Hey Alexa, how can I optimize for voice search? SEO & Voice Search
Digital marketing is complicated.
Not only is the fight to rank high in search engine results a competitive space on its own, now marketers have to optimize their online web content to rank high in voice search results.
Unlike search engines which show roughly 10 first-page results so users can scan titles and choose one themselves, voice search results populate the first 3 results (and sometimes just the first). Sounds like a competitive nightmare for digital marketers - but it doesn’t have to be.
How many people are using voice search?
Voice search is a way for users to search the internet using speech on their devices. Voice search can be found on AI assistant devices like Alexa and Google Home, iPhones and Android phones, and laptops. But how many consumers have voice search devices and which ones do they use?
Google found that in 2020, 20% of all mobile Google queries were voice searches. Microsoft found that Siri (iPhone) and Google Assistant (Android) were both used by 36% of consumers in 2021. But mobile isn’t the only voice search player.
In 2022, 55% of households in the US are expected to own a smart speaker.
Last year, 68.2% of U.S. smart speaker owners used an Echo device. Meanwhile, 31.7% of smart speaker owners in 2020 used a Google-branded device, and only 18.4% will use some other brand.
What are consumers using voice search for?
Google found that 41% of adults and 55% of teens use voice search more than once daily and according to Search Engine Land, 48% of these consumers are using it for general search queries.
58% of people have used voice search to find information about a local business and 43% of smart speaker owners use the technology to shop.
Adobe Analytics found the most common voice searches on smart speakers are asking for music (70%) and the weather forecast (64%), followed by fun questions (53%), online search (47%), news (46%), and asking directions (34%).
So what’s the difference between traditional and voice search SEO?
One word: keywords.
The way a user types a query and speaks a query are very different.
Keyword research for voice search SEO goes beyond the usual head and long-tail keywords. Most voice search queries are either in the form of a full, natural language question or command like, “Hey Google, how long do I cook chicken?” or “Hey Alexa, find Italian food near me” and even “Alexa, where is the closest doctor’s office?”
Searches made through speech contain longer tail keywords than text searches
When conducting keyword research, you’ll need to consider not only search volume, competition and trends, but also if the keyword sounds natural. With voice search on the rise, the volume of these keywords is likely to increase.
But you don’t need to abandon your SEO strategy.
Roughly 75% of voice search results will rank in the top 3 positions for a particular question on a desktop search. This means it’s important to strike a balance between these question keywords and the traditional SEO keywords (like “sneakers” or “granola bars”) to target traditional and voice search.
Should my content be optimized for voice search?
Yes.
But maybe not all of it.
If you are a location-based business (like a small pizza shop) it’s important to be discoverable by voice search users who ask Siri to “find pizza near me” which is far more common than users who are interested in doing health insurance research.
In 2018, a study conducted by BrightLocal found that 58% of US consumers had used voice search on their phone for a local business and 74% of those users do this weekly. Additionally, 76% of voice search users use their smart speakers for local business search.
Voice search can populate in 2 ways: with a featured snippet read by the assistant, or with a few top website results. If your site offers information that is difficult to answer in a single spoken response, it will be more beneficial to optimize for the few top results. If your site is meant to sell more local pizza, it may be beneficial to optimize for the featured snippet.
At the end of the day, it depends on your business goals and what you want users to do with your website.
Best Practices for Voice Search Optimization
Consider local search
Since local search makes up 46% of total searches which makes it extremely important to incorporate local-context keywords. In keyword research, consider localized phrases, names of locations and landmarks around your business. It’s also important to include “near me” in your metadata.
Update your listings
Search engines want to ensure they are giving users the most accurate information. Google and Android devices use Google Local Pack and Siri uses Yelp to return results for “the best” of any category. Alexa uses local results from Bing, Yelp and Yext. It’s important to ensure your platform listings are up to date with sufficient information. (Do this by visiting business.google.com, bingmapsportal.com, and mapsconnect.apple.com)
Get straight to the point (but do it casually)
Search engines rank based not only on keywords themselves, but the quality of a website’s user experience. The website that answers a user’s question and provides them with the best experience will rise to the top of search results. Voice search is no different, it just emphasizes the need for natural, casual conversation. Balancing concise language that quickly answers a user’s question with casual, conversational content is key.
Optimize for mobile
Hopefully this is a given but since most voice searches are made through mobile, it’s important to ensure a website is as mobile-friendly as possible. If a website is not mobile friendly, chances are mobile bounce rates are high and Google (or any other search engine) will penalize you.
Answer users questions through your content
Asking questions are the most common way to use voice search. It’s important to answer those questions with your content. To get an idea of what content to create (and even to get keyword ideas), type a question related to your company or product into a search engine and review the “people also ask” section for variations and other questions that your users may be asking (and you could be answering).
Include a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) section
This is especially important for companies selling a product on their site. Including an FAQ section on your product page can target those question – style keywords and search queries. This also gives Google an easy format to quickly pull answers from.
Voice search is becoming an increasingly popular way for users to find quick answers to their questions. And with the rise of voice assistant devices like Alexa and Google Home, there are no signs of its slowing down anytime soon. It’s important for marketers to consider users searching through voice so they can tailor their content to reach the right people, with the right answers.