The focus has shifted to rich snippets for the “Local Business” and “Organization” schema types (and their sub-types). For these categories, Google decided to “eliminate” self-serving reviews. These are the reviews displayed on a website’s pages using widgets. If you currently use such widgets, you do not need to disable them; Google will no longer display them in the SERPs. This update only applies to organic searches. If there are reviews about your website on other directories you do not manage, those reviews will still appear in SERPs. Google Rich Results Update was made available on September 16, 2019.
Rich results are visually enhanced search results with more information than standard ones. It is called “rich” results because it displays ‘enhanced richer’ search results and gives the user more information.
When a user searches for “restaurants near me,” Google will display nearby local businesses and restaurants with reviews and ratings based on their location.
The title is blue in a standard search result, while the URL and Meta description is black. Rich results, on the other hand, frequently display images and additional information such as ratings, votes, how-tos, pricing, stock, videos, products, and other types of content.
How Can Rich Results Help Your Website?
We’ve discovered that rich results display more relevant information to user queries. But can having rich results help websites in any way?
Boost Your Organic Traffic
Rich search results are more visually appealing than standard search result listings, capturing searchers’ attention and increasing click-through rates.
The higher your CTR, the more likely someone will click through the link and enter your site, resulting in more organic traffic.
Create trust and credibility About Searchers
Ratings and reviews help determine whether or not a site is trustworthy by demonstrating how well it treats its users.
If your website is presented as a rich snippet with ratings and reviews, it is more likely to become a trusted source.
It is because online ratings and reviews are regarded as one of the most necessary factors in determining whether or not a person trusts a particular website.
Lowers the rate of site bounce
A high bounce rate occurs when visitors leave the page without finding the information they seek.
Users are presented with the most relevant details related to their queries in rich results. This way, searchers can easily find important information on search pages, saving time and determining whether it’s worth clicking the link. It keeps them on your site longer, improving their web navigation experience, and lowering bounce rates.
Improves Conversions
Rich results, which provide detailed descriptions of products or services in search results, are an excellent way to increase conversions on your website.
Simply put, rich results raise CTR, which increases traffic, and more traffic equals more conversions.
Last Thoughts
If you’re familiar with SEO, you’ll know that Google’s review-rich results are not a ranking factor so that they won’t affect your site’s ranking. However, adding this markup took websites a long way because it affected the number of sales and users, which search engines use to select the best results for the search user. As a result, this minor change will significantly impact the SEO community and search results, as we’ve already begun to see. Therefore, you must become acquainted with the most recent regulations to maintain your organic performance.