What is a featured snippet? A complete guide to achieving 'position zero'

Every time we look for something in Google, you've probably noticed that the tool often shows a small box at the top of the results with a direct answer to your query. These sections are what marketers nowadays aspire to be featured in and, honestly, it's quite achievable with the right approach.

In this article, we will cover everything you need to know about featured snippets: what they are, their benefits, and how to get them to help you gain more visibility, drive qualified traffic, and strengthen your overall SEO (and even AIEO) strategy.

What are featured snippets?

Featured snippets are, as we have hinted before, those results shared by Google to help users get an answer to their questions quickly. This is a Google-specific feature meant to help users find the most relevant information without having to click through multiple pages.

Also called "position zero", they are the first thing that appears when searching for something, before the actual results. They can also appear as questions in the "People also ask" or on the right side of the results page, a section called the "Knowledge Graph" as stated by Google.

Benefits of getting featured snippets

Getting featured snippets is key because it makes you get the best position you could possibly get in Google. This position can give your site lots of benefits that will directly influence in its performance and overall health. Among the benefits of getting featured snippets your website will enjoy, you can find:

• Getting more visibility: with featured snippets you will get the maximum visibility a Google result can get as it is the first thing users see when looking for anything.
• Increase traffic: even though Google just takes your content, a link to your site will be available as the main resource and, based on data, websites that get featured snippets will increase their traffic.
• Improve overall website health (authority, DR, etc.): Just like appearing as the first organic result, if your content appears as a featured snippet, it can improve your website's overall health. Being featured signals to users and search engines that your site provides authoritative, relevant content, which can positively impact metrics like domain authority, trust, and visibility.
• Improved UX: Nowadays, users dislike reading long articles just to get a simple answer. Featured snippets cut that, providing users with exactly what they want: a quick, direct answers (which is why half of users now prefer AI search over Google).
• Voice search dominance: When you ask a question to Alexa, Google Assistant, or Siri, these tools often pull their answers from featured snippets. Even though your website may not be directly credited as the source, having your content appear in featured snippets can still help improve your overall website health, as mentioned earlier, by signaling authority and relevance to search engines.

Are AI overviews featured snippets?

No, they are not. Even though AI is taking over many aspects of search, they are not the same thing. As you probably know, Google has AI Overviews, which are a synthesis of multiple sources generated by Google's AI to answer a question; however, featured snippets are verbatim quotes from a single webpage. Snippets are static and concise, while AI Overviews are longer and generated in real time by AI.

Types of featured snippets

There are different types of featured snippets based on the format of the content that Google chooses to display. Each type highlights information in a way that makes it easy for users to quickly find the answer they're looking for. These are the most common types of featured snippets:

• Paragraph snippets: Paragraph snippets are short blocks of text that directly answer a user's query. These types of featured snippets are the most common ones.
• List snippets: List snippets appear as ordered or unordered lists that break information into steps or items. To increase your chances of getting a list snippet, format your content using numbered or bulleted lists, and make sure each item is clear and actionable. These are ideal for "how-to" queries, top tips, or any content that benefits from step-by-step instructions.
• Table snippets: Table snippets display information in a structured table format, which is especially useful for comparisons, statistics, or data-heavy queries. To optimize for table snippets, present your data clearly in HTML tables with labeled rows and columns. Ensure the table is easy to read, relevant to the query, and provides the key information Google can directly extract for the snippet.
• Video snippets: Featured snippets can also be YouTube videos, as they are a type of content that is easy to understand and highly engaging for users. However, it should be noted that getting video snippets requires specific tactics, such as optimizing video titles and descriptions with relevant keywords, as well as structuring your video with accurate timestamps for key moments. This helps Google better identify the topic of the video and provide more precise and relevant snippets.
• Mixed snippets: Sometimes different types of snippets can be mixed, for example, a paragraph that leads to a list or a paragraph that leads to a table, etc.

How to get a featured snippet?

To get a featured snippet, your website and, therefore, your pages and blog posts must be optimized both content-wise and technically.

Regarding content, these are the most important things to take into account when writing:

• The content MUST answer the question directly. This is KEY to getting featured, as featured snippets are meant to be short and direct answers to a question. If you don't write your content this way, it will rarely end up in a featured snippet.
• You should use an easy-to-read format. As mentioned, featured snippets are meant to be short and direct, and users nowadays prefer formats that provide clarity and convenience when solving their doubts. By writing short paragraphs and using bullet points, your content is more likely to be picked up by Google.
• Follow the "pyramid content structure" when writing. This is not new, as we've followed this approach since the early days of SEO, but it's still important. When writing an answer, the first information should be the direct answer with basic and general information about the topic, followed by more specific details that require a higher level of expertise. This structure aligns with what users need and what Google (and AI) love, so keep it in mind when writing.
• FAQ sections. A great content format that already follows the key requirements of featured snippets is the FAQ section, as it provides question-and-answer content in an easy-to-read format. Using this type of section on your website can be a great way to get your content featured.

As you can see, this is very similar to what AI expects from content, so you can take advantage of that and kill two birds with one stone.

