Raise your hand if you’ve ever Googled your company. Did your business happen to show up in a pretty little box on the side, or was it a ghost town? If the former is true, you have a knowledge panel you can claim! If not, what can you do?
Because most knowledge panels are auto-generated, the only way you can get a knowledge panel is by promoting its creation. If you can create a knowledge panel on Google, you can claim it, and you should! Knowledge panels are a fantastic way to get exposure and increase your business’s credibility.
Are knowledge panels making your mouth water now? Read on to find out more about knowledge panels and how to claim a Google knowledge panel of your very own!
What is a Google knowledge panel?
When someone searches for a business or any “entity”—a well-known person, place, or thing—Google may autogenerate a knowledge panel, a.k.a. a Knowledge Card or Google Search Graph. This is a box of rich results about the business or entity that a searcher would want to know immediately.
It also appears at the top of the search engine results page (SERP), giving you maximum exposure. And Google relies mainly on the Google knowledge graph to create it (don’t worry, we’ll explain).
As for the purpose of a Google knowledge panel? It improves the user experience (UX) by giving them the most relevant and trustworthy information about your company right off the bat. They’ll have no reason to go on a wild goose chase to find your location or which services you offer.
Not every knowledge panel is the same, of course. Most Google knowledge panels, however, include:
- A summary of your company and your logo
- Must-have logistics like your location, telephone number, etc.
- Relevant pictures, videos, or other rich media snippets
- Links to your official website, landing pages, and social media accounts
- Customer reviews and ratings
What does it mean to claim a knowledge panel on Google for your company?
The benefits of a Google knowledge panel are a long list. Its presence alone boosts your company’s credibility across the web because Google will only auto-generate a knowledge panel for a business it can verify and one that has high-level brand authority.
Your company needs as much exposure as it can to rank high on SERPs. With a knowledge panel, Google helps you rise above the other search results by its placement alone—drawing searchers’ attention to the top of the page, giving you next-level visibility, clicks, and conversions.
That level of engagement—combined with strategic keyword research and placement as we do at Ranq—will positively impact your overall SEO marketing strategy, helping you engage and convert customers hook, line, and sinker.
Claiming Google knowledge panel vs. Google knowledge graph
Take two minutes searching for “knowledge panel,” and chances are you’ll see the term “knowledge graph,” too. While they’re not the same, they do complement each other. Essentially, knowledge panels are generated from data in the knowledge graph.
In Google’s mission to better understand user search intent, the Google knowledge graph was born. It’s a massive database of entities and how they relate. Then, the knowledge panel is a visual representation of that data, which helps searchers get the most relevant information possible.
The key to claiming a knowledge panel for your business is getting more centralized data on Google’s knowledge graph.
How to claim a Google knowledge panel
Google algorithms play the role of judge, jury, and executioner when deciding who gets a Knowledge Panel and who doesn’t. Let’s go through how to claim a knowledge panel on Google.
Can you apply for or create a Google knowledge panel?
Since Google auto-generates a brand or personal knowledge panel, you can’t apply for this type. The upside is you can do certain things to increase the odds Google will make one for you (more about this later).
As for a local knowledge panel, if you have a physical location, you can claim one directly by creating a Google Business Profile. A local knowledge panel displays information about how a customer can reach you.
Your local Google knowledge panel will include the following:
- The address of your business
- Hours of operation
- Telephone numbers
- Emails
- Customer reviews
- Customer photos
How to claim a local knowledge panel
If you have a storefront or service area, claiming a local knowledge panel is pretty straightforward. If a Business Profile already exists, you can simply claim your knowledge panel by verifying you own the domain associated with it.
To make one, create a free Google Business Profile account (formerly Google My Business) and establish your profile. This will include essential information like store location, phone number, website, images, and more. You can even add attributes to represent your business, such as Black-owned or LGBTQ-friendly.
After that, Google will verify your account, and you’re set!
How to increase your chances of claiming Google knowledge panels
Claiming a branded knowledge panel isn’t a pay-to-play process. Google’s algorithms will determine if you’re credible. And since you can’t apply for a branded knowledge panel or purchase that prime real estate on Google SERPs outright, you can do things that will make it easier for you to create a knowledge panel on Google.
How’s your brand authority?
Your brand authority is critical in whether you’ll get a knowledge panel. If Google’s search engine considers your business notable and credible enough, you’re well on your way to doing that. You may be thinking, what factors into your brand authority?
Here are some heavy hitters to work toward:
- Thorough keyword research to rank higher in results
- A solid brand presence
- Authoritative, high-quality content
- Quality backlinks from trusted websites
- Guest posts on high-authority domains
- Consumer engagement
Create SEO-rich content
You need search-engine users to deem your brand trustworthy, crowning you an expert in your niche. To help make that happen, you must create high-quality, in-depth, SEO-rich content to convince them and inch you closer to claiming a Google knowledge panel.
If you don’t have the time or resources to do it, our team at Ranq can take the wheel. Here’s how it works at Ranq. We listen to your needs and goals before creating a strategic digital marketing plan, one that’ll drive traffic and give you greater authority in your niche. We give you several pieces of content a month, all backed up by extensive SEO research.
It’s an ongoing process, too. We’ll audit the quality of your existing content and revisit it every month to ensure it’s as high quality and optimized as possible.
Secure those backlinks
When a high-authority website links to your content, Google takes notice, which is why backlinks matter for SEO. To secure those backlinks, though, you better roll up your sleeves. Besides creating linkable assets or resource page link building, you can commit to many strategies to get backlinks. The end game remains the same—to bulk up your authority and scale your ranking on SERPs.
Looking to establish your brand? Start ranking with Ranq
If Google has already anointed your business with a knowledge panel, that’s a giant feather in your SEO marketing cap. And if Google hasn’t? Now you know how to position your brand in the best possible light to get one—and Ranq is ready to help you do it.
Ranq is an end-to-end SEO digital marketing agency with a comprehensive suite of SEO services designed to give your business the high-ranking treatment it deserves. Our process is simple: we’ll listen to your goals, create a digital marketing strategy that fits, and get working for you!
Contact Ranq today, and let us show you how to build a content strategy that will get you closer to reaching your business and marketing goals.