Or a Word to Guide Me In: Examining Google “People Also View” Results in SGE While Browsing from Search & Discover
By Ethan Lazuk
Last updated:
People also view, that’s like the entire basis for creating content for SEO, isn’t it? At least, historically.
We’d do keyword research to find queries we thought our target audiences might search, and then we’d create content to rank for those queries, typically by analyzing search results.
In other words, we wanted to know what content people (like those we were trying to reach) also viewed.
That led to focusing on related keywords or topics and later related entities. This played into ideas like topic clusters and helped inform content topics framed around personas and buyer’s journeys.
Of course, how we as SEOs can help surface content before our audiences on Search is ever-growing, and increasingly those opportunities depend less on keyword rankings and more on visibility.
In a post-helpful content system era, we’re also seeing less emphasis generally on “rank for this keyword” and more on “serve this user” — which is healthy.
Yet to create truly helpful, reliable, people-first content for Search, we not only need original insights backed by relevant expertise or experience, but we also need to understand our audiences’ search intent on a deeper and more holistic level.
One solution is to put ourselves in the audience’s shoes when we create content. Another is to analyze the information our audiences may find relevant during their user journeys.
Ok, so far that’s been quite a few internal links to other posts — I’ve been writing a bit lately and want to share them! But hopefully, you’ll save those for later and stay with me for this journey into Google’s SGE while browsing experiment.
In particular, I want to cover an aspect of SGE while browsing that holds potential not only for organic traffic and brand visibility but also for audience research that can fuel content and SEO strategies.
Who should read this article?
If you’re interested in SEO, and particularly getting your content ranking for keywords your audience searches for along their buyer’s journey, or surfacing it in Discover feeds relevant to your audience’s interests, then I believe you’ll want to know more about Google Search’s People also view.
Here’s what we’ll cover throughout this article:
- History of People also view tests
- How People also view works
- An experiment using Google SGE while browsing for Search and Discover
- Implications for SEO and content strategies
- Additional use cases for People also view
But first, let’s set the stage …
SGE while browsing was introduced in a post on Google’s The Keyword blog in August 2023, where it was described by Rany Ng (VP of Product Management, Search), as a way to “Use generative AI to learn more easily as you browse the web”:
“When you’re trying to understand the ins and outs of a new topic, you often need to digest long or complex web pages, and it’s not always easy to hone in on specific details. So starting today, we’re launching an early experiment in Search Labs called “SGE while browsing,” available in the Google app on Android and iOS, and coming to Chrome on desktop in the days ahead. Our aim is to test how generative AI can help you navigate information online and get to the core of what you’re looking for even faster.
“SGE while browsing” was specifically designed to help people more deeply engage with long-form content from publishers and creators, and make it easier to find what you’re looking for while browsing the web. On some web pages you visit, you can tap to see an AI-generated list of the key points an article covers, with links that will take you straight to what you’re looking for directly on the page. We’ll also help you dig deeper with “Explore on page,” where you can see questions the article answers and jump to the relevant section to learn more.”
– Google, The Keyword, Learn as you search (and browse) using generative AI
For the longest time, I hadn’t seen the “Explore on page” feature referenced above on mobile (only desktop). I finally did in March 2024, which I documented in this post on X.
The Generative AI key points I use quite a bit, and experiment with, as you’ll see more below.
But what I want to dig into in this article is another ambition of SGE while browsing, which is to “make it easier to find what you’re looking for while browsing the web.”
I’m not sure if that refers to “People also view,” or not. As you’ll see below, People also view also isn’t a new feature specific to SGE while browsing.
However, the introduction of SGE while browsing, I think, increases the likelihood that People also view will get, well, viewed more often by users of Google Search and Discover.
This makes People also view an interesting area of opportunity for SEO content strategies.
But how does it work?
I don’t know. But I’m on a mission to find out! That’ll be the goal of this article.
Before we start, if you just want quick answers, feel free to jump down to learn about the history of People also view on Google Search or my investigation into how it works and analysis of its implications for SEO content strategies.
But if you’re down for some reading, I’d first like to share a bit about …
My journey with SGE while browsing, as told through posts on X 😉
When SGE while browsing rolled out on August 15th, 2023, I started using it on my iOS Google app as soon as I could.
