When it comes to ranking at the top of Google search results, every little bit of extra information you can tell Google helps. Rich snippets do just that! They give Google and other search engine spiders that little bit of extra information that helps with indexing.
Granted, rich snippets do take a bit of extra work and can be a headache at times. However, rich snippets can help your result stand out and increase your click through rate. Since high click through rates generally mean a higher rank in search results, don’t you think it would be worth the extra time to learn how to use rich snippets?
Without further ado, let’s hop into what rich snippets are and how you can implement them to boost your search rankings.
What Are Rich Snippets?
Rich snippets are structured data markup that web designers can add to the html of a web page. This structured data allows search engines to better understand the information that is contained within the web page.
Below are a couple examples of rich snippets at work…
Reviews…
Events…
How Do Rich Snippets Improve Google Rankings?
Since rich snippets provide more information about a web page to Google, it’s only natural that Google is more attracted to them. Think of rich snippets kind of like an extra title tag about your web page. Except rich snippets allow for even more detailed information that a title tag.
Additionally, rich snippets provide additional content on search engine results pages. Whether your result is display star reviews, an event or a picture, it is going to stand out from the crowd. Since your result will stand out from the crowd, it will draw more attention and help increase your click through rate.
As a matter of fact, a recent study determined that websites that use rich snippets average 4 positions higher on search results that those without. With only 0.3% of all website using websites and one third of Google’s search results displaying rich snippets, there is plenty of opportunity to move up the rankings.
Types of Rich Snippets
There are a plethora of different types of rich snippets you can use on your web pages. If you head over to Google’s Data Markup Helper, you can see a list of 10 rich snippets that Google will help you build.
However, there are literally hundreds of rich snippets you can implement from toy stores to medical dose schedules. A quick Google search for rich snippet tools can help you find the right rich snippet for your website.
Installing Rich Snippets
Since rich snippets are html code, you will need to get into the backend of your website in order to install them. Furthermore, since rich snippets are installed on a per page basis, you will need to generate and install the code on each page of your website you want a rich snippet installed.
Generally speaking, the html code for your rich snippet will need to be placed into the head of each individual web page. This can prove trick for web designers who use templates and are not familiar with the backend of their website.
Rich Snippet Tips for WordPress Users
There are a number of rich snippet plugins available for free on WordPress. However, we suggest using a separate tool such as Google’s Data Markup Helper and then installing the code directly onto your web page.
As mentioned above, you need to add the rich snippet code into the web page that correlates with it. Therefore, install the “Per page add to head” plugin. This plugin provides a section on each page that lets you edit the header for that individual page.
Testing Rich Snippets
Google makes testing your rich snippets code easy with it’s Structured Data Testing Tool. Once you have generated your rich snippet code, you simply run the web pages url or the code itself through Google’s tool and will let you know if you have any errors.
Rich Snippet Testing Tool
Conclusion
Rich snippets provide business owners with an opportunity to leap over their competition on search results. Taking the extra time (or paying a little more to your webmaster) can result in more traffic, more leads and more sales for you business.
For more SEO tips that are increasing our clients rankings on Google be sure to check out our featured blog post titled “5 SEO Hacks You Need To Implement Today To Dominate Your Niche“.
