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Picture this: You run a local pizzeria in a small neighborhood. Business is sparse, but you’re getting by. Recently, you realized customers were having a hard time finding your pizzeria online.
To fix this issue, you improved your website’s SEO and optimized your web content for voice search. Then, when a potential customer asks Alexa, “Where can I get a pepperoni pizza nearby?” When they’re trapped in traffic and starving, Alexa will help. She’ll provide your restaurant’s name, location, and ETA, plus any specials.
This shows that voice search can quickly meet users’ needs. It engages them as if they are talking directly to you.
Right now, voice search is changing how we communicate with the digital world. With technology’s advances, you can now speak to devices. You can use a conversational tone instead of typing on a keyboard.
This guide covers the main things you need to know about voice search optimization, including:
- The growing role of voice search and the importance of voice search optimization
- The difference between voice search SEO and written SEO
- Tips for voice search content optimization
- The difference between conversational and written language
- How to achieve both voice search and written search optimization
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The growing role of voice search and the importance of voice search optimization
It’s fascinating to see how voice search has evolved from a novel feature to a fundamental aspect of digital interactions. Voice technology is now part of our daily lives. It has opened new opportunities for businesses and content creators. In the last year, over 58% of consumers used voice search to find local companies. This statistic shows how many people rely on it for information.
Voice search is popular now. Smart speakers (Amazon Echo, Google Home, Apple HomePod Mini), smartphones, mobile devices, and speech-activated gadgets (Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, Siri) drove this trend. These devices support voice commands, and people now find it much easier and more natural to use them to search the internet.
Here are a few reasons why individuals and businesses alike are using voice search as a method of browsing:
- It’s convenient and hands-free. It’s much easier to speak to your device than type out a question, especially when you’re on the go or juggling groceries.
Voice search lets you search and execute commands hands-free. You can send messages, set reminders, and pull up recipes without touching your device or stopping what you’re doing.
- Speed. It’s much quicker to ask your smart device a long question than to type it out. Writing it out would be cumbersome.
For busy individuals, this means quicker access to information in just seconds. For businesses, it translates to more efficient customer service and interaction. A potential customer can use voice search to find your store hours, IP location, and products. They want to order from your website or walk to your store.
- Natural interaction and personalization. Voice search makes talking to devices feel like conversing with another person. This natural interaction makes the tech less scary and more accessible. This increased accessibility encourages people to use it more.
Due to AI and machine learning, voice search devices can remember past queries. This memory allows them to give more tailored and quick answers to users’ past questions and preferences.
- Cost-efficiency. Technology can now handle many inquiries. They range from basic questions about products to complex voice search queries about customer accounts.
For example, voice-activated systems can integrate smoothly with popular CRM systems. This integration allows them to track and manage all customer interactions efficiently. This integration can lead to better data analysis and reduced workload on customer support teams. You can either operate with a smaller staff or reallocate your staff to focus on more complex, value-added activities.
- Market expansion. Voice search enables businesses to enhance their global marketing strategies by targeting and reaching international audiences more effectively.
The tech’s ability to understand multiple languages opens new markets. It makes interactions more relevant for different regions. This is useful if you want to expand your digital reach. It will let you offer unique cultural and linguistic experiences to each market.
The difference between voice search SEO and written SEO
Voice search SEO and written SEO are two sides of the same coin. Although they play by slightly different rules, both aim to increase the visibility of your content on search engines.
Written SEO is divided into three types: on-page SEO, off-page SEO, and technical SEO.
On-page SEO is about using relevant long-tail keywords in:
- Meta descriptions
- Image alt text
- Headlines
- Body
- URL
Including relevant keywords strategically helps search engine algorithms crawl and rank it in the search results pages (SERPs).
Off-page SEO consists of all the optimization actions you take away from the web page. It includes backlink building, influencer outreach, guest posting, and social media marketing. These techniques increase brand awareness and position a brand as an authority.
Technical SEO makes sure websites meet search engines’ technical requirements for a high rank. This process involves five steps:
- First, create and submit a sitemap.
- Second, optimize your website for mobile.
- Third, reduce page load time.
- Fourth, improve site architecture.
- Finally, remove duplicate content.
Voice search SEO, on the other hand, is about crafting your info to sound natural and direct. It also involves modifying audio content and optimizing interactions with voice assistants. The goal is to meet your audience’s preferences and needs. It’s less about getting keywords right and more about answering common questions directly and succinctly—like how you talk to a friend.
With voice search, users typically use natural language and longer, question-based queries. For example, instead of typing “Weather New York today,” users might ask, “Alexa, what is the weather like in New York today?”
The difference between conversational and written language
Written and conversational language are vital forms of daily communication. But they have different structures and are used in different contexts.
For example, conversational language is, as the name implies, for speaking to friends and family. It’s informal and often spontaneous, using fillers like “um” and “ah.” It provides instant feedback and is enhanced by tone and body language. These subtleties add depth to your meaning.
In spoken interactions, it’s normal for people to switch topics, use slang, or leave sentences hanging or ending abruptly.
On the other hand, written language is often formal and structured. It aims for clarity and precision in forms like books, emails, and academic papers. Unlike conversational language, the content is independently understandable without immediate feedback.
Written words are often well-informed and detailed, conveying complex information logically. That’s why punctuation exists. Punctuation marks help readers follow complex arguments and stories. They include full stops, commas, semicolons, and em dashes. Punctuation like this becomes crucial without vocal tone or gestures to “punctuate” speech.
Five tips for voice search content optimization
With the rise of voice commands for web browsing, making your website content voice-search-friendly is wise. Here are some tips to help you do that:
- Get to know voice search users
As you explore voice search optimization, take the time to understand who your users are and how they use their devices. Learn their ages, lifestyles, interests, and tech skills. Also, find out their economic and cultural backgrounds. These factors shape how they use voice search technology.
