Entities
In SEO, an entity is a thing or concept that is unique, well-defined, and distinct. They can include people, places, organizations, events, products, or topics. Unlike keywords, which are just words or phrases, entities are connected to meaning and context.
For example, "Albert Einstein" is an entity representing a person, and "Theory of Relativity" is an entity representing a scientific concept. Search engines like Google use entities to build relationships and connections, often displayed in tools like the Knowledge Graph.
Entities role in SEO
Entities go beyond just words—they carry a specific meaning and can be linked to other entities and concepts. For instance, “Paris” could refer to either the city in France or a person named Paris, but in the context of SEO, it would be recognized as the city due to its unique and defined identity within that context.
What's more, relationships among words and phrases describe specific topics. Gathering and analyzing all the related relationships within a webpage, search engine algorithms can now interpret the exact meaning of the page content, which is generally referred to as semantic SEO. Once the topic has been determined, it can be matched to an appropriate searcher query with known intent. This step of text analysis is called Entity extraction in SEO.
Think of entity extraction like a smart search tool that finds and organizes the key parts of a text, making it easier to understand and work with. By using various techniques, entity extraction identifies:
Entities: Main subjects or concepts.
Types: Categories each entity falls into (e.g., person, place, etc.).
Subtypes: More specific categories within each type.
Mentions: Specific parts of the text where the entity is talked about.
Confidence Score: How sure the system is that it identified the entities correctly.
This helps in quickly understanding large amounts of text by highlighting the important bits and their context.
Entity extraction is crucial for matching content to user queries. When someone searches for information, the search engine can quickly find content that matches not just the words used in the search but the intended meaning behind them.
Entities are crucial for modern SEO because they help search engines understand the intent behind a query. For instance, if someone searches for "Apple," the search engine can determine whether the user means the company or the fruit based on related entities and context.
Entities also play a role in zero-click searches, where users see structured information directly on the SERP, often sourced from the Knowledge Graph. This happens because search engines link entities with reliable data sources to deliver quick answers.
To optimize a web page for entities, use structured data like schema markup to define them on your site. Mentioning related entities in your content helps establish semantic relevance, which can improve your rankings and visibility.
A well-organized website architecture and clear URL structure make it easier for search engines to identify and categorize entities on your site. Linking to authoritative sources also reinforces the credibility of the entities you discuss.