The Rise of Zero-Click Searches

How to Maintain Visibility and Traffic in a Transformed Search Landscape

There’s no doubt that Google is the king of Internet search. When your company becomes synonymous with the verb — I mean, we never say we’re going to “bing” something — then the question is pretty much settled. Which means any changes or shifts Google implements become THE topic of conversation in search marketing circles.

And what’s dominating the discourse right now is zero-click searches.

What Are Zero-Click Searches?

A zero-click search is any search where the results directly answer the query right on the page and therefore the search ends without the user clicking on a link. If you’ve ever searched for the weather or a city or a celebrity, you’ve likely seen results pages that look like this:

An example of a zero click search for Scarlet Johansson
An example of a zero click search for Kansas City

Right at the top of the search page, the user is fed a lot of information through SERP Features, like the Knowledge Panels on the bottom right of these screenshots and the Image Pack arrayed at the top. For the everyday Internet searcher, these layouts can often provide the answers they’re looking for, all without them ever having to click away from Google. Hence: zero-click.

What Kind of Impact Are They Having?

Anyone with a cursory understanding of search marketing knows the importance of results and rankings for drawing organic traffic to your website, so it should come as no surprise that the rise of zero-click results can have a negative impact. A few months ago, SparkToro released a report that analyzed Google search activity in Europe and U.S., showing that 58.5% of searches did not result in a click. This is a combination of two results:

  • The 21.4% of users whose search resulted in another search — i.e., the user didn’t see exactly what they wanted, so they went back to the search bar and tried again
  • The 37.1% of users who just ended their browsing session there

Around 41% of searches did result in a click, but out of those, 28.5% of them ended up clicking to another Google property, like Maps, Images, YouTube, etc.

All this is to say that, while the overall search volume in the U.S. continues to grow, it’s still getting more challenging to get your site and your content in front of the users you want. Which leads us to our next question…

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How Can You Optimize Around Zero-Click Searches?

There are strategies and movies you can make in order to work with or around zero-click searches:

  • Keyword Research and Targeting — It’s more important than ever to do a deep-dive and pull out the keywords, especially long-tail keywords, that will give you the most bang for your buck. Broad, high-level keywords are likely going to have SERP Features and heavy competition versus targeted, long-tail keywords and phrases.
  • Schema Markups and Meta Tags — Start with your meta descriptions and make them compelling and eye-catching to users, enticing them to click-through. Integrate schema markups into your webpages to help Google understand what you offer and where it’s relevant. This should include your images or videos; make sure those include alt tags, context, and captions that leverage your keywords to give you a greater chance in the SERP race.
  • Content Intent and Format — Content strategy is a key opportunity to use SERP Features to your advantage and potentially wind up with your site in the Featured Snippets. This is that block of text that appears at the top of the search results that directly answers a user’s query by plucking a highlighted snippet off a website page. If you create content aimed at answering the most common questions and educating on popular topics in your industry, you increase your chances of channeling zero-click traffic.
An example of backend website code
  • Google Business and Local SEO — We just had an article about setting up your Google Business Profile and leveraging that to attract more customers. It holds true for here, as well. Optimizing for Google Business and targeting locally focused keywords can be a real advantage and pay off big dividends.
  • Cross-Platform Optimization — Searches aren’t just done on a stationary desktop anymore. We’re searching on our phones, on our tablets, as well as by slinging questions at Alexa, Siri, Google Assistant, and more. Ensure your website is optimized for mobile scrolling and voice searches integrating things like conversational keywords; simple, readable content; and FAQ pages.

Leaning in to Zero-Click

For better or worse, it’s Google’s search engine world, and we’re just living in it, right? But that partly implies that we’re without tools or resources when new developments or innovations in search marketing are rolled out, and that’s not quite the case. We can adjust. We can discover how to use old platforms and systems in new ways. We can drill down on our brands and our audience and find areas where we can directly engage with their questions in formats that put us at the top of the pile. Or, I guess, more like the top of the page.

It may not be a small undertaking, by any means, but it’s definitely a doable one. And if you don’t want to take on the challenge alone, there are marketing partners like us out there with the experience and resources you need to make zero-click searches work for you.


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About the Author Rebecca Gutzmann

A longtime writing and grammar nerd, Rebecca found a place to put her passions to good use in the marketing field, specializing in copy editing and copy writing. For the past twenty years, she's leveraged her skills in copy editing and copywriting across a variety of media, from social media to video scripts to content optimization. With every project, big or small, her goal is to utilize every word, every turn of phrase to maximum effect, connecting clients with their unique audiences.

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