Hi everyone, this is Neo.

If you run an independent site, you’ve probably seen this: you write a thorough, genuinely useful article, and yet when it shows up on Google, the snippet is a bland couple of lines — and users glance at it and scroll right past.

But have you noticed that Google sometimes throws in a small bonus — a “Read more” link that jumps users straight to the most relevant section of your article, instead of dropping them at the top of the page and making them scroll on their own?

That humble little feature is actually a hidden traffic accelerator. And on April 20, 2026, Google officially published — for the first time — how to improve your chances of getting that “Read more” link. These are Google’s own rules, so if you run an independent site, you’ll want to read them carefully.

What is a Read more deep link?

First, let’s get clear on what this thing actually is.

Google’s official definition is simple: “A Read more deep link is a link in the search snippet that takes users directly to a specific section of your page.”

Here’s the most straightforward example: someone searches “how to fix Shopify checkout error”. Normally, clicking your article lands them at the top of the page, where they have to scroll down to find the answer. But if Google adds a “Read more” deep link to your result, users jump straight to the “How to Fix Checkout Errors” section — no wasted time hunting for the answer, and a much shorter path to conversion.

One important note: this isn’t a new SERP feature — it’s been around for a while. What’s new is that Google finally wrote down the rules. In other words, Google is telling us: if you want this bonus, you need to get these 3 things right.

Neo’s take: Don’t underestimate a single link. On the results page, it’s Google acting as your navigation assistant, telling users “the answer is right here.” It gives your result an extra clickable area, which boosts CTR. For content-focused independent sites, long-form blogs, and product review sites, this is almost free exposure. Google is voluntarily doing UI optimization for your search result — don’t let it pass you by.

Google’s three best practices

Google’s guidance this time is refreshingly specific — not the usual “provide high-quality content” fluff. Let’s go through them one by one.

Rule 1: Content must be immediately visible on page load

Original: Make sure content is immediately visible on the page to a human (and not hidden behind an expandable section or tabbed interface, for example).

In plain terms: when a user opens your page, the target content must be directly visible. It can’t be tucked away behind accordions or tabs that require an extra click to expand.

This one is a minefield for a lot of independent sites. I’ve looked at many product pages and FAQ pages:

• Product specs all crammed into collapsed accordions;
• FAQ questions switched through one by one with a Q&A slider;
• Review pages split into “Pros”, “Cons”, and “Verdict” tabs.

These designs look “clean” from a UX standpoint, but as far as Google is concerned: if users land on a section and the content is hidden, Google has no reason to treat that section as a reliable landing spot.

Neo’s take: Product detail pages, FAQ pages, and long-form blog posts are where independent sites most often trip over this. My advice: keep key text content expanded by default, and only use accordions for supplementary info like detailed shipping policy terms or full spec sheets. If you really want a collapsible effect, you can technically use CSS so search engines can still crawl it while it looks collapsed — but that’s a separate topic. For now, the safest approach is simply don’t fold up important content.

Rule 2: Don’t hijack scroll position on page load with JavaScript

Original: Avoid using JavaScript to control the user’s scroll position on page load (for example, don’t force the user’s scroll position to the top of the page).

This one is for the front-end devs.

Many modern front-end frameworks (React, Vue, Next.js, etc.) run window.scrollTo(0, 0) by default on route changes to snap users back to the top of the page. That’s fine in normal navigation — but when a user arrives from a Google search result with a hashed URL like https://yoursite.com/article#section-3, the browser has already scrolled them to the right section — and then your JS yanks them back to the top, killing the entire deep link mechanism.

Common places this goes wrong:

• React Router’s default ScrollRestoration behavior;
• Next.js default scroll: true navigation;
• SPAs that scroll-to-top on every route for “a cleaner initial page experience”;
• Forcing a scroll reset after a full-screen loading animation finishes.

Neo’s take: If your independent site runs on a traditional CMS like Shopify or WordPress, you probably don’t need to worry about this one. But if you’re on a headless architecture, a Next.js storefront, or a Vue/Nuxt SPA, have your developers check: does the browser’s native anchor jump behavior survive when the URL contains a hash? It’s a small bug that takes 1–2 hours to fix — but it decides whether you get this free traffic or not.

