Voice search optimization is the process of improving your website and content for voice search queries. Voice search queries are the voice commands that users use to search for information, products, or services on the internet. Voice search queries can be done through devices such as smartphones, smart speakers, or laptops. Voice search can also affect SEO strategies, as voice queries tend to be longer, more conversational, and more specific than text queries.
Voice search differs from regular search in several ways, such as:
Voice search is the process of using voice commands to search for information, products, or services on the internet. Regular search is the process of using text queries to search for the same things on the internet.
Voice search tends to be longer, more conversational, and more specific than regular search. For example, a voice search query might be “Hey Google, what are some good restaurants near me that serve vegan food?” while a regular search query might be “vegan restaurants near me”.
Voice search is more likely to use natural language and question words, such as who, what, where, when, why, and how. Regular search is more likely to use keywords and modifiers, such as location, price, or quality.
Voice search is more influenced by the context and intent of the user, such as their location, device, time of day, previous searches, and personal preferences. Regular search is more influenced by the ranking factors and algorithms of the search engine, such as relevance, authority, and popularity.
Voice search often triggers a featured snippet or a voice answer from the search engine, which provides a quick and concise response to the user’s query. Regular search often displays a list of web pages or ads that match the user’s query, which requires the user to click and explore further.
Voice search is growing in popularity and usage. According to a report by Juniper Research, voice-based ad revenue could reach $19 billion by 2022. According to a report by Statista, the number of smart speaker users in the U.S. could reach 90.1 million by 2021.
Voice search can help you reach more customers, especially those who prefer convenience, speed, and accessibility. Voice search can also help you target customers who are on the go, in their cars, or at home.
Voice search can affect your SEO ranking and performance. According to a study by Backlinko, 75% of voice search results rank in the top three positions for that query. According to a study by Moz, 19% of voice search queries trigger a featured snippet.
How to optimize your website and content for voice search?
I hope it’s quite a confusing and creating buzz for a long time now. So, we have compiled you a list of some best practices and strategies that can help you optimize your website for voice search based queries and outrank your competitors.
Use natural and conversational language:
Voice search queries tend to be longer, more conversational, and more specific than text queries. You need to use natural and conversational language that matches the way your users speak and ask questions.
Some of the ways you can use natural and conversational language for voice search are:
Use tools like AnswerThePublic or AlsoAsked to find common questions and phrases related to your keywords. You can use these questions and phrases as inspiration for your content titles, headings, subheadings, or bullet points.
Use tools like Ubersuggest or Ahrefs Keyword Generator to find long-tail keywords and phrases related to your niche. You can use these keywords and phrases as guidance for your content structure, flow, and optimization.
Use tools like Hemingway Editor or Grammarly to check and improve your content readability, grammar, spelling, and tone. You can also use tools like Natural Language Toolkit or TextBlob to analyze your content sentiment, subjectivity, and polarity.
Use tools like Google Voice Typing or Speechnotes to write or dictate your content using your voice. You can also use tools like Google Translate or Microsoft Translator to translate your content into different languages.
Long-tail keywords and phrases are keywords that are more specific and less competitive than short-tail keywords. Long-tail keywords and phrases can help you rank higher for voice search queries, as they are more likely to match the user’s intent and context. You can use tools like Ubersuggest or Ahrefs Keyword Generator to find long-tail keywords and phrases related to your niche. You can use these tools to filter by search volume, competition, CPC, and more. You can also see the top-ranking pages for each keyword and how to improve your ranking.
Some of the ways you can optimize for long-tail keywords and phrases are:
You can use tools like AnswerThePublic or AlsoAsked to find common questions and phrases related to your keywords. You can use these tools to generate content ideas, titles, headings, subheadings, or bullet points and to optimize for question words, such as who, what, where, when, why, and how.
To write or dictate your content using your voice use tools like Google Voice Typing or Speechnotes.
You can also use tools like Google Translate or Microsoft Translator to translate your content into different languages. These tools can help you use natural and conversational language that matches the way your users speak and ask questions.
Use tools like Hemingway Editor or Grammarly to check and improve your content readability, grammar, spelling, and tone.
You can also use tools like Natural Language Toolkit or TextBlob to analyze your content sentiment, subjectivity, and polarity. These tools can help you make your content clear, concise, and persuasive.
Optimize for local SEO:
Local SEO is the process of optimizing your website and content for local searches. Local searches are searches that include a location or a near me modifier. Local searches are important for voice search, as many users use voice search to find local businesses or services. You can optimize your website and content for local SEO by using geo-targeted keywords, creating local landing pages, claiming and optimizing your Google My Business profile, getting positive reviews and ratings from your customers, and building local citations and backlinks. Some of the ways you can optimize for local SEO are:
Use geo-targeted keywords and phrases in your website and content. Geo-targeted keywords and phrases are keywords that include a specific location, such as city, state, zip code, or neighborhood. You can use tools like Ubersuggest or Ahrefs Keyword Generator to find geo-targeted keywords and phrases related to your niche. You can also use tools like AnswerThePublic or AlsoAsked to find common questions and phrases related to your keywords and location.
