Skip to content
Gravity Search Marketing
  • Why Gravity
  • Services
  • Blog
  • Contact Us

Google’s People Also Ask Box: What it is and…

  • November 28, 2016September 17, 2017
  • by Gradiva Couzin

If you’ve recently performed a search in Google, you may have noticed a People Also Ask box. It’s an expandable box in Google search results that shows a series of questions related to the query you searched for. For example, if you search for “lunar eclipse,” you may see this:

Google's People Also Ask box

When you click on one of the questions, the box expands to display the answer along with a link back to the original source material. There’s also a clickable link, which generates a new search in Google for the same question. This is similar to Google’s “related searches” feature at the bottom of a search results page.

Expanded People Also Ask box

The People Also Ask box, first seen in April 2015 by Search Engine Roundtable, has been displaying more frequently in Google’s search results. If you are looking for a way to increase your company’s share of voice in Google, this may be a good option.

How Do You Appear in the People Also Ask Box?

1) Identify a question that your site can answer well

You probably already know your top priority keywords. To find out how people are using them in question form, try one of the following approaches:

  • Type your keyword into Google’s search box, then type “what,” “how,” “why,” and other question words to see which questions show up in the results. Keywords like “type” or “difference” can help you find questions people are using to compare products.
  • Use a keyword research tool (we like the Google AdWords Keyword Planner) to find questions or informational searches that people use with your keywords. You may discover these suggestions are already appearing in Google’s People Also Ask box. For instance, if you search for “Himalayan salt” in the Keyword Planner, you’ll see the following results: 

    keyword planner sample resultBy looking at these suggestions, you might guess that questions about the benefits of Himalayan pink salt are also showing up in search results, and you’d be right:

    Sample Google People Also Ask box in SERP
    It’s best to focus your efforts on optimizing for questions that Google is already showing in the search results.

2) Create a webpage or blog post that’s dedicated to answering the question

For best results, the page should be text-heavy, and clearly and accurately worded. If possible, include the question or informational search query in the URL structure of the page and HTML title.

Your page does not need to be in Q&A format, but you should include the gist of the question and the answer in close proximity on the page. For example, the page that Google has selected to answer the question “How can I save money on college textbooks?” does not have that exact question on the page. Instead, it uses part of that phrase within its headline “8 Ways to Save Money on College Textbooks.”

If creating a new webpage isn’t an option, try finessing one that’s a close fit to the question you want to answer. Just make sure to choose a page that already ranks well for your top priority keywords.

By following the steps above, you may increase the likelihood that your website’s content could appear in Google’s People Also Ask box.

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)

Related

Google Analytics Bot Traffic – Identifying and Removing
Google Trends Shows 2017 Eclipse Path of Totality
1 COMMENT
  • Achal
    July 25, 2017 at 7:08 pm

    I’ve always wondered how that worked. Thanks for explaining. I’ll try to integrate that too.

Comments are closed.

Who We Are
Gravity Search Marketing was formed in 2006 as a partnership between Jennifer Grappone and Gradiva Couzin. Gravity’s clients include Fortune 500 companies, global entertainment brands, niche B2Bs, large and small retailers, and non-profits.
As SEO industry veterans, Couzin and Grappone co-wrote Search Engine Optimization: An Hour a Day (Wiley, 2006, 2008, 2011) and Five Stars: Putting Online Reviews to Work for Your Business (Wiley, 2014), and enjoy sharing their expertise in speaking engagements and press interviews. 
Gravity's small, talented team has expertise in analytics, paid search, social media and technical SEO. Gravity team members are located throughout California, in Los Angeles, Sacramento, and the San Francisco Bay Area.

Get in Touch

Get An Effective SEO Strategy

Most of our business comes through word of mouth from happy customers. We work with clients who have what it takes to make the project a success: intelligence, openness to new ideas, a commitment to communicating with us regularly, and a workflow that allows us to work with you effectively.

Contact Us
  • Home
  • Why Gravity is Different
  • Services
  • Blog
  • Books We’ve Written
  • Contact Us

Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB)

Gravity is an SBA-Certified WOSB

NAICS Codes:

  • 541613 Marketing Consulting Services
  • 541810 Advertising Agencies
  • 541820 Public relations agencies
  • 541990 Other Professional Services
  • 611430 Professional and Management Training
Gravity Search Marketing LLC - A Full-Service SEO Company
Los Angeles • San Francisco
Copyright © 2020 All Rights Reserved
Theme by Colorlib Powered by WordPress
 

Loading Comments...