Google's Featured Snippets Now Support Multifaceted Questions
Google is reportedly expanding the featured snippets portion of its search results pages to accommodate "multifaceted" questions (those that could potentially mean a variety of different things).
The company explained that it is adjusting this function because the questions consumers ask often mean different things (or more precisely, their expectation of the answer). For example, a query such as " garden needs full sun?" could mean " what garden plants need full sun?" or " what counts as full sun?" As you can see,
Another example Google gives is "tooth pain after filling," which could be understood as "why does my tooth still hurt after a filling?" or "how long should a tooth hurt after a filling?" Where before Google would previously only return one featured snippet (which hopefully addressed the question), it will now return multiple featured snippets that address different interpretations.
Google revealed that it is starting with these "multi-intent" queries, but in the future, indicated it has plans to include what it calls "guidance-seeking" queries, or questions that have many facets grouped into one. An example would be, "is it worth fixing my foundation?" - a broad question that could involve answers related to both cost and methods for example.
Many in the search engine optimization (and content marketing) industry see this as an additional opportunity to capture more digital real estate on the results pages and better serve their prospective audience, and shows Google's continued commitment to evolving the experience related to information seeking through its platform.
The company explained that it is adjusting this function because the questions consumers ask often mean different things (or more precisely, their expectation of the answer). For example, a query such as " garden needs full sun?" could mean " what garden plants need full sun?" or " what counts as full sun?" As you can see,
Another example Google gives is "tooth pain after filling," which could be understood as "why does my tooth still hurt after a filling?" or "how long should a tooth hurt after a filling?" Where before Google would previously only return one featured snippet (which hopefully addressed the question), it will now return multiple featured snippets that address different interpretations.
Google revealed that it is starting with these "multi-intent" queries, but in the future, indicated it has plans to include what it calls "guidance-seeking" queries, or questions that have many facets grouped into one. An example would be, "is it worth fixing my foundation?" - a broad question that could involve answers related to both cost and methods for example.
Many in the search engine optimization (and content marketing) industry see this as an additional opportunity to capture more digital real estate on the results pages and better serve their prospective audience, and shows Google's continued commitment to evolving the experience related to information seeking through its platform.
