Ever typed a question into Google, hit enter and gotten your answer without going any further? You can thank Google’s never-ending innovation efforts for that. Alongside other initiatives like Featured Answers and the Knowledge Panel, Rich Cards are another way Google hopes to improve their users’ experience.
What are Google Rich Cards?
BESIDES incredibly convenient? Google Rich Cards are the featured results you see within a search. They are the latest evolution of Google’s Rich Snippets, designed to provide more value to the user and information about their search results. Rich Cards are designed to improve the user experience, particularly on mobile devices by making information easier to view & select. They allow specialised content to be featured above regular links and are more engaging to the user.
How can I get a Rich Card for my blog?
To gain a Rich Card, first, you need content. Then, as with all things SEO, you need to optimise! Google values all content across your site equally and builds an understanding of their relation to those searching. Without the visual cues and the understanding of context that your human visitors have, the Googlebot cannot tell which bits of your site might be ‘more important’ than others, and what is eligible for a Rich Card. To get around this, you need to utilise structured data – markers in the coding of your site that signal what Rich Card your content may be eligible for.
6 blog-friendly Rich Cards:
While there are 18 Rich Card styles available, not all of them will be relevant to your blog. The cards below are our top choices for bloggers – because they’re highly beneficial AND reasonably easy to achieve!
Carousels – These allow an easy preview of the content, across a variety of sites. Users are able to click directly on the featured image to visit a site.
Articles – A subsection of carousels, Articles shows the headline & featured image for related posts.
Local businesses – While not strictly content related, it gets a summary of your business right in search results, including opening hours, contact information & services. Your listing may appear when your brand is searched, or in a Places listing. Signing up for Google My Business is relatively easy.
Podcasts – Get more bang for your podcast-buck. Your audience gets a summary of your podcast, recent posts, and are able to play episodes instantly.
Products – Do you sell something? Get individual products featured, along with price, availability & reviews.
Recipes – Recipes can display individually, or as part of a larger carousel. These Rich Cards also feature an image, title & reviews, with the addition of calories & expected time.
Other Rich Cards:
– Breadcrumbs
– Corporate contact information
– Logos (GKP)
– Sitelink Search Box
– Preferred Site Name
– Social Profile Links (Knowledge panel)
– Books
– Courses
– Datasets
– Fact Check
– Job Postings
– Local Businesses
– Music
– Reviews
– TV and Movies
– Videos
Check out Google’s new rich results testing tool to see if your pages are eligible. You can find Google’s complete guide on Rich cards here.
Have you scored a Rich Card for your blog? Or are you eyeing off an ideal slot? Share your success AND goals with our community!