Note that SGE while browsing has to be enabled in Search Labs (separately from “SGE, generative AI in Search”):
Later, I tested SGE while browsing on my desktop using Chrome (though I don’t use it there often):
Part of my experience has been experimenting with the Generative AI key points.
I find it interesting what gets chosen as key points:
And also how they can be influenced:
Key points won’t always auto-generate, but they’re the first thing you’ll notice in SGE while browsing.
Usually, the option to generate key points pops up for a short bit when you visit a page (this can be from Search or Discover):
Usually, the option to generate key points pops up for a short bit when you visit a page (this can be from Search or Discover):
If you don’t click it then, you can tap the purple “i” icon later:
And SGE while browsing will expand:
And then you can choose to generate key points there:
They’re only available, or so I’ve noticed, when you visit a page from Search or Discover directly, as opposed to from an on-page link.
I’ve also found the content of SGE while browsing can change.
Sometimes new features pop in:
Sometimes, you’ll see dropdowns first with questions that look similar to Things to know or People also ask:
But there’s one feature of SGE while browsing that interests me the most.
It’s called “People also view,” and I haven’t seen much information about it yet:
People also view isn’t new to SGE while browsing; it’s been a Google app feature for 5+ years. (We’ll dive into its history more below.)
Having said that, I’d imagine combining People also view with SGE while browsing (assuming it rolls out beyond Google Labs to general users) will increase its use rate.
That’ll be fun when it comes to attributing organic traffic in reporting. 😉
But what I’m most curious about today is how People also view works — why does it show the results it does?
The reason this knowledge is important is that I believe People also view has potential value for informing our SEO and content strategies.
If you think about a typical user journey on Google Search, a person types a query into the search bar, browses the SERP, visits a result, and then either:
- Completes their journey,
- Visits an internal or external link from the web result, or
- Pogo-sticks back to the SERP to find another result or refine their query.
But now there are more options along that Search journey.
There’s the About this result pathway, which I’ll write about soon in another article, and the SGE while browsing pathway, which can lead to People also view results.
Just as Google Discover provides an avenue beyond traditional web search results to surface your content in front of a target audience — organic search visibility beyond “ranking” for a query, so to speak — I believe People also view offers a similar opportunity.
It’s like a mini Google Discover, if you will, reachable during a Search journey, or a more refined Discover feed within the standard Discover experience.
For content specialists and SEO strategists, People also view opens a universe of possibilities for content distribution (and brand awareness), even when the content doesn’t “rank” for the user’s query.
And who knows how SGE while browsing may evolve in the future.
My guess is we’ll soon see a bit of sponsored and shopping graph content. 😉
But going beyond surfacing content in People also view, there’s also tons of opportunity in analyzing those results when researching for our SEO content strategies.
More on that to come. But first …
A word on the methodology used here:
The world of Search is largely driven by mobile experiences. Google uses mobile-first indexing. Most users search on mobile devices. All of the screenshots above so far are from my iPhone.
However, for the investigative aspect of this article, I was planning to work from my desktop. I figured it’d be way easier to get screenshots that way.
But guess what …
The SGE while browsing desktop experience, which is enabled from the Google Search side panel in Chrome, shows Key points from the page, Related searches, About the source, and sometimes Explore on page. What it doesn’t show is People also view:
So instead of my desktop, I’ll be using my iOS Google app, while logged into my personal Google profile, with Google Labs features enabled, to pull all screenshots of SGE while browsing from Search and Discover.
But before we get to the experiment or how it works, let’s dig into the back story of People also view, including what it’s been before and since become today …
The history of People also view on Google Search & Discover
I’m excited to explore the origins of People also view on Google Search. But first …
Here’s a quick detour to explain why People also view is different from People also search for.
The reason for this detour is happenstance:
When writing this article, I mistakenly looked on Google Search first for [“people also search”] instead of [“people also view”], and the results I got were for “People also search for” or “PASF.”
That rang a bell, because I recalled Jeannie Hill had written about People also search for. Here’s an excerpt from her article:
“The People Also Search For (PASF) SERP feature helps users find a better search result if their search intent wasn’t initially satisfied. It is a search engine feature that displays after someone acts on a SERP feature and then returns to the result page almost immediately.”
