Want to follow where a promising content marketing trend goes? To be specific, want to optimize your website and content for voice search?
After all, Google can attest to the fact that 20% of searches are voice search queries. It means that if 1 million people conduct a Google search, 200,000 of them are more likely to find your content if it's voice search-ready.
So let’s cover how you can prepare your content for voice search. This way, you can cater to the voice search users, as well as the growing trend of voice search marketing.
What Is Voice Search Optimization?
Voice search optimization is the process of optimizing your content to blend with voice technology. The goal is to make your content readily available to people who speak into a device when conducting online searches.
These people use voice search for one main reason. And that is to make their lives easier. Through voice search, it's like they have their assistant.
Regardless of the device they use to deliver voice search queries, they can make it do everything they want. And the beauty of it is that they won’t have to pay for its services.
All they need to do is to get their hands on a smart device. They can even just go online and use the microphone icon on Google to begin.
It’s part of the content marketing trends that are soon to make waves in the industry. And just like conversational marketing, it also helps you leverage conversation and engagement. With it, you’re more equipped to create a more intuitive user experience.
Benefits of Voice Search SEO
From a general perspective, there doesn’t seem to be any difference between a regular search and a voice search. The idea is that you’re searching for something and you want to receive results.
But look at it through the eyes of a search engine. And that’s when you’ll get it.
You see, if you type a search request using a keyboard, you might focus on including keywords. And while they can help you search for quality content, you have to admit: They’re not the kind of words that a typical human uses.
But if you’re using voice search queries to navigate the web, you’re likely to use a better (and more natural) language. Voice searches, after all, tend to be conversational requests.
Here’s an example:
If you use voice search, your search query would be something like this:
"What are the ten best-selling shoes women in 2019?"
But if you use traditional search, your search query would be like these:
- Top 10 bestselling women shoes 2019
- 2019 best women shoes top 10
- 10 top women shoes 2019
That said, one of the main benefits of voice search is that it makes easy-to-understand content available. And for this kind of content to be out there, it encourages -- albeit indirectly -- marketers to be more voice search-friendly.
And apart from making content easier-to-understand, here are the other upsides of voice searches:
Maximizes online visibility
Optimizing your content for voice search makes it possible to push your pages toward Position Zero.
If you’re in Position Zero, you’re at the top. And when you’re on top, you get more exposure.
Brings value to local SEO
Did you know that 58% of consumers use voice search queries to help them find local businesses? 76% of voice searchers conduct local searches weekly. This just means that the majority of consumers use smartphones, smart speakers, and other smart devices to find local businesses online.
And get this: By 2020, the US will have more than 21 million smart speakers.
So if you want to reach out to the majority, you need to optimize your site for voice search.
Unleashes the potential of AI
Voice search is powerful because it lets artificial intelligence handle the work. It can help users with their wants much faster than a regular search could.
An impressive aspect of it is that users will receive nothing but the best results. As long they provide a keyword, their assistant will gather the best content on a subject.
Gives importance to micro-moments
With the rise of voice search also comes the increase in the importance of micro-moments. After all, these moments influence searches.
Therefore, they can point your conversational marketing strategies in the right direction.
Examples of these micro-moments are as follows:
- How do I customize my shoes?
- Where can I buy black running shoes?
- Where is the nearest cafe located?
How to Optimize Website for Voice Search
41% of people who use voice assistants like how the process makes matters practically effortless. According to them, it’s similar to talking to a friend. As a result, they tie it with a positive experience.
For instance, one of your friends owns an Amazon Echo. Once they set it up in their living room and connect it to a smart TV, they can simply blurt out a command like “Turn on TV”. And right then and there, they can expect it to execute that command.
So if you want people to associate your business with an effortless and positive experience, too, optimizing your site for voice search is the way to go. And here are some tips to make it happen.
Be specific
With a record of 63,000 searches per day, Google is a hotshot where search engines are concerned. But you know what? It’s not the only search engine out there. Your options include Bing, Alexa, and Yahoo.
So if you want to cater to the searches conducted outside of Google, go ahead. But first, determine a specific search engine and learn its regulations.
By then, you’re good to go. You can begin optimizing your site for voice search according to the rules you learned.
Focus on user intent
Chances are if a person uses voice search over the traditional search methods, he's looking for specific information. That’s because users find it easier to look for particular information using search.
So with this in mind, your focus should be on user intent.
Establish your local profile
As mentioned earlier, voice search brings value to local SEO. And for it to do wonders for your business, you should create a reputable and professional local profile for your business.
What you can do are as follows:
- Specify your location - Be ready with a business address. Add to that your phone number, email address, and other relevant information.
- Put your business on local listings - After all, 97% of local consumers go online to look for a local company. Google My Business is an example of a local listing.
- Use local search ads - They can drive traffic to your service.
Conclusion
As mentioned, voice search marketing is a rising content marketing trend. About a third of the world’s population is using voice search to look for content. And as more smartphones, smart speakers, and other smart devices are making noise on the market, this number is likely to go up.
Plus, lots of people will resort to voice searches by 2022 and the succeeding years. By then, the voice search industry is going to be worth a whopping $40 billion.
If you don’t want to be left behind, your next move is obvious: Jump on the bandwagon!
People enjoy voice and audio content. So, other than leveraging voice search marketing, try out different types such as podcasting to get the most out of your brand.