After conducting a search in Google, it’s not unusual to see a ‘People also ask’ section featuring related queries. That feature has been around since 2015, but now Google is making it smarter with dynamically loading suggestions.
Google’s Satyajeet Salgar broke the news on Twitter while also sharing a GIF of how the feature works in action:
If you're in the US and like exploring topics, there's a nifty feature for you to try with "People also ask" on Google. 🙂 pic.twitter.com/s2WtwyYvun
— Satyajeet Salgar (@salgar) February 10, 2017
In Salgar’s example, you’ll see that it begins with a search about bats. From there the suggestion “Do bats attack people?” is tapped on, after which a new set of related suggestions is dynamically rendered. You’ll see “Do bats bite you?” is suggested, and tapping on that dynamically renders the new suggestion of “What percent of bats are rabid?”
Another example is shown in the same GIF — “Where do bats go in the winter?” is selected, followed by a new search suggestion “Do bats hibernate in Michigan?” (perhaps the search emanated from Michigan). Tapping on that suggestion dynamically loads a new suggestion of “What kind of bats are found in Michigan?”
It goes on and on. Presumably, you’ll be able to infinitely explore any topic in as great a depth as you’d like using this new feature. This accomplishes two things — it helps deliver relevant information more quickly while also keeping searchers within Google’s ecosystem.
In theory, users could keep tapping on the dynamically rendered search suggestions without ever leaving the search engine results pages. Not great for publishers, but an absolute boon for Google’s search volume.
Currently, this feature is only available in US search results.