in 2002. This feature is also featured in Top Stories on the Search Engine Results Page. News helps every Google user to get the results he/she likes.
The algorithm basically filters and shows the results according to the behavior of the user.
Here is an example on the SERP for the keyword “Exam Results”
13. Books
The other cool feature on Google’s menu launched in 2004 is exciting for book lovers and users who would like to read in a digital format.
Upon searching for something like “Marketing Books” it shows up results that allow users to read the books either paid or free on the phone screen itself.
14. Flights
‘Flights’ a useful feature on the SERP’s menu was launched by Google in the year 2011 with the intention of providing the best available flights for the users to opt for.
Google Flights help users to purchase tickets from third-party vendors with features such as arrival and departure time, location, prices, dates, stops, CO2 Emmission, etc. at your fingertips.
Here is an example of the keyword “flights from Bangalore to Delhi”
15.Finance
Google Finance feature on the SERPs menu was launched in the year 2006. This feature enables individual investors and corporations to get all the stock market news in one place. This is subjective to location and includes new features like crypto and currencies.
Here is an example of the ‘Google Finance’ feature:
