Voice search is enormous right now, and it won’t slow down any time soon. Voice-enabled solutions have seen massive growth in adoption rate within a short time. Today, 20% of all searches made online are a voice, according to Google. Another survey by Statista revealed that 31% of internet-powered phones users globally use voice technology at least one time every week. Comscore projects that by 2020, 50% of all internet searches will be voice-based and that 30% of all online sessions will be performed without a screen in the same year, according to Gartner.
Going by the numbers, it is imperative for business people to embrace the voice technology into their solutions, not just to keep abreast with industry developments, but also enhance customer service. So, the question is, how does one optimize their site for voice search?
If you are wondering about that, then you have come to the right place. In this article, we shall tell you why you need to optimize your site for voice search and how you can do that.
Voice search
Both Microsoft and Google experts agree that voice search will be among the significant innovations in the next decade. But it is already happening today, meaning, it’s time to position your business to take advantage of the tech. Many people are using their voice, rather than the keyboard, to find information. At the moment, only SEO pros seem to be getting ready. A recent survey revealed that a majority of marketers might see the trend but aren’t doing anything about it. So, it’s the best time to make an entry while others are watching, so you don’t have a hard time later on.
What’s driving the growth of voices search?
There are many different reasons why these tech is spreading far and wide; we’ll just mention a few.
Usability – voice recognition is finally usable. Today, the speech query word error rate is only 8%, which is a great improvement. And when this rate decreases, the speech search will be embraced even further.
Easier – unlike typing, where users have to hit the buttons a couple of times, voice search only needs a person to say the words. Of course, speaking is faster and easier than typing. It’s even better when one is searching for something they do not know – like a song or book.
Convenience – if time is of the essence, then voice search can save a user the trouble of typing about 40 words per minute. When one speaks, they can do an average of 130 words per minute. That’s great for quick answers. Speech recognition also comes in handy when one is using multiple screens concurrently – so using their voice while they type on the other device.
Mobile use – smartphones account for more than 50% of all traffic.
How voice search is revolutionizing the way people interact with content:
Users are speaking to their devices, but that’s not the only shift. In the beginning, people were using voice search in their homes alone. Today, they are talking to their devices everywhere, including at the gym, at a party, on the road, while driving and so on. SEO agency states “40% of adults use voice search every day.” This means that they are more at ease with using their voice to control their internet-powered devices.
Voice search and SEO rankings
Since voice search plays a bigger role in enhancing the user experience, it is projected that more 50% of online searches will be made through speech. Thanks to its widespread use, Google and other search engines are putting more emphasis on voice search optimization. After all, the goal of SEO is to rank sites accurately so clients can get the best information that matches their request without wasting time. As you may know, user experience is at the top of SEO.
If you considering optimizing your site for voice search, here are a few pointers to keep in mind.
Fast load times – like traditional SEO, voice search favors sites that load fast. So make sure:
- Your images are optimize
- Website is responsive
- Server’s response time is lowered
- You use site caching to boost speed
- Files are compressed
Write the same way you speak – when users type in the keywords, they tend to be brief, but if they talk, they let it all out. So, be sure to add natural long-tail keywords.
Integrate featured block of content – this is a summary answer that gives the user a snippet of what to expect
Focus on local searches because studies show that 22% of speech searches are looking for location-based content.