During the pandemic, voice search saw a surge in popularity as people wanted to find information and services quickly without touching anything. This is a clear indication that voice searches are here to stay and should be incorporated into online marketing strategies.
Optimizing websites for voice search means including question keywords such as ‘what’, ‘when’ and ‘where’ and keeping local listings up-to-date. It also means aiming to rank in featured snippets.
Increased Use of Smart Home Devices
A lot of people are now using smart speakers, systems & devices to run searches by voice. These devices have become a big part of the daily lives of many consumers & are able to control various aspects of their home including appliances, lighting & even entertainment. These gadgets are a key driver in the growth of the smart home industry. Smart home devices like Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, and Apple Siri have become very popular as users rely on them for hands-free convenience when searching the web, controlling their home automation systems & accessing a wide variety of other services.
These types of searches are much different from traditional typed searches as they are longer and more conversational in nature. This can have a huge impact on the way in which marketers approach search engine optimization (SEO) for these types of queries. The best way to approach this is by employing a semantic strategy that focuses on the concepts rather than specific keywords.
For example, instead of a simple “best bakery Toronto,” your SEO strategy should focus on identifying what terms a user may use in order to find the most relevant results. You should also identify any question words that are likely to be used in these types of searches – such as “who”, “where” and “how”.
When it comes to local businesses, optimizing for voice search is now a crucial part of an online marketing strategy. In fact, a recent study by BrightLocal found that 46% of all searches on voice-enabled devices are for local businesses like restaurants, cafes, grocery stores, shops with takeaway options and more.
These searches are often conducted while the person is on the go and may involve a more detailed request, such as “where can I buy the latest version of Samsung’s Galaxy S10?” This type of search is not something that you should ignore and should be treated like any other type of search. In the future, voice search will be the norm and companies that do not implement this technology into their ecommerce sites will fall behind.
Increased Use of Virtual Assistants
Adding voice search to your mobile app or website gives customers an easy way to find what they need without having to use their fingers on the screen. It also allows users to search while doing something else – cooking, driving, working, etc. This hands-free feature is especially useful for people with limited mobility or vision or who are otherwise unable to interact with technology on their own.
In addition to being convenient, voice search provides many opportunities for businesses to deliver an exceptional customer experience. For example, if you’re a business owner with an online store, you can take advantage of voice search to offer personalized product recommendations or reminders that are delivered directly to the user’s phone or device. This type of personalization isn’t just an opportunity for marketers, but also a way to build trust and loyalty with customers.
Another great thing about voice search is that it’s often used to make local searches, which means it can be a great way for businesses to increase visibility in their area. However, it’s important to note that virtual assistants and smart devices usually rely on pre-existing information when responding to a search, so making sure your content is easily accessible through these platforms is crucial. This includes optimizing for natural language and question-based phrases, as well as ensuring that your NAP (name, address, phone number) is listed in multiple reliable sources.
Voice search is here to stay, and it’s transforming how we interact with our digital world. If you’re not already embracing this trend, now is the time to start. By adapting your ecommerce marketing strategy to include voice search, you’ll be able to provide a seamless, easy-to-use experience that will keep your customers coming back.
With the rapid rise of voice search, it’s more important than ever to get your business on board with this new trend. By adopting a voice search strategy, you’ll be able to stay competitive in the new landscape and reach your audience where they are now – on their phones!
Increased Use of Natural Language
With voice search technology, a user simply needs to speak into their device and ask a question or make a request. Then, the device will transform that spoken word into text and conduct a standard search to deliver relevant results. As the technology continues to improve, natural language processing has become more advanced to understand both the words themselves and their intent, ensuring that users get the most accurate answer possible.
For example, if someone says “show me Bluetooth headphones by Samsung,” the system will translate that into “what are some good spas near me?” or “when is the food truck festival.” This kind of understanding allows for a more natural experience and gives users confidence that the search engine can really understand them.
It also means that search engines need to be ready to interpret this new type of query. That’s why it’s important to consider the unique factors that voice search optimization brings to the table. Voice search optimization is a set of techniques designed to make your content more appealing to voice recognition technologies and virtual assistants. For example, it’s important to use questions as headers and to incorporate long-tail keywords (those with three or more words) that capture high-intent traffic.
Another factor is focusing on obtaining featured snippets, which are the top results on Google’s search results page. Voice searches often read the information from these Featured Snippets, so getting your website into this area is key for voice search optimization. In fact, this is one of the fastest ways to optimize for voice searches, as it can be done without having to visit your site.
It’s also important to have consistent citations across your business listings, as voice assistants like Siri, Alexa and Bing are more likely to pull information from these sources than they are from your website. This is why using a tool like Semrush’s Listing Management can be so helpful, as it distributes your optimized and voice-search-ready information to the most authoritative directories and ensures it is all consistent. This is the best way to maximize your chances of showing up in voice search results.
Increased Use of Question-Based Phrases
As voice search becomes more prevalent, users are relying on it for more complex tasks. For example, they can use their voice to ask Siri for directions or to set reminders and appointments. This is a huge opportunity for businesses to reach customers in a more natural and convenient way. It’s important for businesses to optimize their websites and apps for voice search so that they can take advantage of this growing trend.
In addition to optimizing their apps and websites, businesses must also make sure that they are using natural language in their content. This includes avoiding using jargon and using question-based phrases that are easy for voice assistants to understand. It’s also important to keep in mind that voice searches are often local, so it’s important for businesses to optimize their Google My Business listings and ensure that they are including all relevant information such as their address, hours of operation, and phone number.
Since voice searches are usually local, they tend to focus on specific products and services in a certain area. This is great for small businesses that want to target a specific market. For example, a hair salon could optimize their website for voice search by targeting “hair stylist near me.”
When it comes to voice search, long-tail keywords are more effective than shorter ones. This is because they are more likely to match the user’s natural speech pattern. Shorter keywords often look unnatural and are more likely to cause a voice assistant to misunderstand what the user is searching for.
In terms of voice search marketing, it’s important to remember that users are no longer viewing search engine results pages and then choosing which link to click on. Instead, they are hearing a list of top results and most of the time, the first one that is given to them is going to satisfy their query. For this reason, it’s crucial for businesses to create high-quality content that answers questions and solves problems that their audience is having.
With the increase in the use of voice search and smart home devices, it’s more important than ever for businesses to develop a voice search strategy that they can implement into their digital marketing campaigns. This will not only help them reach their target audiences in a more efficient manner, but it will also allow them to stay ahead of the competition.
