How to Optimize for Voice Search: 3 Simple Tips
Voice search technology has been around for more than 10 years, but only gained popularity recently. Google started the trend by introducing the Voice Search application for smartphones. Soon enough Apple launched Siri, Microsoft developed Cortana and Amazon joined the competition with Alexa. Many of us today use voice search either with mobile devices or smart speakers at home for basic activities, such as checking today’s weather forecast, setting a timer or playing songs while cooking. Thanks to the continuous innovation and development of smart speakers, users can now perform complex voice search queries and receive the answer they are looking for in no time.
Voice search has major implications on how the game of Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is played among businesses. Voice search presents new challenges for big and small corporations as they develop their current marketing strategy but simultaneously offers new opportunities for small businesses with a limited marketing budget.
Due to the development of voice search with machine learning and natural language processing voice search, the way consumers look for information online is changing. Do you remember what you searched for on Google five or 10 years ago?
Let’s take a walk down memory lane:
Phrases you searched for in the past: “Pizza places near me.”
The fewer words you put in the search bar, the easier it was for Google to match your keywords with the right results. Now the table has turned. Two of the most common characteristics of today’s search query are long-tail keywords in the form of a question.
Searches today look more like: “Hey Google! What are some of the best Italian restaurants in Amsterdam?”
Notice how the voice search resembles a question you would ask your friend when looking for an Italian restaurant? No wonder these types of searches are categorized as “conversational search.” Indeed, studies show people using voice search feel like they are talking to a friend when addressing a smart speaker, not a machine, hence the category name.
How can small businesses utilise this new trend to their advantage?
Let’s first talk about featured snippets. Hey Google! What are featured snippets? Featured snippets are a format that provides users with only one direct answer to their question instead of giving a list of 10 possible results as smart speakers did previously.
Those using a digital assistant receive one answer read out to them by the tool. With text search, the answer appears in the SERP in a box with a short answer, an image if applicable, and the link to the webpage of the source.
The big reveal! What is the advantage of adapting voice search strategies to your marketing plan?
The advantage a short snippet can offer to a business is that it will be featured in Position Zero in SERP (search engine result page). Position Zero is displayed below the advertisements, but above the highly ranked organic searches.
Now you ask, how do you get ranked in Position Zero?
Step 1. Identify the content your target audience is looking for. Which questions and keywords are they using? The most commonly used in search queries are: “who,” “what,” “where,” “when,” and “how.”
Step 2. Choose the best short snippet type that matches your content.
There are four different types:
· Paragraph
· List (numbered and bulleted)
· Table
· Video
Step 3. Put yourself in the shoes of your customer and think of the pain points and questions they might have that relate to your products or services. Also, reflect on their day-to-day challenges and how you can help them solve those problems. If you are writing a blog or have a Q&A on your website state the exact question you want to answer and provide a 40–50-word answer so that answer can be easily displayed on SERP or read out loud by a digital assistant. Make sure there is no other content already in existence on the topics you for which you want to rank, as there will be a slim chance that your newly created content will be chosen by Google.
Remember, voice search is a new channel of communication with your customer and will only evolve over time. Also, voice search and SEO go hand-in-hand in the digital world, and this trend cannot be ignored. Helping your target audience find the answers they are searching for will not only create new and loyal customers but also improve your website’s SEO ranking going forward.
SPIN Ideas is a strategy marketing agency, focusing on startups and SMS. We help our clients find their place in the market and grow. If you want to hear more about what we do and have monthly marketing updates, subscribe to SPIN Ideas’ Journal.
