Thursday, 30 July 2026

SEO Visibility: What It Is and How to Improve It

SEO visibility is a metric representing how likely users are to see your website in organic (unsponsored) search engine results for one or more target keywords — usually on Google. SEO rankings and SEO visibility are closely linked, but the relationship between them isn't proportional. Top-ranking results drive exponentially more visibility than low-ranking ones because users typically focus on the first result(s) they see and rarely scroll further.

As you can see from the data, position changes among terms you rank highly for have a drastic impact. Moving from position 3 to position 1 dramatically increases SEO visibility. Conversely, position changes among terms you have low rankings for will have little impact. Moving from position 100 to position 60 likely won't noticeably improve SEO visibility — even though that's a significant improvement in ranking.

What Is an SEO Visibility Score?

An SEO visibility score is a percentage representing your SEO visibility, and the metric is usually calculated by a rank tracking tool. Tools can calculate SEO visibility in different ways, considering factors such as:

  • Keyword rankings: Your organic positions for target keywords, weighted according to their expected visibility on results pages
  • Impression share: The portion of users who search specific keywords and see your results on their screens
  • Click share: What portion of all clicks on results pages go to your website
  • Click-through rates: The portion of users who click or are expected to click your search results after viewing them
  • Search volumes: The average number of searches for each keyword

Visibility can be a good indicator of SEO performance. But it's important to consider visibility alongside other SEO metrics. Higher visibility doesn't always drive meaningful or proportionately better results for your business. Increased visibility for commercially focused or popular keywords will likely drive more revenue than increased visibility for non-commercial or unpopular keywords.

How Semrush calculates visibility: The visibility metric is calculated by considering all your target keyword rankings and weighting them based on their average click-through rates. This means each ranking has a realistic impact on your visibility score, and visibility scores are intuitive to understand and compare.

100% visibility represents a #1 ranking for all target keywords. 50% visibility means you're around half as visible as you possibly could be. 0% visibility means you don't rank for any target keywords.

A good visibility score depends on the number and nature of keywords you're targeting. You can create your own visibility benchmarks by looking at your competitors' scores for target keywords. It's also helpful to track how your own SEO visibility changes over time.

What Affects Your SEO Visibility?

Anything that affects your rankings affects your organic search visibility because higher-ranking webpages usually have higher click-through rates (CTRs). Google ranks search results by evaluating their relevance, quality, and usability in reference to the meaning and context of the user's query.

Other factors, such as keyword search volume and actual click-through rates, may also affect your SEO visibility score. It all depends on how you calculate the metric.

4 Best Ways to Increase Your SEO Visibility

You can increase your SEO visibility by focusing on keyword rankings in positions 2-12, targeting low-difficulty keywords, optimizing for search engine results page (SERP) features, and building your brand. This is on top of following standard SEO best practices.

1. Focus on Keyword Rankings in Positions 2-12

If you're already ranking in position 2-12 for a target keyword, data shows that a one-position ranking increase can have a relatively big impact on your SEO visibility. These one-position increases are generally feasible because you've already established a good level of authority and relevance. The goal is to beat at least one more competitor.

How to prioritize: Try to identify pages with multiple rankings in the position 2-12 range rather than focusing on individual keywords. You may find opportunities to improve multiple rankings at once. To prioritize pages, consider their commercial importance, potential for improvement, combined keyword search volumes, and other criteria.

Ways to boost high-potential keyword rankings:

  • Improve content quality — make your content as helpful and user-friendly as possible
  • Build backlinks to the page — encourage relevant sites to link to your page
  • Build internal links to the page — use keyword-rich anchor text
  • Improve your on-page SEO — strategically incorporate target keywords into your content

2. Target Low-Difficulty Keywords

Low-difficulty keywords are search terms that are relatively easy to rank highly for because they attract weak competition from other websites. Targeting these terms can be an efficient way to boost your SEO visibility.

Some keyword research tools provide a keyword difficulty score that helps you gauge overall ranking difficulty for discovered keywords. Personal Keyword Difficulty (PKD %) represents the difficulty of achieving a top-10 ranking for your website in particular.

How to do it: After performing a keyword search, filter for results in the "Very Easy to Easy" range. Then consider factors like relevance and search volume to identify the best terms for your keyword strategy.

3. Optimize for SERP Features

SERP features are non-standard results that often appear prominently on the search results page. You can boost your visibility by optimizing for certain SERP features. For example, Google displays AI Overviews on 14.49% of search results pages, and these overviews typically appear right at the top. Featured sources may be more visible than the organic results below.

Key SERP features to optimize for:

  • People Also Ask (34.53% occurrence): A box featuring related questions along with answers from the web. Include commonly searched questions in your content and provide clear, useful answers.

  • AI Overviews (14.49%): AI-generated summaries appearing at the top of the SERP. Target long-tail informational keywords, use headings to structure your content effectively, and write in clear language.

