What does SERP mean?
SERP stands for search engine results page. It is everything Google shows you after you type a search, from the adverts at the top to the links at the bottom. In SEO, people talk about the SERP because it is the page where your business either appears or does not.
Google's gallery of visual elements in Search results calls the parts of this page visual elements: the building blocks a searcher can see or interact with. Google also says the page can look different on a phone or a computer, in a different country or language, and for many other reasons. So the page you see is not always the page your customer sees.
What appears on a Google results page for a local search?
A search such as "plumber near me" can show several kinds of result on one page. Not every search shows all of them, and the order can change. These are the parts a local business is most likely to meet:
- Paid ads. Adverts from businesses using Google Ads. The top ad spots are generally above the other results, and more ads can show lower down the page.
- AI Overviews. A short summary written by Google's AI, with supporting links to the web pages it drew on. Google says these often do not show at all.
- The map pack. A small map and a short list of nearby businesses, taken from their Google Business Profiles. The same local results also show on Google Maps.
- Text results. The classic list of links. Google used to call these web results or plain blue links. Each one has a title link, a short snippet and the name of the site.
- People also ask. A group of related questions. When someone opens one, Google shows a short answer taken from a web page, called a featured snippet.
Some results go further than a title and a snippet. Google calls these rich results, and they usually rely on structured data in the page.
If you would rather spend your time on your business than on Google's layout, our SEO service for UK small businesses covers the map pack, Google's AI answers and your website's place in the results.
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How do you get your business into each part of the SERP?
Each part has its own way in. Ads are paid for. The map pack depends on your Google Business Profile. Text results, AI Overviews and People also ask all draw on web pages, so they depend on your website and its SEO. Here is what Google says about each one.
Paid ads
You set a bid: the most you are willing to pay for a click. Google's help page about Ad Rank says your bid, your ad quality, your competition and the context of the search decide whether your ad shows and where. The top spot needs a higher Ad Rank than the spots lower down. Our Google Ads management runs your campaigns for you.
The map pack
You cannot buy a place here. Google's page on how Google ranks local results says there is no way to request or pay for a better local ranking. Results are mainly based on relevance, distance and popularity. Complete, accurate details help, and more reviews and positive ratings can help too.
Our guide to ranking higher on Google Maps covers the steps in detail. Our local SEO service can look after your profile for you.
AI Overviews
Google's guide to AI features and your website says there are no extra requirements and no special optimisation needed. To be shown as a supporting link, a page must be indexed and able to show in Search with a snippet. Google also says you do not need new AI text files or markup.
The same guide suggests keeping your Business Profile up to date. Our guide to getting your business into AI answers goes further into how those answers choose their sources.
Text results and rich results
This is classic SEO. You need a website Google can read, with pages that answer what your customers search for. The title link and snippet come from your page. Structured data, which is code that labels the facts on a page, can make a page eligible for a rich result.
People also ask
You cannot choose to appear here. The answers are featured snippets taken from web pages, so a clear, short answer to a common question gives you a chance. Google's gallery also suggests using these related questions as ideas for topics to write about on your own site.
Why is your position on the SERP not the whole story?
Because the first text result is not always the first thing a customer sees. A local search can show ads, an AI Overview and a map pack as well as the text results. A business that ranks first in the links can still sit some way down the screen.
The layout also changes with the device, the country, the language and the search itself. A customer who finds you in the map pack may phone you without ever opening your website. A position number on its own misses all of that.
Better questions to ask than "what position am I?" are these:
- Which parts of the SERP show for the searches your customers make?
- Do you appear in the map pack for your main service and your town?
- When an AI Overview shows, is your website one of its supporting links?
- Are those searches turning into calls, bookings and enquiries?
The last question matters most. A lower spot that brings in calls is worth more than a top spot that nobody clicks.
How can Buzzozo help you show on the SERP?
We build and look after websites made to show in Google's results. On-page SEO and a build that is ready for AI search are included in the Website plan. For the other parts of the page, we run local SEO for your Google Business Profile and Google Ads for paid search.
The Website plan is from £149 a month for the first 100 businesses, locked for life, and from £299 a month after the first 100. It is monthly, with no contract, and you can cancel any time. Our website plans and prices list everything included.
You can see it working before you pay anything. Get your free website: we build your website free and it goes live in days. You pay nothing for the first 14 days. No card needed.
Your page title is often the headline people see on the results page, so read how to write an SEO title. For how search fits with the rest of your marketing, see what SEO means in digital marketing.
Common questions
Is SERP the same as SERPs?
Yes. SERPs is just the plural. People say "the SERPs" when they mean search results pages in general, and "the SERP" when they mean the page for one search.
Can I pay to appear higher in the map pack?
No. Google says there is no way to request or pay for a better local ranking. Local results are mainly based on relevance, distance and popularity. You can pay for Google Ads, but that buys an advert, not a higher place in the map pack.
Do I need special files or code to appear in AI Overviews?
No. Google says you do not need new machine-readable files, AI text files or markup to appear in its AI features. A page needs to be indexed and able to show in Google Search with a snippet.
Why does my business show on my phone but not on my laptop?
The results page can change with the device, the country and the language. The map pack also depends on distance: how far each business is from the person searching. Search from where your customers are, on the device they use, to see what they see.