– Jeannie Hill, People Also Search For
From my understanding, PASF is typically related to suggestions of related local businesses at the bottom of a Google Business Profile (local knowledge panel), or it’s a box of related queries in a SERP, similar to Related searches.
But People also view is different from People also search for.
People also view shows web results or videos that are related to the current result a user is on from Search or Discover. These also appear in SGE while browsing, below the generative AI-powered key points, rather than in the SERP. This prevents the user from pogo-sticking altogether, in theory.
Btu what I don’t know is how People also view results get surfaced; are they web results that simply rank for the same query (in the same SERP), or are they relevant in another way? I suspect it’s the latter, or perhaps a combo, but we’ll see!
Also, don’t confuse People also view on Google Search with People also viewed on LinkedIn. 😉
Ok, back to the history of People also view …
The first thing to know about People also view is that, aside from us curious SEOs, it seems past users of it, historically, have disliked it, at least in the ways they’ve experienced it before SGE while browsing.
Here’s an excerpt from a Google Search Help post from February 3rd, 2022:
“People also view view has been showing up in my Android Discover links at the bottom off and on (mostly on) for over a year (maybe several?) now. It seems not a lot of people see this. I hate hate hate it. Is there way to disable it?”
– Google Search Help community thread
That post has 30 endorsements from people who “have the same question,” yet no answer was given.
Presumably, the person is saying that when they visit a link from Discover in the Google app on Android, they see People also view at the bottom of the screen.
Interestingly, that post is from early 2022, and the person says they have seen People also view for as many as “several” years.
The earliest mention of People also view that I’ve found was from September 19th, 2017 in a 9to5 Google article, where it talked about a feature being added to the Google app for iOS:
Now, this isn’t on an Android device, like the prior person was talking about, but this GIF shows People also view as a carousel of laterally swipeable results.
So, now we know the origins of People also view was on the Google app for iOS in 2017.
But is that the same People also ask experience the Android user mentioned earlier?
Well, in an Android Community article from February 13th, 2021 (3+ years later), we learn that the Android Google app was “testing” a “people also view” section for “select Google app beta testers.”
The images from that article show an experience even more similar to today’s People also view in SGE while browsing. The results are vertically stacked (albeit some of the featured images are larger, and you even see an AMP icon in one of them, ah memories), while videos are in a lateral carousel:
We also have some insights from Reddit users.
In an Android Questions subreddit post from 3 years ago (likely from December 29th, 2020, which would predate the “testing” of People also view mentioned above by 2 months), someone says they upgraded their Galaxy S20 to Android 11, and ever since the Google app has had a pop-up menu:
How do I disable the “People also view” menu in the Google app?
byu/edp221 inAndroidQuestions
Presumably, that’s what the original person was talking about for their Android device as well.
Here’s the Redditor’s shared image of People also view, which matches the article’s screenshot above:
Then, in another subreddit for the Google Pixel, also from “3 years ago,” someone mentions having “people also view” in the “chrome/search bar.” That’s interesting, because we’ve so far been talking about a feature at the bottom of the screen, not the search bar. Unfortunately, no images or other details were shared.
There’s also an entry on GitHub from December 27th, 2020, two days before that first Reddit post above, where the person says “People also view” is preventing them from closing Google ads, but I can’t really decipher what they’re talking about.
“People also view” mentions aren’t limited to these phone or tech communities and forums, though.
We also see it discussed in familiar SEO publications like Search Engine Roundtable.
In a SER article from August 2019, which predates the above Android discussions by about 18 months, Barry Schwartz explains how “Google seems to be testing the people also view carousel with images and icons in them.”
Wouldn’t you know it, the original person’s X account is suspended! But we have this screenshot from the article, as well as a description of People also view as a carousel:
Being it’s a carousel, this version is probably similar to what’s shown in the iOS Google app GIF from 2017. Except, the text here is uppercase and in a bolder font, and the 2017 People also view results have thumbnail images. Does this mean there was a version without thumbnails?
Apparently so.
Here’s another SER article from July 2019, a month earlier, which talks about ads being in People also view, but it shows result cards without thumbnails.
