THE RISE OF VOICE AUTOMATED SEARCH ASSISTANTS
What is Voice Search Optimization?
Voice search optimization is the process of upgrading and streamlining the information on your business pages to appear at a higher frequency in relation to voice searches made on devices. Voice search optimization aims to “optimize” your business listings, website content and profile reputation to help answer the questions or services for people when they conduct verbal searches. This process allows you to have a better chance to get your business pages returned by the voice search software(Alexa, Siri, Google Assistant, Cortana) whenever the potential customer asks for information related to your industry and the services you offer.
Statistics on Voice Searches that explains in great detail to any business owner on why voice search optimization is so crucial:
- 58% of consumers use voice search to find information about a local business online. (Source: Search Engine Journal)
- 27% of the online Google population is using voice search on mobile(Source: Google)
- 52% of smart speaker owners keep their devices in a common space such as a living room. 25% of people kept their device in the bedroom, while 22% kept the speaker in the kitchen. (Google)
- 75% of voice search results rank in the top three positions for a particular question on a desktop search
- 60% of people claim that smart devices are essential to their lives, and they can’t imagine going back
- 25% of Windows 10 desktop searches were made by voice
- 56% of voice searches were performed to look for something up on the internet.
The Evolution of Voice Search
Few people type the way they speak – especially for search queries.
We are shifting to a mobile-first world where devices and people are mobile. As a result, it is important to remember that mobile and local go hand in hand, especially where voice search is concerned. Mobile devices allow users to perform on-the-go local queries. However, voice search, in turn, enables users to ask hyper-local questions.
Optimizing for Voice Search in 2022 & Beyond!
Often, consumers who use voice search are trying to solve a problem and are ready to take action. This means they have intention. At Straight Marketing, we actively practice a multitude of proven voice search optimization steps, some which may seem obvious, others not so much. Here are just a couple of the ways we enrichen your business profile.
- Ensure your website loads quickly: Many voice searches happen on mobile devices. So, just like with traditional SEO, we always ensure that your site is responsive and that you have fast page load speed.
- Write the way you speak: Across the many directories we congruently spread your business profile, we carefully optimize some of your content for those long-tail local voice searches that sound more natural in speech. Also, we avoid complex language, as most voice search results are written at a ninth-grade reading level.
- Include featured content blocks: Shorter answers perform better in Google (with the average being about 29 words in length). We optimize your content so that it might be selected as a “featured snippet,” which is a quick summary that appears above the regular search results on Google.
- Focus on local searches: As 22% of voice searches are looking for location-based results, it makes sense to focus some of your efforts on Google local SEO. We repeatedly include your location throughout your content as well as phrases such as “near me, city & state and others.”
Studies now have shown, voice searches are much different than standard web searches. When a person types their query into Google, they might type something like “best plumber Denver.” But a voice searcher won’t say this. Instead, they’ll say something along the lines of, “Alexa, help me find a good plumber near me that works after 6:00 p.m.” If your content isn’t optimized for this type of search query, your business has no chance of being the answer delivered.
More Traffic begins with Accurate Information
Our team of experts will optimize your listings, websites, and online citation mentions for complete brand control. We provide seamless management to make sure your data is the same everywhere, at all times.