Whether you like voice commands or not, the number of people using these services is increasing every day. Even on the street in the bustle, you can notice those who speak on your smartphone:
- dial a specific subscriber's phone number;
- search for specific information on the Internet;
- write an upcoming event in the calendar;
- or use our service and navigate and perform a search on a website with their voice.
Even purchases are already made using the voice assistant. If you have an online business and have not yet optimized your site for "speaking" services, then you should do so soon. Over time, most Internet requests will be processed using voice services.
Smartphones have become so smart that they can now maintain a reasonable conversation with their owner. Instead of writing a request, people prefer to issue a voice command to their phone. By slightly changing your SEO strategy and focusing on voice search, you will leave your competitors far behind.
There are various techniques to optimize your website for voice search.
The main approaches
- Keywords for voice search are formulated by converting a long and overly-worded phrase into a natural conversational sentence or question.
- Mobile and local search are closely related to each other. The conversion rate or sales rate also depends on them. For this indicator to be high, you need to improve both types of searches.
- Without a mobile version, an app, or a responsive (adaptive) app design, there is a chance that your site will suffer in terms of high bounce rate and its ranking in search engines. Keep in mind that users are more likely to search for information from widgets and smartphones than from a desktop computer.
Targeting long-tail keywords
People don't talk the way they write. A text search query is usually short and does not have a logical sentence.
Search queries are separate words, and are often inconsistent with each other and do not carry a significant load. For most people, writing takes longer than saying words out loud, so they shorten what they want to say and just type in what they need.
Here's an example of what users enter when they want to fix an outlet.
Here is an example of what a user should say if they use voice search.
You should notice, of course, that the voice request is in the form of a complete question, unlike printed text. "Correct contact", you see, sounds quite strange in colloquial language.
In addition to working with keywords, there are also various recognition systems. Depending on which platform users use, the methods for transmitting voice commands will differ. For example, Siri for Apple devices and Cortana for the Android platform have their features.
The idea of purposefulness in the pronunciation of words may seem impossible. But this can be brought to life if you use long-tail keywords. When selecting new keywords for search optimization, be sure to consider the following:
- each system like Siri or Cortana has its own features for voice commands;
- when using speech to perform a search, people usually use complete questions rather than multiple keywords;
- keywords for voice search can have several alternatives.
For voice search, you need to create not only keywords but also entire keyword questions. When creating a list of keywords, don't forget about long question queries.
The localization of search
As mentioned earlier, mobile voice search is most often performed locally at the local level. People issue commands when they are busy with something and can't print a text request. For example, they drive and suddenly remember that they did not buy filters for the coffee machine. Siri or Cortana comes to the rescue. You can always ask them, "where is the nearest coffee filter shop?"
Using voice search helps increase conversion. You should also consider optimizing the mobile version of the site/app to search for local voice queries.
If you haven't decided where to start compiling a list of keywords, follow these steps:
- study of offered products and services. Think about what questions people might ask about them;
- check your existing web Analytics. Analyze what search criteria users use to find your site?
- study Google Trends. Determine if there are popular search words in your industry, and can you apply a local voice strategy to them?
After completing these steps, you will get a long list of keywords. It remains only to optimize them for voice search.
Experience in optimizing the mobile version of a site or app
An essential factor to acknowledge when making revisions to your website is the user experience. Both technologies and our understanding of them are developing. In other words, you should help your visitants get a positive user experience, no matter what type of device they use.
More and more people are shifting to smartphones. Apple and Android take this trend into account and offer decent opportunities for voice search. Besides, mobile devices are increasingly influencing the rating, including companies such as Google. If you are seriously trying to optimize voice search, creating an adaptive design, mobile version of the site or app should be your priority.
Without a lot of experience optimizing different versions of the site, you will first have to fight for a place in the search engine. Moreover, even if visitors find your online resource and follow the link, it will be difficult for you to keep their attention.
There are several ways to fill in the missing experience of optimizing the mobile version/app / responsive design on a single site. We present to your attention several of them.
- Use the mobile device test to make sure that your site is adapted for mobile devices.
- Make sure that your site loads quickly.
- Always format the content (text, images, etc.) to facilitate visual perception.
- Offer a design that provides easy and quick access to the main content. Don't use large popups.
Following these recommendations is a great start. However, there is always room for growth and development. Don't forget to increase your knowledge of adaptive design, projects like advanced mobile pages (enhancers), and tools that will help you evaluate the effectiveness of your site.
Conclusion
If you don't optimize voice search, you will miss a huge source of web traffic. Fortunately, if you strictly follow the SEO recommendations, including optimizing long-tail keywords, you are already in the game. All you need is some voice wisdom! And the crucial thing, if you are a website owner - consider adding a voice search and speech commands to your website can be a great advantage a step ahead from your competitors. Learn here how to add speech recognition and voice commands to your website easily.