Create local landing pages for each of your locations or service areas. Local landing pages are web pages that are tailored to a specific location or service area. They can help you rank higher for local searches, as they provide relevant and useful information to your local customers. You can create local landing pages by using clear and concise language, providing accurate and up-to-date information, using headings, lists, tables, or images, and adding a clear and persuasive call to action.
Claim and optimize your Google My Business profile. Google My Business is a free tool that allows you to create and manage your online presence on Google Search and Maps. You can claim and optimize your Google My Business profile by verifying your business information, adding your business name, address, phone number, website, hours, categories, services, photos, videos, and more. You can also use Google My Business to respond to customer reviews, post updates, offer promotions, and more.
Get positive reviews and ratings from your customers on your website or on third-party platforms like Google My Business, Yelp, or Trustpilot. Reviews and ratings are feedbacks that your customers leave on your website or on third-party platforms. Reviews and ratings can help you improve your customer satisfaction, loyalty, and retention. They can also help you attract new customers who are looking for trustworthy and reliable local businesses. You can get more reviews and ratings by asking your customers for feedback, offering incentives or rewards, and responding to their comments or complaints.
Optimize for mobile-friendliness:
Mobile-friendliness is the quality of your website and content being easy to use and navigate on mobile devices. Mobile-friendliness is important for voice search, as most voice searches are done on mobile devices. You can optimize your website and content for mobile-friendliness by using responsive design, fast loading speed, clear and legible fonts, simple and intuitive layout, easy-to-click buttons and links, and avoiding pop-ups and flash elements.
Some of the ways you can optimize for mobile-friendliness are:
Use responsive design. Responsive design is a web design technique that adapts your website’s layout, content, and functionality to the screen size and orientation of the device. Responsive design can help you create a consistent and seamless user experience across different devices. You can use tools like Google Mobile-Friendly Test or Bing Mobile Friendliness Test Tool to check and improve your website’s mobile-friendliness.
Use fast loading speed. Fast loading speed is the time it takes for your website to load on a device. Fast loading speed can help you improve your website’s usability, performance, and ranking. You can use tools like Google PageSpeed Insights or Bing PageSpeed Test to measure and optimize your website’s loading speed.
Use clear and legible fonts. Clear and legible fonts are fonts that are easy to read and understand on a small screen. Clear and legible fonts can help you improve your website’s readability, accessibility, and conversion. You can use tools like Google Fonts or Font Squirrel to find and use clear and legible fonts for your website.
Use simple and intuitive layout. Simple and intuitive layout is the arrangement of your website’s elements, such as menus, buttons, links, images, and text. Simple and intuitive layout can help you improve your website’s navigation, functionality, and aesthetics. You can use tools like Adobe XD or Figma to create and test simple and intuitive layouts for your website.
Use easy-to-click buttons and links. Easy-to-click buttons and links are buttons and links that are large enough, well-spaced, and well-positioned for users to tap on them easily. Easy-to-click buttons and links can help you improve your website’s interactivity, usability, and conversion. You can use tools like Google Material Design or Bootstrap to create and use easy-to-click buttons and links for your website.
Avoid pop-ups and flash elements. Pop-ups and flash elements are elements that appear on top of or replace your website’s content without the user’s consent or action. Pop-ups and flash elements can harm your website’s user experience, performance, and ranking. They can also interfere with voice search results or answers. You should avoid using pop-ups and flash elements on your website or use them sparingly and appropriately.
Optimize for featured snippets:
Featured snippets are the boxes that appear at the top of the search results that provide a quick answer or summary to the user’s query. Featured snippets are important for voice search, as they are often used by Google Assistant to provide voice answers. You can optimize your website and content for featured snippets by using clear and concise language, providing accurate and relevant information, using headings, lists, tables, or images, and answering common questions related to your topic.
Some of the ways you can optimize for featured snippets are:
Use clear and concise language. Featured snippets tend to favor content that is clear, concise, and easy to understand. You should use simple and direct sentences, avoid jargon and technical terms, and use active voice and transition words. You can use tools like Hemingway Editor or Grammarly to check and improve your content readability, grammar, spelling, and tone.
Use headings, lists, tables, or images. Featured snippets tend to favor content that is structured, organized, and formatted using headings, lists, tables, or images. These elements can help you break down your content into smaller and more digestible chunks, highlight the main points or steps, and provide visual aids or examples. You can use tools like Google Docs or WordPress to create and format your content using headings, lists, tables, or images.
Use question words and answer boxes. Featured snippets tend to be triggered by question words, such as who, what, where, when, why, and how. You should use these question words in your content titles, headings, subheadings, or bullet points. You should also use answer boxes to provide a direct and concise answer to the question in a paragraph, list, table, or image. You can use tools like AnswerThePublic or AlsoAsked to find common questions related to your keywords. You can also use tools like Google Voice Typing or Speechnotes to write or dictate your content using question words and answer boxes.
These are some of the ways you can optimize your website and content for voice search.