Rule 3: When using the history API or modifying the hash, keep the hash fragment in the URL

Original: If you make history API calls or window.location.hash modifications on page load, make sure you don’t remove the hash fragment from the URL.

This is an extension of Rule 2. During hydration, some SPAs call history.replaceState or modify window.location.hash directly — and accidentally wipe out the #section-3 from the URL.

Once the hash is gone, Google can no longer locate that section, and deep linking stops working entirely.

Neo’s take: This almost never happens with standard site builders, but it’s very common in custom front-ends and headless setups. Here’s an easy self-check: open an anchored URL (like https://yoursite.com/blog/post#faq) in a private window, wait for the page to fully load, and see whether #faq is still in the address bar. If it’s not, you’ve been bitten — get a developer to fix it right away.

Why does this matter so much for independent sites?

You might be thinking: it’s just a tiny link on the search results page — why the fuss?

I think there are at least three reasons to take it seriously:

First, it’s free visual real estate. One more clickable area on the results page means more user attention. In today’s hyper-competitive SEO landscape, every small detail that lifts CTR is worth chasing.

Second, it aligns with Featured Snippets and AI Overviews. Every “advanced display format” Google now offers — featured snippets, FAQ rich results, AI Overviews — rewards pages with directly accessible content, clear structure, and well-defined sections. Read more deep links are just a continuation of that trend. Get this right and you’re buying insurance for multiple rich result formats at once.

Third, it’s directly tied to your conversion path. When users land from search on the exact section you want them to see, there’s less scrolling and less friction hunting for answers — bounce rate drops and time on page rises. Those behavioral signals feed back into your SEO performance, creating a positive loop.

Neo’s take: I’ve said it before: every time Google’s official documentation updates, it’s Google telling you what kind of pages it likes right now. If you don’t proactively absorb that information, you’re handing traffic to the people who do. This update looks like a small detail, but essentially Google is telling every site owner: stop with the fancy JS interactions — put your content directly in front of users.

How to audit and optimize your independent site

I’ve put together a checklist you can run through right away:

Content structure

• Does every long article have clear, topic-based sections with dedicated <h2> or <h3> headings?
• Does every section have a stable, descriptive anchor ID (e.g., #shipping-policy instead of #section-2-1)?
• Do long articles start with a Table of Contents (with anchor links)?

UI & interaction

• Is important content expanded by default (not hidden in accordions or tabs)?
• Is the FAQ section plain HTML instead of a JS toggle where possible?
• Is the key product description visible immediately on load?

Front-end technical

• When visiting with a hashed URL, does the browser keep the hash?
• After full page load, does the page stay at the anchor position (instead of being scrolled back to the top)?
• Does the sticky header cover anchored targets? (If so, add scroll-margin-top to the target elements.)

Ongoing monitoring

• In Search Console’s Performance report, watch anchor URLs with # to see which page sections Google recognizes and displays;
• Run a deep link test on core templates (product page templates, blog templates) with every release.

Neo’s take: Technical SEO is usually the most underrated part of running an independent site. Many owners pour their whole budget into content and backlinks, but a single JS bug can cost you 30% of your exposure opportunities. Low-cost, high-certainty optimizations like this belong at the top of your todo list. Have your developers spend a day or two on an audit — the payoff is far bigger than you’d expect.

Summary

Today’s topic boils down to one sentence: Google updated its documentation and told you how to get a “Read more” deep link in your search results more often.

Three things to do:

1. Keep important content visible by default — don’t hide it in accordions or tabs;
2. Don’t use JS to force users back to the top of the page;
3. When using the history API, preserve the hash fragment in the URL.

This is a classic “you won’t see results immediately, but you’ll definitely lose by not doing it” optimization. So find time to have your front-end team run through the checklist and lock in this free exposure.

SEO’s dividends always go to the people willing to read the official documentation to the last page.