If you are among many to worry about Google removing the FAQ snippets without warning, you are in the right place. These FAQ or frequently asked questions rich results help for 10% and 31% growth on desktop and mobile click-through rates. They also help the web page go up two or three spaces on the SERP. But for many like you, they suddenly disappear because Google removes them, sending no warning on the Google Search Console. 

C:\Users\SYS\Documents\1-faq-about-faq-rich-results (2).png

Image credit: Onely.com

In Google SEO Office-hours hangout, John Mueller, webmaster trend analyst at Google on July 23, 2021, answered why Google removed FAQ snippets from the site. He said that Google does not guarantee any rich results, and hence there is no need to provide any warning per se for result type search. But when sites use the right markup, they become eligible to show on the SERP. So check out FAQ-rich results, the right markup, and what else Mueller said about Google removing them.

Q&A VS FAQ pages

Before knowing about FAQ-rich results, it is important to know about the difference between Q&A or question and answers and FAQs or frequently answered question pages. Q&A pages like Quora for users, StakeFlow for developers, and others are more dynamic as they have multiple answers for a single question. And even readers can vote on which offers the best and correct answer.

FAQ pages are essential for business or product websites as they answer repeated questions asked by customers.  They save a lot of time and effort for the support teams to answer the same questions repeatedly.  Many sites use it for promoting purposes by building brand awareness and comparing the product with other competitors. Also, as Mueller said, correct marking up of FAQs will help make them show on the SERP. 

What makes FAQs Rich Results desirable for Google?

Knowing now about FAQ pages is, and before knowing FAQs Rich Results, it is essential to know what rich results are. For any search, Google displays the traditional ten blue links or the first ten web pages. But now Google is showing rich results, which are more than a link on the SERP. It is because they have more information that directly links to the answers in the search query. The user can now get a quick answer conveniently without searching for the answer going into the site. But for the detailed answer, they need to do thorough research through the web pages.

Having known FAQs and rich results of Google, it is time to know what FAQ rich results are. They are the FAQs links in the web page shown by Google as links on the SERP page. Since it is convenient for the users to click, it is desirable by all. It also helps to rank the pages two or three spaces above in the search results. But as Mueller said in the recent Google SEO Office-hours hangout, only correctly marked FAQ rich results will show high on SERP. 

How to do FAQ markup for increasing the visibility of sites

  • Google shows links of FAQ-rich results only if their pages have the correct coded structured data. Hence to become eligible for FAQ-rich results, it is essential to have the following Google guidelines.
  • The FAQ page markup should have a list of questions and answers without the option for users to add their answers.
  • Should not use the FAQ markup for advertising purposes and should never be violent, sexually explicit, profane, promote illegal or dangerous activities or contain hate language
  • There should not be repeated same questions and answers
  • All the FAQ markup content should be accessible in the source HTML by the users
  • Should have the documentations that include mainEntity, which is a range of question elements that have the list of answered questions
  • Question type schema that identifies the single answered question and all of it should be within the main entity

Hence having the above documentation and properties, it is easy to markup the FAQ page using JSOM-LD or Microdata to help the web page go two or three notches up on the Google search results. 

Mueller's answer to Google removing FAQ rich results

C:\Users\SYS\Documents\download (1).jpg

Image credit: linkedin.com

Many get pained and feel punished if Google removes FAQ-rich results even without informing in the search console after taking a lot of effort and time. So, in the July 2021 Google SEO Office-hours hangout, Mueller answers in detail the question that includes.

  • He confirms at the outset that Google does not guarantee any rich results 
  • Hence, he says that there is no alert for all types of rich results in search but confirms that if there is correct markup, they become eligible to show up 
  • Google shows many such rich results for websites and may even scale them back or scale up overtime
  • But he says that they may turn them off never to show up again
  • He says that Google has three different levels for it that include proper technical implementation, compliance of policies, and website quality that changes overtime more particularly regarding Google updates
  • It is only the algorithms that enact and engage in understanding the policies, and hence there is no alert message for removing the FAQ rich results
  • Google removes the rich results of websites that do not fit into the new core updates their algorithms find not relevant for specific queries
  • In some rare options, there are chances for the manual team to take action if there is something so bad regarding the FAQ's page structured data, and in such cases, there will be a notification sent on the search console

The above facts and Mueller's views will surely help you understand why Google removes FAQ-rich search results. In a nutshell, you need to update your site to comply with the core Google updates and implement excellent structured data to improve the quality for Google to show your FAQ-rich results on top of SERP.

Dev Bhushan

Dev Bhushan

Digital Marketing Specialist at SEMReseller

  • SEO
14 Sep 2021

FOLLOW US ON

Latest Blogs

  • Law firm SEO

    Amazon Business vs. Seller Account: Which One Do You Need?

    Over the past few years, Amazon has rapidly grown to become one of the biggest online marketplaces in the world. It sells almost everything, starting from a nail to a PC, and millions of people use it to buy and sell products every day.

  • Law firm SEO

    How to Remove Your Listing on Whitepages?

    Whitepages is a commonly known as an online directory that collects your personal information, such as name, address, contact number, and other public record. This is a robust platform which offers several benefits such as providing a fair interface for reconnecting with people thereby maintaining privacy concerns for individuals who prefer to keep their information private.

  • Law firm SEO

    How To Drop A Pin On Google Maps (Desktop & Mobile)

    As we all are very much aware of the fact that in today's fast paced and digitally advanced era, finding a location is no more challenging. Thanks to the advanced mapping technology and robust navigation system of Google Maps.

  • Law firm SEO

    10 Ways to Increase Engagement on your Social Media Posts

    In today's advanced digital age, there will be hardly someone who is away from the macrocosm of social media networking. From a techie to an old retired person, almost everyone uses social media for various purposes...

  • Law firm SEO

    Local SEO Best Practices for Multi-location Businesses

    If you have newly started a robust business that has got franchise or outlets at multiple locations, it could be difficult for you to manage, connect and engage diverse audiences in online search landscape.

  • Law firm SEO

    Why Page Speed is Crucial for SEO and How to Improve It

    In today's digitally dominated era where users expect instant response and productivity, page speed is not just a formality but a necessity for effective SEO. Are you looking forward to enhance your user experience, improve engagement metrics, and boost your search engine rankings? If yes, then you are on the right page.

  • Law firm SEO

    Proven SEO Strategies to Grow Your Personal Injury Law Practice

    Have you ever been injured due to someone else's negligence? If yes then this blog is going to be an eye opener for you! There are some unfortunate cases where the victims get physically injured accidentally and struggle with the hefty amount of medical bills and prolonged treatment procedures even without insurance coverage. To resolve such tragic situations effectively ensuring a minimum compensation,

  • Law firm SEO

    SEO for the Healthcare Industry: Best Practices

    With the increasing complexity and multifaceted challenges due to the constant shifting of environment and ongoing pandemic situation, healthcare industry is always grappling with persistent pressures.

  • Law firm SEO

    SEO vs. SEM: Which Strategy is Right for Your Business?

    In today's digital era, businesses are constantly evolving with the advancement of digital technology and its diverse strategies. Study has confirmed that since past few years 90 percent of businesses has reported monumental success by implementing the potential strategies of digital marketing.

  • Law firm SEO

    How to Boost Your Brand's Visibility on X.com: A Complete Guide

    Whenever you are thrilled about any fact, you tend to share it with more people. It is always judicious to promote such facts by posting them within your social media platforms such as tweeter or Facebook so that you can increase its reach and help it find a bigger audience.

Did You Find This Information Useful?

Your email address will not be published.
Required fields are marked *