What Is SERP & Why Is It Important? [Updated 2025]

Have you come across videos or FAQs while searching for something on Google? Ever wondered why they pop up? They're part of the SERP results; think of them as our virtual guides, leading us to the information we seek on the internet. SERPs, a.k.a. Search Engine Results Pages, lie at the heart of this vast digital landscape. In this blog, let's look into what SERP is and explore its various elements.

What Is A Search Engine Results Page?

Put simply, SERP is the page you see upon typing a search query and hitting ‘Search’. This page displays a collection of outcomes based on your search, presented in order of relevance. Now, it’s important to realize that the display of search engine results differs according to a bunch of different factors.

First off, SERPs can differ among various search engines; Microsoft Edge’s SERP won’t be exactly the same as Firefox’s. Secondly, the outcomes of each search themselves are dynamic and likely to change significantly owing to various factors. Your login status, where you're searching from, your language preference, and even your search history can all play a role in determining your SERP.

Finally, SERPs themselves are constantly evolving and being improved in combination with user interactions, collecting data, and upgrading performance. In 2022, Google made over 4,000 improvements to Search and since then, so many more changes have come around!

Before we get into all those details, let’s first look at the more common components of an SERP. And, since the most widely used search engine in the world is undoubtedly Google, we’re focusing on Google’s SERP. 

Typical Features On Google's SERP

Here are the different features you’ll see when you hit ‘Search’ on Google:

• In most cases, an AI overview of the search query is right at the top, with the relevant information presented crisply. Generative AI happens to be the latest big change to Search, launched in 2024.
• In some cases, your top results will be sponsored pages that target your query. These are all labeled as such.

• For most keywords, Google offers a ‘People Also Ask’ section. Additional relevant questions are displayed when search users click on a question. The responses usually include a link to a webpage with more information.
• If there are sponsored pages, the first organically ranked website tends to appear after ‘People Also Ask’. 

• Some more organic pages come below, and the page concludes with “People Also Search For”, which shows related queries that are also receiving many searches.

Typically, this is where you hit the end of the first SERP and can click ahead for the second. For mobile device users, Google simplifies the experience by dismissing the need to navigate to the second page of results. As you scroll lower upon seeing a list of related searches, the subsequent search results page automatically appears.

Why Are SERPs Important

The placement of each result on the SERP depends quite heavily on the relevance to the search query and the level of search engine optimization (SEO) done for it. This is where keywords come into play.

In a nutshell, every search query is composed of a keyword or multiple keywords. How well a site is optimized to respond to those keywords determines how high up the SERP it ranks. Site SEO includes the organic use of the keyword, heading tags on the page, meta descriptions, URLs, and backlinks. All of these are taken into consideration by Google’s algorithm, alongside the various other factors we’ve mentioned like your location and search history.

Entrepreneurs, advertisers, and anyone engaged in SEO need to understand how Google's SERPs work. A site’s ranking on an SERP determines how much traffic it’ll get. Fewer users are likely to click on results that appear towards the bottom of the page since most people tend to click on the first few things they see. Plus, results towards the top of the SERP are perceived to be more credible (since Google themselves decided they’re more relevant). As a result, driving traffic through any content at the bottom of those search results can be a real challenge. 

Wrapping Up

The Search Engine Results Page is one of the key elements of any search engine (and by extension, something that every marketer should know about). Now that you've got your basic understanding in place, all that's left is to understand how SERPs work and then rank your way to the top. Head to our other blogs for more insights on all things search!