Regarding technical stuff:

• Structure data for readability. Both your content and metadata must be structured in a way is easy to understand for Google. Use a format that Google likes making sure your HTML is clean, headings are properly nested, and key sections are marked with the appropriate tags so Google can easily extract the relevant information.
• Implement schema markup. We have talked about this so many times that you are probably tired of it, but it is what it is: schema markup is ESSENTIAL, and it also influences getting featured snippets, as it helps search engines better understand your content, its structure, and the relationships between different elements on your page. We recommend you to check our FREE schema markup tools if you are trying to optimize it.
• Be careful with metadata. Check if your site has HTML attributes like "data-nosnippet" or "nosnippet" as these will avoid your content from being featured. Also, make sure your meta titles and descriptions are optimized, as they influence how Google understands and displays your content.

Besides this, you should acknowledge that by using HTML attributes, you can even decide what content is shown as a snippet and what isn't. Even though this may seem contradictory at first, it can actually be a powerful way to control which content is really important on your site. For example, imagine you have a couple of articles covering the same topic, but you want to prioritize and funnel visibility to one specific page. In this case, using the "nosnippet" (or "data-nosnippet") attribute on the less important pages can be a wise decision. Another common use case is when there's content cannibalization or partial content duplication, where multiple URLs compete for the same queries, limiting snippets on secondary pages can help Google better understand which page should be prioritized.

How to optimize for featured snippets?

Optimizing for featured snippets is as easy as following the previous tips to create your content and checking whether your pages comply with them. To check them, you only have to analyze your target queries in the SERPs, review whether a featured snippet already exists, and compare your content structure with the page currently ranking in position zero.

1. Analyze your target queries in the SERPs. Start by searching your target keywords directly in Google. Look at the type of results that appear (informational, transactional, etc.) and identify whether Google considers the query suitable for a featured snippet. Pay attention to the wording of the query, the intent behind it, and the format Google is favoring (paragraph, list, table), as this will guide how your content should be optimized.
2. Review whether a featured snippet already exists. Not all queries trigger featured snippets. If a snippet is already present, analyze its format, length, and the type of information it provides. This helps you understand what Google expects for that specific query. If there is no featured snippet, it may indicate that the query is not suitable for one, or that there is an opportunity to structure your content in a way that encourages Google to generate one.
3. Compare your content structure with the page currently ranking in position zero. If a featured snippet exists, study the page that owns it. Compare its content structure to yours: look at how it answers the question, how quickly it provides the answer, the use of headings, lists, or tables, and its overall clarity. The goal is not to copy the content, but to identify structural and formatting improvements you can apply so your page better matches what Google is rewarding for that query.

It must be said that, even if your content appears as a featured snippet at one point, it can disappear due to competitors' optimization efforts or even be removed by Google if the company determines it doesn't follow its policies or if it was reported by a user. That's why optimization is crucial, as appearing as a featured snippet doesn't guarantee permanence.

How to track featured snippets?

Tracking featured snippets is crucial to see if they are optimized or not. To do so, there are plenty of ways and platforms to use. Among the most easy and popular ways you will find:

Automated way: Using SEO tools

By using SEO tools like Ahrefs or SEMrush, you can automatically track featured snippets for your target keywords. These tools provide reports showing which of your pages are appearing in snippets, the type of snippet, and any changes over time. This allows you to quickly identify opportunities and monitor competitors.

The way of doing it will depend on the tool you use, but it's quite simple. You can check the following videos for Ahrefs or SEMrush as they are the most popular:

Ahrefs: How to find featured snippet opportunities

SEMrush: How to track featured snippets

Manual way: Using Google tools

If your budget is tight, there's another way to track featured snippets using free Google tools. For example, Google Search Console Search Analytics allows you to see which queries bring impressions for your pages, while manually searching your target keywords in incognito mode helps you verify if your content appears in featured snippets.

However, choosing this way might end up being a bit harder than doing it with a SEO tool as you will have to check each keyword individually and monitor changes over time manually. It also requires more attention to detail to track different snippet types, variations in search results, and competitor activity. Despite being more time-consuming, this approach can still provide valuable insights without any additional cost, making it a viable option for smaller websites or those just getting started with featured snippet optimization.

Even though we understand that paying for SEO tools can be annoying due to their cost, they significantly reduce the time needed to track your featured snippets and make your work much easier. That's why we always recommend investing in these tools, as they save a lot of time and effort while providing more accurate and actionable insights.

Final thoughts

Featured snippets represent one of the most valuable opportunities in search today. By providing direct answers, using clear formatting, and implementing proper schema markup, you can position your content for that coveted "position zero" spot.

What makes this even more compelling is the overlap with AIEO strategy. The same principles that help you win featured snippets - concise answers, well-structured content, and semantic markup - are exactly what AI-powered search tools look for when sourcing information. Optimizing for one means you're automatically strengthening the other.

Ready to get started? Begin by auditing your existing content for featured snippet opportunities, add FAQ sections to your key pages, and make sure your schema markup is properly implemented. These small changes can lead to significant visibility gains in both traditional and AI-driven search results.