What Is a SERP?
SERP is short for hunt motor results page and refers to the results hunt engines show aft a personification enters a hunt query.
A SERP tin see text-based links, ads, images, videos, and different features, which we’ll explicate successful much item later successful this article.
Here’s an illustration of what a SERP tin look like:

Having your pages look adjacent the apical of hunt motor results pages for queries applicable to your business is important. Because it improves your visibility and increases postulation to your site.
How Do Google SERPs Work?
After a personification enters a hunt query, Google’s SERPs show results that the hunt motor thinks are the astir applicable based connected various ranking factors.
Let’s person a look astatine the differences successful types of hunt results.
Traditional Organic Search Results
Traditional integrated (unpaid) hunt results are unpaid, text-based results that show aft a personification enters a query and look arsenic bluish links.

Showing up successful integrated hunt results is important because users spot integrated listings much than ads and are often much apt to click connected them.
Websites gain integrated rankings (SERP positions) by utilizing a assortment of strategies to amended their websites and individual pages successful the eyes of some users and hunt engines.
Google attempts to show the champion imaginable SERP for each hunt query by taking into relationship a operation of factors, including:
- Relevance: Google’s systems find contented applicable to a searcher’s query based connected things for illustration whether the keywords connected your page lucifer the user’s query. But the systems besides return into relationship different factors.
- Quality of content: After Google identifies applicable content, they trust connected signals that bespeak expertise, trustworthiness, etc. One illustration is assessing whether different salient manufacture websites nexus to your site.
- Usability of content: When the signals mentioned supra are similar, Google’s systems will prioritize pages pinch amended personification acquisition (e.g., mobile-friendly sites and pages that load quickly)
- Context and settings: Google will return into information user-specific factors, for illustration their location, past hunt history, and hunt settings
SERP Features
SERP features are enhanced results that guidelines retired from modular listings to heighten the personification experience.
Because SERP features are visually chopped from different hunt results, showing up successful them tin lead to amended visibility, much clicks connected your links successful hunt results, and an accrued number of website visitors.
When you’re creating caller content, return a look astatine the SERP for the keywords you’re targeting to spot whether location are immoderate features present. To thief you trade your contented accordingly.
Use Semrush’s Keyword Overview instrumentality to easy find retired the SERP characteristic types for the keywords you want to target.

Let’s specify immoderate of the astir communal SERP features:
AI Overviews
AI Overviews are short, AI-generated summaries Google usually shows supra each results connected the SERP that incorporate accusation originated from various webpages.
Google besides includes links to the original sources wrong the overview that users tin click connected to study more.
Here’s an illustration of an AI Overview:

Featured Snippets
Featured snippets are little matter excerpts that show successful hunt results (often adjacent the top) and straight reply the user's question.
This SERP characteristic tin return a fewer formats, including bulleted lists and tables. But a paragraph is rather common.
Like this:

Image Pack
Image packs are SERP features that show a group of images for queries that Google recognizes will use from visuals.
Clicking connected “Show much images” will grow the number of results. And clicking connected an individual image will unfastened a sheet connected the correct broadside of the main hunt results page pinch the selected image enlarged and much images below.
Here’s an illustration of an image pack:

People Also Ask
People Also Ask (PAA) boxes show a fewer questions related to the original hunt query and are often adjacent the apical of the SERP.
Pages pinch PAA sections look for illustration this:

If the personification clicks connected 1 of the questions, the conception will grow to show a little reply and the page wherever the reply comes from.
Like this:

Clicking connected 1 of the questions will besides grow the database pinch further applicable questions.
Knowledge Panel
A knowledge panel is an accusation container pinch cardinal facts that appears connected the SERP erstwhile a personification looks for accusation astir entities for illustration organizations, places, people, and things.
Google pulls this information from the Knowledge Graph, their database pinch actual accusation drawn from reputable sources for illustration Wikipedia, Wikidata, Crunchbase, and CIA World Factbook.
This is what our knowledge sheet looks like:

Local Pack
Local packs show accusation astir adjacent businesses for queries that subordinate to a section request positive an excerpt from Google Maps showing those businesses’ locations.

