People Also Ask (PAA) is a search engine feature that displays a selection of related questions and their answers in the search engine results pages (SERPs).
This feature is primarily found on Google, though other search engines may have similar implementations.
When users search for a specific topic, the PAA box appears, offering them additional information that can help them better understand or explore the topic further.
Placement and Functionality
The PAA box is typically positioned below the top-ranking organic results and above the lower-ranking ones. It is designed to provide users with quick access to answers without having to click through multiple websites.
When a user clicks on a question in the PAA box, it expands to show a brief answer extracted from a relevant web page, along with a link to the source. In many cases, the PAA box contains questions that are semantically related to the original query, offering a broader perspective on the topic.
Algorithmic Factors
The questions and answers in the PAA box are generated algorithmically based on factors such as relevance, user engagement, and content quality. These factors also contribute to the order in which the questions appear.
As a result, the PAA box can be a valuable source of organic traffic for websites that manage to get their content featured in it. For more information on how Google’s algorithms work, you can visit their How Search Works page.
Optimizing for People Also Ask
For SEO professionals, optimizing content to appear in the PAA box is an important strategy, as it can increase visibility and drive additional traffic. Some tactics for optimizing content for PAA include:
- Researching common questions related to the target keyword
- Answering those questions concisely and accurately within the content
- Structuring content with proper headings and formatting for easier crawling by search engines
For more tips on optimizing for PAA, consider reading this Ahrefs guide.