With this information, you can tailor your content precisely to their needs, enhancing its relevance and improving user experience.
- Focus on conversational language
Think about the questions someone might ask aloud. Try to incorporate those natural, conversational phrases into your content.
Text searches lack the conversational quality of voice searches. So, it’s vital to target long-tail keywords. Your content should sound like a casual conversation. Think about how people naturally speak. Considering this is important because it helps you answer the exact questions your audience is asking out loud.
- Feature snippets and direct answers
Voice searches favor featured snippets. So, optimize your content to appear in the boxes at the top of many Google search results.
To grab the featured snippet, you need to provide more than information. You must craft responses that speak to your readers and answer their questions as they naturally ask them.
Structure your answer at the beginning of your content and keep it brief and to the point. Also, make sure your content answers “what is,” “why is,” “where is,” “when is,” and “how to” questions. Doing this will boost your chances of landing that coveted spot.
- Incorporate local SEO
If your business is local, like the pizzeria in the first example, optimize for local searches. Incorporate phrases that voice search users might use, like “near me” or a specific geographical area.
Also, have your business listed accurately on Google Maps and local directories. If your business shows up in local directories, its visibility will increase, helping establish trust and credibility.
- Use structured data and schema markup
Use schema markup. This code helps search engines understand your content and improves its display in voice search results. It clarifies your content’s context and makes it more recognizable to search engines.
For instance, using schema markup to label your content as FAQs, or applying the “HowTo” schema, helps search engines use it in voice search answers.
How to achieve both voice and written search optimization
Both voice and written SEO are vital to businesses. They address different but overlapping aspects of user behavior and search engine/voice search algorithms. This dual-focus approach is key to a strong online presence.
Your approach to SEO must adapt to how users now interact with tech. When done right, it will drive more traffic and boost engagement with your brand.
Video marketing is also becoming increasingly essential for businesses. It uses video marketing tools that support voice-friendly content and gives your brand a competitive edge in reaching a broader audience.
Here are five strategies to boost your search engine performance via voice and written SEO:
- Create content that answers questions
Use a Q&A structure to improve your content for voice and written search engines. You can use common queries relevant to your topic as headers, such as H2 and H3 tags, in your HTML to provide clear and concise explanations.
(Image Source: Purchase College)
For example, if you’re optimizing an article about “Outbound Lead Generation,” you can structure your H2 tags like this:
- What is outbound lead generation?
- Why is outbound lead generation important for B2B businesses?
- What does a typical outbound lead generation process look like?
This approach organizes your content. It also matches how people use voice search to ask direct questions. The Q&A format helps voice search users. It also boosts your content’s visibility in search engines.
- Balance formal and informal tone
To optimize for voice search, keep your tone light, conversational, and straightforward—similar to how you would chat with a friend. This approach fits how people use voice-activated devices. They want quick, clear answers.
However, adopt a more formal tone when optimizing for written content, such as academic articles or professional reports. This distinction ensures your content meets voice search’s casual demands. It also upholds the professional standards for written documents.
- Regularly update content
If someone asks Alexa for tips on sustainable gardening, your blog may be the answer. You updated it last week with new eco-friendly practices.
Regularly updating your content with the latest info keeps your audience informed. It also shows search engines that your site is a reliable, valuable resource. This can enhance your SEO efforts, as search engines like Google and Bing prioritize fresh, relevant content in their rankings.
Staying updated ensures your answers are the best choice for voice searches. These devices often pull the most recent, relevant info for users.
- Enhance accessibility
By making your website accessible, you ensure everyone, including disabled people, can easily navigate and benefit from it. Adding audio descriptions and alt texts for images helps voice searches read and interpret content better. Including these details is great for users who rely on auditory information.
Improving your site’s accessibility can boost its usability. This leads to better user engagement and satisfaction. Google rewards sites that provide great user experiences with higher rankings.
Imagine a pest control company. Its main clients are homeowners with urgent pest issues. If a website isn’t accessible, it can alienate potential customers with visual impairments or other disabilities.
Integrating features like audio descriptions for images and ensuring that the pest control website design is navigable via screen readers makes it easier for all users to access your services. For instance, when someone asks their voice assistant, “How do I get rid of ants in my kitchen?” A well-optimized, accessible pest control website can enhance user satisfaction. It can also boost your SEO. It should provide clear, actionable answers.
To further streamline customer interactions, pest control software can be used to automate appointment scheduling or service requests. This not only improves user experience but also enhances accessibility, making it easier for all customers to access necessary services.
This approach widens your customer base. It shows a commitment to inclusivity and can improve your site’s user experience and search ranking.
- Ensure mobile optimization
As the graph from Statista indicates, over half of internet users browse on mobile phones. So, you should optimize your website to be mobile-responsive. Google demands it. A mobile-friendly site improves user experience. Whether a user is typing on their phone or asking Alexa where to buy new headphones, it matters.
If users find your website easy to navigate on their phones and tablets, they’ll explore your content more. Simple navigation can boost engagement and lower bounce rates. These are positive signals to search engines and can improve your rankings.
Optimize your web content for voice search
Voice search is rapidly altering the SEO landscape. Make your content informative, accessible, and engaging for voice search users. Staying ahead of the curve will give your brand a competitive advantage.
Optimizing voice search content boosts your visibility and user experience. These are crucial to driving traffic, generating leads, and generating inbound sales for your business.
If you need help optimizing your website for voice and written SEO, look no further than Codeless. Codeless is a growth agency with experts who have developed a proven workflow for creating content that ranks at the top of the SERPs.
These experts create detailed content and SEO strategies. They align them with your brand and product to reach the right people, generate leads, and drive revenue.