FAQ page structure

[OrlandSEO]

I have read in other discussions that having all questions on an FAQ page is the way to go and then if the question has an answer worthy of its own page, you should abbreviate the answer and link to the page with more content.

My question is when using some templates in WP, they have a little + button you can click and it reveal the answer to the question. Does this hurt SEO versus having all text visible and then using headers/subheaders?

An example of the + button https://fyrfyret.dk/faq/

[VeroBrain]

Hi Nickington,

Good question!

The FAQs are for better UX.
Also, thinking on mobile UX it is great to have a list and quickly find out the option that I really need.
Browseo's amazing tool might help you to kow out what are the signasl that the algorithms can read about a page of your website.

Said that, I think that your FAQs page is doing great.
Although you might consider to check the Moz SEO Guide on regard the Meta Keywords. Good luck!

Mª Verónica

myths-and-misconceptions-about-search-engines

[ThompsonPaul]

I'm afraid we're in a bit of a state of limbo on this issue, Nickington.

Currently, Google's ranking is based on the desktop version of the site for both desktop and mobile results.

Google has clearly stated, and many tests have confirmed, that content which is not visible unless a user interacts with the page (such as having to click the drop-down for the FAQ result) is deemphasized in search results.

BUT! Google has also stated that they are in the midst of changing to a mobile-first index which will mean that the mobile version of websites will be used for ranking assessment. In addition, they've been quite clear that at that point, since things like accordion drop-downs are so much better UX for mobile users, that kind of hidden content will no longer be "penalised".

Unfortunately, there's been no declared date for when the switch to the mobile Index will occur. Instead, they've said that it will be rolled out gradually to individual sites as they detect that the mobile version of a site is ready for it. This means it's entirely impossible to assess when the changeover might apply to your site.

So for absolute best SEO, the solution is unfortunately a bunch of extra work for a hybrid solution My best recommendation would be to build out the FAQ content using headers and sub-headers so the content is fully visible on the page and gets full indexing authority from the search engine. Then keep an eye on the mobile indexing of your site to detect when it appears that it has moved fully into the mobile-first Index stage, and at that point redo the FAQ page to utilize the accordion drop downs instead.

The alternative would be to build out the page using the accordion drop downs to start with, and accept the fact that it will be some time before that hidden content has a chance to rank effectively. this would definitely be a second-best option in my opinion.

Does that all make sense?

Paul

[brooksmanley]

^^ these are both great answers.

I'll add one thing: I often view FAQ pages as a great opportunity to earn featured snippets for specific questions related to a brand. I can't say for certain, and this may not at all be a goal of yours, but the HTML structure this WP theme element utilizes probably doesn't lend itself to stand out for earning any featured snippets. If you break them out of the FAQ element, utilize headers well, and maybe even consider schema markup, there's a chance you could earn a featured snippet or two among those frequently asked questions.

[OrlandSEO]

Thanks. That was kind of my thought. I wasnt convinced the setup as now is the best. Thanks for the feedback, it is much appreciated!

[OrlandSEO]

Makes perfect sense. Thanks a lot. Just the type of feedback I was looking for.