Google Preview: SEO Tips to Focus On
by Dave Maloney
In their continuing quest to provide the world with the most relevant search results, Google unveiled "Google Instant Preview" a few months ago. If you haven't noticed, there's a little magnifying glass to the right of every page listing; when you click on it you'll see a small screenshot of that page. Wherever the terms of your search appear on that page, they're shown highlighted in the Google Preview screenshot. You're able to tell right away if that page has what you're looking for or if you need to go on to the next listing without even having to visit the page.
Is there a need to worry about Google Preview affecting your pages' rankings?
The answer is "no" if you've been doing a thorough job with your SEO and have been keeping up with it. Below are a few suggestions to make sure your pages are taking advantage of what Google Instant Preview has to offer them, as well as making their best first impression in the search engine results:
- Look good from a distance! If your page is cluttered with a lot of different messages or advertisements, it will look even less inviting to read in a 2''x2'' window. And if you needed another reason why Flash doesn't help your SEO, Google Preview doesn't display Flash, just a blank spot (which isn't going to entice anyone to come to your site!)
- Make your message clear! Google Preview lets people quickly scan your page for relevance like a search engine would. Your page's H1 headline may be the only thing readable at that size, so make it count! Make sure your keywords are used in all the tried-and-true places: titles, subtitles, body text, link text and don't forget image ALT text. Google Preview will reward your great SEO work with glowing orange boxes all over your page's screenshot - highlighting your keyword phrase and letting the user know that your page has just what they're looking for.
- Don't forget your Meta Description! You have 150 characters to convince people (search engines don't use this, just humans) that your page has what they're searching for. The screenshot doesn't get you off the hook here; people are more likely to skim your description first before they click the Google Preview magnifying glass, so make it count!
(Update - Fall 2011) The Google Preview Magnifying Glass is Out!
Google has tweaked their display and the "magnifying glass" icon is no more. Now when you hover over a listing, a larger grey arrow displays. Hover your cursor over the arrow, and the whole right side of your screen will now show a much larger preview of that page!