Like the previous image, this one shows an X in the upper-right corner, presumably to close it. So I presumed this was a pop-up feature in the Google app, not an actual SERP feature.
But then I looked at Valentin Pletzer’s post on X (then Twitter) from the SER article, and from the screenshots, People also view appears to be in a normal mobile SERP (although it looks like maybe it was a desktop browser previewing mobile results):
But here’s something else interesting, remember at the beginning of this section how I mentioned People also view is not the same as People also search for?
Well, in his post, Valentin refers to People also view as showing “instead of” PASF. Quite interesting the connection.
Either way, we know that People also view has at least been around in the iOS Google app since September 2017, the Android Google app since December 2020, and Google’s mobile SERPs since July 2019.
If I learn more history about this, I’ll be sure to add it. 🙂
But before we start testing People also view, do any of these articles give us a hint as to how it works?
Well, kind of sort of …
How People also view is reported to work
I found an article on Digital Information World, which I won’t be linking to — I don’t want to presume, but it seems like it’s part of a PBN or a guest-posting site — that references another 9to5 Google article from February 9th, 2021, this time about People also view on Android devices:
Last year, the Google app on Android ditched Chrome Custom Tabs when opening Discover articles and Search results. Google has now redesigned the custom in-app browser with a bottom bar to make it easier to navigate.
Update 2/9: This in-app browser redesign is getting a significant feature that lets users swipe up on the bottom bar with a new pull tab. This slides open a “People also view” sheet that features the Google logo up top and shows a feed of articles and videos related to the Discover or Search link you opened. Some content features full-width cards, while carousels are also present.
It makes for a Discover-esque experience and is a seamless way to see more about a topic while staying in your current browser window. Broadly, features like this is why Google opted for a custom browser experience for its Search app.” [Highlights added.]
– 9to5 Google, [Update: Swipe up feed] Google app for Android testing bottom bar browser redesign
Interesting that it calls People also view a “Discover-esque experience,” because that was largely my impression.
The article says People also view shows content that is “related to the Discover or Search link you opened.” It doesn’t say how it’s related, though. That’s still my fundamental question.
The Digital Information World article mentioned above also goes into detail about how People also view works, but it seems more speculative:
“The feature is called “People also view” which is a swipe up card. When you swipe up from the home page of your Google, this new feature will show you articles related and similar to the one you have recently searched. What it means is that it will take the most recent search from your search history or discover and put all the related articles in the “people also view” part, so that when you swipe up it is easier for you to go through articles deciding which one you want to read, and you will not have to go through the hassle of searching and opening each and every link as all articles will come up in the form of cards.”
– The Digital Information World
I don’t know how reliable that information is … and upon a second read, I think it’s saying the same thing, that People also view shows content related to the result you’re viewing from Search or Discover.
The Android Community article we referenced earlier also has a take. First, it says People also view is news related (although we know it’s not just that), but then, again, it says it shows content “related” to the current result:
“There’s a Google logo at the top of the sheet and underneath, you get a feed of articles and videos that are related to the link you’re currently reading.” [Highlights added.]
– Android Community, Google app testing out a “people also view” section to help you browse endlessly
Another article on BGR (I’m not a tech publications person, so these sites are all foreign to me!) from February 11th, 2021 (published two days before the Android Community article above) has an interesting editorial take about Google’s search results, but then also hints at how People also view works:
“While there’s nothing necessarily wrong with Google’s search algorithm in its current form, there’s no denying that sifting through an endless number of search results to find pertinent information can sometimes be tedious.
In light of that, Google is tinkering with the idea of bolstering its algorithmically derived search results by adding a “People also view” card to its Android-based web browser. As the name implies, the feature presents users with links that people who typed in similar queries clicked on.
The new feature, Android Police notes, “is revealed with a swipe up from the new in-app browser’s bottom bar. It contains articles and videos related to the content you were viewing from Discover or Search.”
All in all, it’s a clever feature that can help users find what they’re looking for and expose them to additional content that will likely be of interest to them.”
– BGR, Google is testing this awesome new feature in Google Search
BGR references an Android Police article that, again, says People also view surfaces “related” content, however, we also get the suggestion that its content includes “links that people who typed in similar queries clicked on.”