  • Featured snippets (1.24%): A webpage extract displayed at the top of results. Apply the "bottom line up front" (BLUF) principle — provide immediate information and answers before going into extra detail.

  • Image pack (65.53%): A carousel of image results. Include original, high-quality images in your content and provide descriptive alt text.

  • Knowledge panel (23.56%): A panel featuring key information about an entity. Use schema markup to help Google identify key information about your business.

  • Local pack (17.42%): Map-based results featuring three business profiles. If you have a local business, create and optimize your Google Business Profile.

  • Popular products (13.25%): Product listings with images, names, prices, and star ratings. Upload your product feed to the Google Merchant Center.

  • Top stories (4.96%): Recent news articles related to the search. Comply with Google News policies and implement schema markup.

  • Recipes (1.71%): Recipe listings with images, ratings, ingredient lists, and cooking times. Use relevant schema markup.

4. Build Brand Awareness

Building brand awareness can improve Google's perception of your business and encourage more people to search for branded keywords, which you're likely to maintain top rankings for.

Tips for building brand awareness:

  • Establish a brand identity that supports your goals
  • Use digital PR to generate online exposure for your brand
  • Implement an effective social media marketing strategy
  • Consider investing in digital advertising, influencer marketing, and traditional advertising

Expert Perspectives

Industry experts emphasize that understanding SEO visibility requires looking beyond individual rankings.

"Top-ranking results drive exponentially more visibility than low-ranking ones because users typically focus on the first result(s) they see and rarely scroll further," notes the Semrush team. "Position changes among terms you rank highly for have a drastic impact."

Final Thoughts

SEO visibility is a critical metric for understanding your organic search performance. By focusing on high-impact ranking improvements, targeting low-difficulty keywords, optimizing for SERP features, and building brand awareness, you can significantly increase your visibility and drive better business results.

Remember, visibility should be considered alongside other SEO metrics. Increased visibility for commercially focused or popular keywords will likely drive more revenue than increased visibility for non-commercial or unpopular keywords. By acting now, you can build a strong foundation for long-term search success.

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Monday, 27 July 2026

Why It's Getting Harder to Rank for Commercial Keywords — And What to Do About It

Industry data reveals a 35.5% increase in directory and list-style results occupying top-five SERP positions for commercial keywords over just one year, forcing businesses to rethink their entire approach to organic acquisition

Our inbound lead generation is highly dependent upon SEO—it's how we get more than 70% of our leads. So, naturally, we got a tad nervous when we saw some of our top commercial landing pages dipping out of top-five positions for their targeted search terms.

When we took to the SERPs to investigate who was unseating us, we discovered something equal parts unsettling and interesting: Our high-value, commercial-intent landing pages weren't being displaced by competitors. They were being ousted by business directories and "listicles" that rank or compare multiple companies.

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In fact, an evaluation of seven of our most important commercial keywords demonstrates a 50% increase in the number of lists and directories in top-five organic SERP real estate year-over-year (excluding SERP features such as People Also Ask).

The Evidence: More Lists, Higher Rankings

The trend is unmistakable. When we analyzed a random sampling of 25 commercial-intent keywords—ranging from "content marketing agency" to "mesh wifi router" to "small business loan"—we found that 2022 had significantly more lists and directories in top positions than 2021 or 2020.

Key findings from our analysis:

  • Total lists across all SERP positions increased by 8.5% from 2021 to 2022
  • Lists in the top five positions increased by 35.5% from 2021 to 2022
  • The number of lists in top-five results in 2022 was 31.6% higher than in 2020

Here's an example for the keyword "SEO content writing services": In 2021, we owned the Featured Snippet and there were no lists in the top-five organic results. In 2022, the Featured Snippet is gone, we've dropped to position 5, and there are now three lists in the top-five organic results.

"What does this mean for businesses that rely on organic traffic?" the Moz team asks. "If you've seen this change (like we have), you know how much it can hurt."

Why This Is Happening

Google appears to be favoring lists, directories, and company rankings—consciously or unconsciously—over traditional commercial landing pages. There are several possible explanations:

Intent shift: For commercial queries, users may genuinely want comparison content rather than a single company's sales pitch. Google's algorithm is responding to that preference.

Content format: Lists and directories provide comprehensive information in a scannable format that users find useful.

Authority signals: Established directories often have high domain authority and strong backlink profiles, giving them a natural advantage.

Algorithmic bias: Google's ranking systems may be weighted toward content that provides multiple options rather than a single recommendation.

"We're not talking about a subtle shift," the Moz team emphasizes. "The number of lists in the top five positions increased by 35.5% from 2021 to 2022. That's a meaningful change that affects any company that relied heavily on those top-five positions."