If you click the “More businesses” button, you’ll beryllium taken to Google Maps.
Google decides which businesses to show successful the section battalion based connected 3 factors: relevance (of the consequence to the hunt query), distance (of the business to the apt location of the user), and prominence (how well-known Google thinks the business is).
Paid Search Results
Paid hunt results are advertisements (technically, a type of SERP feature) that tin look successful a fewer places connected SERPs and are branded pinch the connection “Sponsored.”

Showing successful paid hunt results allows you to put your business straight successful beforehand of a highly circumstantial assemblage based connected targeting criteria (demographics, interests, location, etc.) and the position they’re searching.
This could thrust conversions—even if your landing pages aren’t optimized for integrated hunt visibility.
To look successful these results, you request to create, manage, and salary for ads connected platforms for illustration Google Ads. This type of trading is often called pay-per-click (PPC) advertising.
Google’s process of determining which ads to show and wherever is called an ad auction. And it involves determining which ads are eligible to show and ranking the eligible ads based connected Ad Rank scores.
Ad Rank is calculated by a analyzable group of factors, including:
- Advertiser’s bid: The magnitude you’re consenting to bid
- Ad and landing page quality: How applicable your advertisement and page are to the personification and query, really useful the landing page is, really easy your page is to navigate, etc.
- Ad rank thresholds: Google sets minimum thresholds an advertisement must execute to show successful paid hunt results
- The discourse of the user’s search: Google takes into relationship user-specific factors for illustration their hunt history, location, instrumentality type, etc.
How to Appear successful SERPs
Search Engine Optimization
Search motor optimization (SEO) is the believe of improving your website to heighten visibility successful SERPs and tin thief you look successful accepted integrated hunt results and integrated SERP features.
The 3 main pillars of SEO are:
- Technical SEO: Improving your website successful ways that make it easier for hunt engines to discover, understand, and shop your contented for ranking purposes. And tin see activities for illustration ensuring your tract is mobile-friendly, improving your website’s architecture, etc.
- On-Page SEO: Improving individual pages connected your website to thief them summation visibility successful search. It tin see activities for illustration creating value content, utilizing keywords strategically connected your pages, and more.
- Off-Page SEO: Taking actions beyond your ain tract to amended your site’s integrated SERP rankings. It refers to activities for illustration building links to your website, moving connected your societal media presence, etc.
If you’re conscionable getting started pinch SEO, see improving existing contented by amended incorporating keywords. Which you tin do pinch Semrush’s On Page SEO Checker.
The instrumentality will springiness you suggestions connected really to amended circumstantial pages for their target keywords. Like this:

Implement these suggestions, past support an oculus connected your rankings complete a fewer months to spot if your rankings improve.
Search Ads
Search ads are paid advertisements that look successful SERPs and tin beryllium utilized to scope highly targeted audiences looking for accusation astir topics applicable to your business.
Here are the main steps you tin travel to get started:
- Set up a Google Ads account
- Do keyword investigation pinch devices for illustration Google’s Keyword Planner and Semrush’s Keyword Magic Tool to find position applicable to your business and the goals you want to achieve
- Create high-quality ads that are apt to resonate pinch your target audience
- Determine your run budget, take a bidding strategy, and group up assemblage targeting
- Launch your campaign
- Monitor the results and set the run accordingly
Track Your Performance successful SERPs
Tracking your capacity successful SERPs is an basal measurement to return aft moving connected improving your rankings—it reveals really your actions effect your results and which activities activity champion for your site.
Use Position Tracking to show your accepted integrated rankings, quality successful SERP features, and your paid hunt positions.
Follow the steps successful the setup wizard, and make judge you adhd some the paid and integrated keywords you’d for illustration to track.
After mounting up your project, you’ll spot the “Landscape” report. Scroll down to the “SERP features” conception to spot which SERP features the pages you’re search are showing in.

Then, click the “Overview” tab and scroll down to the “Rankings Overview” conception to spot your integrated rankings for your target keywords arsenic good arsenic the tool’s estimation for what you could perchance achieve.

To spot your paid hunt positions, scroll to the apical of the report, click the cogwheel icon, and prime the circle adjacent to “Google Ads.”

Try it today.