So, just to recap, all of the sources say basically the same thing, that People also view shows content related to the current result you’re viewing from Search or Discover.
One source also says that content is related to “links that people who typed in similar queries clicked on,” but that doesn’t mean People also view comes from the same SERP (if it was triggered by Search), and it doesn’t pertain to users on Discover.
So all in all, we still don’t know how it works, at least in detail …
Time for some legwork!
Experimenting with Google Search & Discover to figure out how People also view works
I’ll examine People also view results from Search and Discover, so we can compare them.
For Search, we’ll use a SERP I’m familiar with, while the Discover option will be from a topic I follow. This is to keep things more controlled.
Let’s start by examining People also view results from a web result for one of my blog articles, since I’m familiar with its on-page content …
[google search ranking volatility]
Here are the first few People also view results that appear in SGE while browsing for my SERP rankings volatility article when clicking it from search results in the iOS Google app for the query [google search ranking volatility]:
That’s not all of the People also view results, but it’s a good amount.
- Google Search Ranking Volatility – Is It The End Of Reviews Update? – Search Engine Roundtable
- Top Google Ranking Factors for SEO in 2023 – yellowHEAD
- How to Rank Higher on Google in 2024: 15 SEO Tips To Conquer Search
- Videos
- Top 3 Google SEO Updates – Google Search Central
- Keyword Research Tips to Help you Rank Higher in Google (September 11th, 2019) – Ahrefs
- Ranking updates, structured data, and more! – Google Search Central
- Top 10 SEO Tips for 2023 – SimpliLearn
- How to Rank Higher on Google (Step-by-Step Tutorial) – Ahrefs
- Longtail Keywords: Ranking on Google – Unknown
- Ranking in 2023: Google’s Algorithm Updates and Their Impact on SEO – LinkedIn
- How To Rank Higher On Google In 2023: 8 Things To Know – Stan Ventures
- Rank Volatility In the August 2023 Google Core Update – Semrush
Now I’ll hop back to the SERP and see if we can find them …
None of the results appear as citations in the SGE response to the query.
None of them appear on page 1 (top 10) results for the query either.
The Semrush “Rank Volatility In the August 2023 Google Core Update” result is on the SERP lower down. Interestingly, I also mentioned it in a related blog article of mine (as an example of 11x content).
Lastly, none of the videos appear in the Videos section of Google Search for the query either.
In other words, only one of the results we got from People also view was in the same Search results, and it was a page I also mentioned in another article, which was internally linked.
(Side note: I also noticed if you click out of a result and then return, the SGE while browsing and People also view results stay the same.)
Now let’s try a Discover topic …
Deep learning
In my Discover feed, the first followed topic that appeared (which I followed from actual search results) was “deep learning.”
I chose the third card from News Medical, “Deep learning models replicate human auditory processing”:
Ok, this got interesting quickly …
Remember how I said that I’d never seen “Explore on page” in SGE while browsing on mobile, but I had seen a Things to know or People also ask variation? Well, here, on this Discover article from News Medical, I didn’t get Explore on page, but I did get Explore more:
Each dropdown shows another web result, though hard to see in that light gray font (so I guess the Things to know or People also ask variation in SGE while browsing is actually called Explore more):
Now, here are the People also view results for that News Medical article on deep learning:
That purplish “About News Medical” section is created with Generative AI by the way, likely coupled with Google’s knowledge graph — I plan to explore this in another article.
Anyway, here are some more People also view results:
So, those People also view article and video results include the following:
- Deep neural networks show promise as models of human hearing – M3India
- Researchers from CMu and Princeton Unveil Mamba: A Breakthrough SSM Architecture – MarkTechPost
- 5 Books That Will Teach You Generative AI Concepts – Analytics Insight
- Videos
- Understanding Auditory Cortical Computation – MIT CBMM
- Clinical Updates: Towards Artificial Intelligence Based A…
- Deep Learning for Audio and Natural Language Processing
- Personalized Machine Learning: Towards Human-centered …
- Machine Learning in Neuroscience
- Empowering Human-like Decision Making in AI Models
- Google’s Gemini: is the new AI model really better than ChatGPT – The Conversation
- Advancements in machine learning for machine learning – Google Research Blog
- Revolutionizing the Cosmos: Deep Learning Supercharges Galactic Calculations – SciTechDaily
What’s interesting is we have the same number of articles and videos included, in the same order, as for the prior People also view from Search. (Keep in mind, that this isn’t all the results, just the top portion.)
