Search Queries
A search query is the word or string of words a user types into a search engine and will be used to determine the most relevant and useful results for what they are looking for. Our Hangout Notes cover insights from Google around how they use and understand search queries, along with recommendations for optimising your site for searcher intent.
Including Jump Links Doesn’t Have a Direct Impact on Rankings
Including jump links within a piece of content can improve usability but this doesn’t have any direct impact on search and rankings.
Previously Visited Pages Are More Likely to Be Shown in Personalized SERPs
If a user has previously visited a particular page from search results, it is more likely that this page will be shown in personalized search results for them in future. This won’t apply to any other pages within that website that the user has never visited.
Sites Ranking for Unrelated Queries May Be Hacked
If a site starts ranking for completely unrelated queries that it doesn’t have content for, it is worth checking what content is being shown to Google, via the Inspect tool, to see the site has been hacked.
Algorithms Are Updated Based on Query Types Rather Than Industry Types
Algorithms aren’t updated for particular industries, but are instead updated based on particular types of queries.
Organic Ranking Factors Also Apply to SERP Video Carousels
The same organic ranking factors apply to video carousels in the SERPs, so an increased number of backlinks alone won’t improve the chances of a video being shown in a carousel.
Google Will Create a Knowledge Panel for Websites Organically Over Time
Google can recognise queries that lead to particular websites and will create a knowledge panel for this over time if it has enough information about your website already.
Generic Category Pages Less Likely to Bring in Valuable Traffic That Will Convert
Don’t focus too much on generic category pages as the queries that these would rank for are so broad that they wouldn’t bring in valuable traffic that will convert on your website.
Google Doesn’t Always Treat Singular & Plural Versions of Queries as Synonyms
Google doesn’t necessarily serve the same results for singular and plural versions of queries as the searcher intent might not be the same.
Google Doesn’t Use Pogo-Sticking as a Ranking Factor for Specific Pages & Queries
Google analyses user data at scale for millions of queries to determine the success of algorithm changes. This means that rankings for a page at a query level won’t suffer if it experiences users pogo-sticking back to the SERPs.
Google Primarily Uses RankBrain for Understanding New User Queries
RankBrain is a means for Google to understand user queries, especially new queries that have never been seen before.