“Alexa, How Do I Optimise For Voice Searches”?

The way we search is changing rapidly, with an increasing number of people using virtual assistants like Siri, Alexa, Cortana and Google Home (which was only released in the UK on April 6th 2017). By 2020, 50% of all searches will be voice.

If you are a digital marketer, you need to be aware of the importance of voice search, otherwise prepare to fall behind.

Why Should You Optimise For Voice Search?

· It is estimated Amazon has sold over 5 million Echo devices since the product launched in 2014

· 55% of teens use voice search everyday

· 20% of mobile queries are voice searches

· A quarter of all searches on Bing are voice searches

· Searches via Cortana for hotels has risen 343% YoY, and flights by 277%.

· In 2015, 5% of households had a voice assistant device, and this increased to 12% by the end of 2016”

So, how can we optimise for voice search?

Google Search Console

Firstly, you can use Search Console to see what queries people are using to get to your website. Unfortunately, at the moment there is no way to differentiate a voice search from a normal search, but this may change in the near future. Google has hinted already that they are looking for ways to show people in the Google Search Console how people are finding their pages through voice search.

Voice searches are usually conversational and reflect how we speak normally to other people in everyday life. Target long tail, conversational terms and questions beginning “where”, “who”, “what”, “which”. This can easily be done by logging into Search Console and filtering queries containing these terms. Search Engine Watch did a study to show that there has been a 61% growth in these phrases year-over-year

Claim Your Google My Business Page

As mobile voice search is reportedly three times more likely to be location specific than text based search, it’s important to make sure your Google My Business page is verified and optimised to help virtual assistants answer questions. Include information like opening hours, address, select the relevant categories, add images and remove duplicate Google My Business pages.

Local Reviews

The 2017 Local Search Ranking Factors Survey was released last month, third party reviews now carry more weight than before, while the content of the reviews is now looked at too. Reviews are a form of social proof that both customers and Google use to determine the quality, trustworthiness and popularity of a business. To increase the quality of reviews, ask a customer who has had a good experience with your company to leave a review. According to a recent survey, seven out of 10 customers will leave a review for a business if asked by the business.

Improve Site Speed

People using voice search are usually on the go, so make sure your mobile website speed is up to standard by using Google’s Website Speed Testing Tool

Add Schema Mark Up

Make sure to add schema mark up to your website, which allows search engines to find out more information about your website, especially for voice searches.

To find out how to implement schema mark up, visit http://schema.org/ and then test the schema mark up to see if it’s working by using the testing tool.

FAQs

FAQs are a great way to target voice search queries. Use tools such as Answer the Public to identify possible FAQs to use on your website.

“Alexa, What is the Conclusion?”

· Companies are already adapting their strategies to voice search, with Dominoes launching voice based ordering where you can tell the Domino’s app what you want to order, rather than browsing the menu

· Understand the differences between Siri, Google Now, and Cortana. Siri and Cortana use Bing to pull web based results, while Google Now unsurprisingly uses its own search engine to pull results. In a recent report, Google Home beat rivals for the % of questions answered and the overall accuracy

· It is irrefutable that voice is the future of search. While it hasn’t taken over from traditional SEO yet, it will eventually; so tweak your SEO strategies to prepare for voice. The best place to start is to buy one of the virtual assistants yourself, so you can understand better how they work, to alter your SEO strategies.

Don’t lose your voice when it comes to search!