That may imply the structure of results in People also view is based on a templated design.
This is also where it gets tricky.
The followed topic was “deep learning,” which was a search I followed from Google Search, not from Discover. And since it’s a pretty general head-term query, the search results probably will be guides and stuff, unlike the more specific content we saw in People also view.
But let’s check the SERP for [deep learning] anyway (the SERP was actually for [Deep learning], with a capital “D”; I clicked directly from Discover so that’s how Google phrased it) and see if we can find any of that content …
Ok, I forgot about those Explore more links:
The Wikipedia page ranks on page one of the SERP; this is what appeared under the Explore more question, “What it is called deep learning?” (yeah, these can have odd grammar, like PAA — but I almost wonder if that’s an actual query).
I also had Perspectives showing in the main search results, probably because I followed the topic. (I’ve noticed the Perspectives carousel often shows in the main search results (and not the filter) for queries you follow.)
But those aren’t People also view results …
In fact, none of the People also view results appear in the main search results for [deep learning].
But how about the News tab in Search …
Yep!
“Advancements in machine learning for machine learning – Google Research Blog” was the first News result for [Deep learning].
“Google’s Gemini: is the new AI model really better than ChatGPT – The Conversation” was the fifth News result.
I didn’t come across any others.
But we’re starting to see a potential pattern …
Implications of People also view in SGE while browsing for SEO and content strategies
It appears that People also view results primarily do not include results that rank for the same query as the result from Search (or the principle topic from Discover).
As for how People also view works, my guess is it’s tied to a mechanism much closer to Google Discover than Search.
It’s also possible that internal links on a result may play a role in the type of content surfaced, but that’s a speculative theory at this point.
What we do know is that People also view is a wildcard, similar to Discover. That means it probably shouldn’t be depended on as a principal source of organic traffic leads.
However, it also shouldn’t be ignored in SEO strategies.
For sure, People also view provides opportunities for additional content visibility and organic traffic beyond just ranking for keywords on Search (a topic I discussed in my rankings volatility article).
But People also view also opens up research opportunities for more holistic topics and audience insights during SEO and content strategy planning.
While we don’t know what content might be surfaced in our target audience’s Discover feeds, if we know the types of queries they may search, rather than simply trying to create content to rank for those queries, we can also analyze the People also view results associated with them to get strategic content insights.
Investigating People also view results thus takes the concept of “related keywords” and even “related entities” and puts a whole new practical twist on it, giving us additional context as to the content topics our audiences may find interesting, and the important questions they may need help solving.
Additional uses for People also view beyond content strategies
The more I use People also view, the more use cases I discover for SEO. One example is spotting technical website issues of different kinds in the wild.
For example, my old website was hacked in December 2023 (which I wrote about in this article). As far as I can tell, the website files were simply deleted. However, I did find evidence of people stealing some of my content and putting their own spammy content with it:
So, People also view may help you diagnose security issues or stolen duplicated content.
Not all duplicated content is unintentional, though. As a result of the site hack, I republished most of my website’s content on a temporary domain at ethanlazukconsulting.com. In the People also view results for another recent article on ethanlazuk.com, I still saw pages surfacing from that temporary domain:
Since those web results 301 redirect to my primary domain (ethanlazuk.com), there’s no issue, really. (In fact, it might be giving my content additional coverage.) But monitoring those results may give us insight into how long Google Search might continue to surface 301-redirected webpages in its search results.
I’ll include more People also view use cases as I uncover them! But since People also view seems to make Discover-like connections between webpages and videos that may not be obvious from looking at Google’s normal search results alone, it may be a good source of discovery for technical SEO issues, as well.
“Or a word to guide me in”
What’s next …
I’m going to dig into some more examples of People also view results and use third-party data to try to figure out if their top-ranking queries or main entities reveal any patterns. I’ll also look into About this result (and that fun rabbit hole) in a separate article soon.
Until next time, enjoy the vibes:
Thanks for reading. Happy optimizing! 🙂
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