Voice search is becoming an increasingly popular consumer activity. Whether it’s Siri, Alexa, Google Assistant, or another device, voice assistants are more and more commonplace.
Consider these voice search statistics:
- Comscore projects that 50 percent of all searches will be voice searches by 2020
- CTA reported that 1 in 4 shoppers used voice assistants in their holiday shopping during the 2017 season.
- There will be over 1 Billion Voice Assistant enabled devices in circulation by the end of 2018 according to Alpine.AI.
- Google stated that 72 percent of people who own voice-activated speakers say that their devices are used as part of their daily routines.
What Voice Search Means for Your Business
We’ve spent the bulk of the last decade or so optimizing our websites for when people type keywords in search engines. While there is a large market of consumers that still search through this method, as evidenced in the statistics listed above, the time to optimize your site for voice search is now. Just like search engines quickly became competitive as more people used the Internet to find products and services, so too will the voice space making it harder for you to rank the longer you wait. The good news (and bad news depending on how you want to look at it), is that people speak differently than they write so there is plenty of room in voice search to rank for a variety of different keyword terms that different people may use to find the same product or service.
3 Easy Ways to Optimize Your Website for Voice Search
1. Make sure your listings are correct.
From Google My Business to Yelp and every listing site in between, the more consistent your listings are, the better chance you have of being ranked for those “near me” searches. Claim your Google My Business listing and other listings to make sure that your location and business information is accurate. This tells search engines that you’re legit, gives the search engines more info about your location so you show up in the right location search, and gives customers accurate information that’s easy to access.
Miss Ink is a Yext Partner, which allows us to manage these listings for our clients and keep tabs when reviews are posted that are critical to both customer service and search ranking.
Click here to see how your business stacks up with a free listing scan.
2. Write content that answers your customers’ FAQs.
The best source for content is your customers. Listen to the questions they ask and then create content for your site that answers these questions. Chances are if they have a specific question, someone else will too.
3. Rethink your keyword strategy.
The key to voice search is that it’s based on how people speak. In the marketing industry, we call this, writing in a natural voice. Make a list of your keywords or services and then come up with a list of how different people may describe those products or services. Listen to what people ask when they call you or when you speak with them one-on-one at networking events. Converting conversation to written text on your site is major for voice search.
Optimizing for voice search doesn’t have to be overwhelming. If you take the above steps, you’ll be well on your way to outranking your competitors in voice searches. Have more questions?
Contact us.
References:
Olson, C. (2016, April 25). Just say it: The future of search is voice and personal digital assistants. Retrieved June 27, 2018, from https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/just-say-it-future-search-voice-personal-digital-assistants/1392459
Donnelly, G. (2018, April 18). 33 Voice Search Statistics to Prepare You for the Voice Search Revolution. Retrieved June 27, 2018, from
https://www.wordstream.com/blog/ws/2018/04/10/voice-search-statistics-2018
