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ou may not have heard of Google Zero yet, but you’ve very likely seen it in action. An industry term for Google’s shift toward functioning as an answer engine, Google Zero refers to searches that lead to zero clicks. Instead of sending users to a website, Google is serving up featured snippets and AI overviews that answer users’ questions — without them needing to click through to multiple websites.
So, what does this mean for content marketers? In short, it’s essential to factor this new paradigm into your hotel and resort SEO/SEM strategy. Boosting your SEO, AEO (answer engine optimization), and GEO (generative engine optimization) in the age of Google Zero means enhancing your content so it shows up in featured snippets and “near me” searches, adding local schema markup to your strategy, and ensuring that your mobile pages are fast-loading and easy to use.
Here, we break down how to accomplish each of those objectives and enhance your hotel or resort’s SEO.
How to Show Up in Featured Snippets and Voice Searches
A featured snippet is the condensed answer that sometimes appears at the top of a Google page when you search a word or phrase — a concise response that distills information from multiple web pages. If Google determines a quick answer is relevant, a featured snippet is the first thing searchers see when they type a phrase into Google (or use another search engine). The most relevant sites referenced in the snippet are listed at the top right of the page, which is where you want your brand to appear.
Featured snippets also power voice searches, which are increasingly important for on-the-go hotel queries, like a driver activating a voice assistant to find a “hotel near me.” It’s not just travelers already on the go using this feature, either. More and more people are using voice assistance for all their needs, particularly younger generations: 77% of consumers aged 18-34 use voice search for online shopping.
To optimize your hotel and resort SEO/SEM for snippets and voice search, you’ll need to make your content as digestible as possible for both humans and chatbots. The clearer and more structured your content is, the easier it is for search engines and LLMs (large language models like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude) to grab it for featured snippets. That means presenting information through short paragraphs, sections with clear headlines and subheadings, bulleted lists, and tables.
Use Schema to Capture “Near Me” Searches
“Near me” searches are just what they sound like: location-based queries that include specifics, like “hotel near me with pool.” Location information should be prominently displayed across your website and combined with details about your property, including phone number, geocoordinates, number of rooms, check-in times, pet policy, and more. You can be creative with location keywords, too. Think: producing a blog post titled “Rustic Barn Wedding at a Vermont Venue” or creating a page called “Top Weekend Activities Near Our Great Lakes Resort.”
There’s also a way to insert invisible location-focused information into your website that LLMs and search engines can read. It’s called schema markup, and it’s essentially bits of code that can be embedded into the HTML on your site. Schema can help search engines interpret your content correctly and connect your property to its physical location and amenities. Some schema types allow search engines to interpret and display details like ratings, amenities, or location directly in search results.
FAQ schema, for example, is a type of schema that indicates a page contains a list of questions and answers rather than just general text. That’s great for chatbots and search engines, because it puts common questions and answers about your property — like “Does (your property name) have a restaurant?” or “Does (your resort) have beachfront access?” — into an easily machine-readable format.
Optimize Content Around Amenities and Long-Tail Queries
Travelers don’t just search “hotel” plus a location; they also add in search words focused on specific amenities that are important to them. To stand out from the crowd, zero in on the phrases that best encapsulate what your venue offers, both the basics and the things that make your property unique.
For hotel and resort SEO/SEM, this means building long-tail keywords (phrases with three or more words) that combine descriptors highlighting location, vibe, offerings, and amenities. Use keywords that show why you’re a good fit for guests’ specific needs — like “pet‑friendly hotel in the Berkshires” or “resort with spa in Virginia Beach.”
Prioritize Fast, Mobile-First Experiences
Because most “near me” searches occur on mobile devices, site speed and mobile usability are vital. Fast-loading pages reduce bounce rate for human users and signal quality to search engines. Prioritize responsive UX/UI design and compressed images that won’t take ages to load on critical pages like the homepage, location pages, and amenity-focused pages.
Make sure the most important information about your property — address, phone number, room highlights, key amenities — shows up “above the fold” on mobile, meaning visitors don’t have to scroll to see them. This makes it easier for users to take action and book when they land on your site from a snippet reference or “near me” result, while reinforcing to search engines that your page delivers what the query is looking for.
Ultimately, each of these approaches works in tandem. By weaving together a robust local schema, amenity-focused content, structured answers, and fast mobile pages, your property can earn greater visibility in featured snippets — while also attracting local searchers ready to book.
Need some support implementing these hotel and resort SEO/SEM strategies? Learn more about our search engine marketing solutions for hospitality brands.