Google Web Stories SEO: Web Stories are web-based adaptations of the popular ‘Stories’ forms that you may have seen on social media apps. It means that content can be hosted on a website rather than being stored on an app where it will be deleted in a day.
They’re a type of AMP (Accelerated Mobile Pages) and are designed to be consumed quickly and easily by busy individuals, according to Google.
If you have recently learned about this new feature and want to know how to incorporate SEO for google web stories, here is everything you need to know to get started.
It is a long established fact that a reader will be distracted by the readable content of a page when looking at its layout.
You’re in luck if your website is powered by WordPress.
Google has published an official Web Story plugin for WordPress, which is all you need to start creating Web Stories. It’s a fantastic little drag-and-drop interface with templates to get you started.
Third-party apps can be used if your website was not built with WordPress.
News Room AI and MakeStories are two tools that Google links on its Web Stories site, but neither is run or technically endorsed by Google.
News Room AI provides designers with WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) design functionality as well as access to over 300 million photos through a partnership with Getty Images.
MakeStories offers zero-code, drag-and-drop customization of your stories, as well as access to Google fonts and “one-click filters” for image editing.
One feature that distinguishes Google Web Stories from the plethora of story-telling features available in apps is their ability to be seen across the web.
Unlike Instagram Stories, which can only be seen on the platform itself, Google’s Web Stories can be hosted on a creator’s own website. This provides publishers more control over what is included in the story because there are no constraints on content.
It also means that the narrative may be used to help drive traffic to your website rather than being locked away within the confines of social media platforms.
The ability to access Google’s stories from the SERPs is one of the key advantages of using them over other rivals’ social media story formats. Google Web Stories can be indexed and serve as a Google search result just like a web page.
Google stated in October 2020 that Web Stories would be included in Google Discover feeds in India, Brazil, and the United States. The top of Discover has a list of stories, which Google refers to as a “shelf.”
When the user taps on the article, it expands to full screen, letting them swipe through the list.
Because Web Stories are housed on your own servers, the content can also be used in other digital assets such as emails.
Web stories can be accessed on mobile, tablet, and desktop browsers. As a result, there is no need to produce desktop-friendly versions for responsive materials like websites, which boosts their usability.
Because they’re a new Google offering, they’re likely to be given top priority in search results. As a result, web stories are a simple way to outrank your rivals and prove that you’re ahead of the game.
Your users will enjoy them because they are simple, quick-loading, and engaging content. A successful online story makes reading an article feel like you’re scrolling through Instagram, so it’s a terrific method to keep readers engaged while explaining your products or services.
They’re a method to ‘connect with your audience using the power of narrative on the open web,’ according to Google.
They can be used as Instagram and Facebook stories with a little altering of the parameters. This means you can utilizse them to boost your social media presence and make a small amount of content go a long way.
They each have their own unique URL, making it simple to share and link to them.
Now that we’ve covered the fundamentals, let’s get into the specifics you’ll need working on Google Web Stories SEO optimization.
For Web Stories, it’s important to ensure that your content is of good quality. Content should be ‘helpful’ and ‘interesting,’ as well as keep people interested. A lot of your success will come down to how well you tell stories.
Your Web Stories should have a title that is less than 70 characters long and no more than 90 characters. There should be enough description, similar to a web page title, to help people comprehend what they’ll find within the article. It’s important to remember that Web Stories must adhere to the AMP story metadata guidelines.
Adding captions to your storey is a great idea, but make sure the copy doesn’t get chopped off the screen or overlap with other information. As a result, it’s recommended to stay away from captions that have been burned into the film. Keep in mind that screen sizes will vary, so use technology that can handle many dimensions.
Adding alt text to your photographs is another thing you can do. This is beneficial not only for accessibility but also for increasing the discoverability of your stories.
Do you want to provide users with any additional information alongside the Web Story?
You can do this with AMP storey page attachments, which lets users upload extrauploadusers to upload extra content. Extra details, a thorough dive into a topic, or even just the upcoming stages in the user’s journey could be included. More context is beneficial to SEO.