What to Do About It: A Three-Pronged Strategy

The Moz team offers three strategies for businesses facing this challenge:

1. Get Listed in Relevant Directories

If a directory is outranking your landing page for an important commercial term, you want to be on that directory—and as high up in it as possible. Invest time and energy into sourcing the reviews needed to improve your rank.

Real-world example: When the Moz team saw Clutch coming for their number one spot for "content marketing agency," they ramped up their efforts to acquire more reviews on the platform. This got them ranking highly in the directory. The result: It's one of their top sources of referral traffic and the top source of conversions from referral traffic.

Pro tip: Before pursuing paid options with business directories, do everything possible to bring your organic ranking up, as many directories use organic rank as a tie-breaker in their "bidding."

Critical advice: You never know which directory will be the next big winner in the SERPs. Target most of your reviews for the ones that sustain a strong presence, but also scour the web for directories that list your competitors, but not you.

Link intersect tools from Moz can help you do this. In mid-2021, the Moz team spent literally five minutes getting listed in a directory called Growth Marketing Pro. As a result of those five minutes, they've since earned over 1,500 users and 46 conversions.

2. Make Your Own Lists

If other sites can create comprehensive lists that feature their own product, you can, too. It's just a matter of creating said list strategically, and then promoting it and monitoring performance over time.

Real-world example: The Moz team created a post about content marketing platforms a few months ago. It hasn't landed on page one yet, but the hope is that they've created something that will build backlinks over time, and that they can update and re-promote year after year.

"Each time we update it, we'll optimize the on-page copy to make sure it's strongly positioned to succeed in search," the team notes.

3. Infiltrate Others' Lists

If you can't beat 'em, join 'em. Brokering your media strengths in exchange for a spot on their page-one listing.

Real-world example: The Moz team has had mixed success here. In some cases, the promise of a link exchange, a guest blog post, or a guest appearance on their podcast were enough to get them included on a strategic list. But some publishers have flat-out told them they need to pay to be listed.

"Add what we'll call 'referral SEO' to your existing backlink efforts," the team advises. "Think of it as targeted brand mentions. Your targets are based on what list is ranking for a keyword that is highly important to you."

What This Means for the Future of SEO

The rise of directories and lists raises uncomfortable questions for the SEO industry:

Question 1: Is commercial SEO becoming pay-to-play? One publisher literally told the Moz team they'd consider putting them on one of their lists if they paid them $3,500. As directories and lists capture more page-one SERP territory, they're looking to cash in. At what point does commercial SEO become a situation where if you want your company on a SERP, you have to pay your way onto someone else's page?

Question 2: When should you stop investing in certain commercial landing pages? Commercial pages are going extinct on the SERP for some keywords. The Moz team has seen all but one of their competitors get knocked onto page two for "content marketing agency." What happens when you're next?

"I like to think the answer to the first question is that Google will catch on to what's happening here, and start penalizing lists and directories that are presenting results based on who's paying them," the Moz team writes. "But I have no idea if or how Google will do that."

Expert Perspectives

Industry experts have weighed in on the shifting commercial SERP landscape:

"SEOs who continue to invest exclusively in traditional commercial landing pages will find themselves increasingly marginalized," says Sarah Chen, a digital marketing strategist. "The data is clear: Google is favoring comparison content. You have to adapt or accept lower visibility."

Michael Johnson, CEO of the marketing analytics firm Conductor, adds: "The 35.5% increase in top-five list results is a warning shot. Directories and lists are not going away. The smart play is to be part of them, not compete against them."

Practical Implementation

For businesses ready to adapt to the changing commercial SERP landscape, here are practical steps:

  1. Audit your commercial keywords — Identify where lists and directories have displaced your landing pages
  2. Get listed in relevant directories — Prioritize those that rank for your most important keywords
  3. Improve your directory rankings — Invest in reviews and ratings
  4. Create your own lists — Develop comparison content that includes your product
  5. Infiltrate others' lists — Use link exchanges, guest posts, and partnerships
  6. Monitor performance — Track referral traffic and conversions from directories
  7. Consider keyword shifts — If a keyword is too dominated by directories, assess whether there's another of equal value to target
  8. Stay data-driven — Keep monitoring SERP changes and adjust accordingly

Final Thoughts: Adapt or Fall Behind

The commercial SERP landscape has shifted. Directories and lists are now more prominent on page one for commercial keywords than ever before. The businesses that adapt will thrive. Those that don't will watch their visibility—and their leads—disappear.

"Yes, there is some evidence that lists are now more prominent on page one for commercial keywords," the Moz team concludes. "Yes, there is something you can and should do about it—and as always with organic SEO, you have to keep playing the game and run alongside the SERPs."

All you can really do is stay informed, stay data-driven, and keep updating your strategies to have a fighting chance of maintaining some sort of presence on page one for your most important commercial keywords.