Obtaining traffic from Google means that you’ve got to keep up with all of Google’s features all of the time.<br />If you haven’t noticed, Google constantly changes their features.<br />And you’ve got to know exactly how they work so that you can rank for them.<br />You also have to keep an eye on competitors.<br />Google results are now full of so much more than just plain links. Featured snippets are the first thing that most people see when searching for a word or phrase.<br />They’re also becoming more and more popular each year. Just look at how many posts had featured snippets in 2016 compared to 2014:<br /><br />It’s a huge difference, right? But why are they so popular?<br />It’s because they give answers to the questions people are searching for in a way that’s convenient, quick, and easy to read. You don’t have to click through anything to find what you’re looking for.<br />They aren’t just helpful for the average person though. Featured snippets give marketers a chance to beat competitors, boost conversions, and drive traffic right to their site.<br />HubSpot research has shown that content with a featured snippet gets a 2X higher click-through rate.<br />Those results are huge.<br />But what exactly are Google featured snippets? And how can you optimize your content to rank for them?<br />What is a Google featured snippet?<br />Whether you know it or not, you’ve probably seen countless featured snippets from Google when searching for information or answers to your questions.<br />We often refer to the position that featured snippets give to content as “position zero.”<br />This is because featured snippets take up the most space on a search results page. They’re usually at the very top of the page, too.<br />For instance, say that you’re searching for “How to lay tile.”<br />Google will answer your question with a snippet containing information about your question above all of the other links on the search results.<br />Google usually pulls them right from the content that’s already ranking on page one, but it can also pull from lower ranking SERPs.<br />These featured snippets make finding answers easier than ever before because you don’t have to click anything to view the information.<br />Here’s an example of what featured snippets look like:<br />They can contain numbered lists, bullet points, and more. They can answer your search questions with a brief paragraph, too.<br /><br />Ranking for a featured snippet is so much more helpful and effective for driving visitors to your site than ranking for #1.<br />Just look at how much space a featured snippet takes up!<br />They dominate the SERPs, give you tons of exposure, and keep your website far above the fold. Plus, they’ll boost your company’s credibility quicker than any other method.<br />And you don’t necessarily have to pay any extra advertising fees to rank for them.<br />You don’t have to be number one in your industry, either.<br />Any company, regardless of its size or budget, can earn a spot at position zero if they play their cards right.<br />But there’s no exact formula for earning a featured snippet. And if you ear