The Rise and The Importance of Using Voice Search

People are moving away from traditional ways of searching for whatever they want on the internet. With the advancement in technology, many people, including website owners, want to venture into voice search.

How can you utilize the voice search, a tool that has shown tremendous results in recent days?

How are you going to ensure your site is optimized for voice search? Are there things you need to know before you optimize your website for voice search?

This definitive guide will address those concerns and other delicate things you may have in mind about this new phenomenon that is changing how people search on the internet.

Let’s start the discussion …

 

Voice Search Revolution

Why would we say that the voice search is a true revolution? Well, a few yet credible statistics indicate that we are indeed in the heart of a revolution. Let’s face it …

Recent research into how people search for information on the internet shows that over 55% of teens and over 41% of adults, who want to find out something from the internet, use voice search.

That is not all!

The same research goes on to show that 20% of all searches carried out on Google each day come from voice searches. What does that tell you? The simple answer is, “Voice search is the new revolution.”

The other interesting this is how people are utilizing Windows 10. Yes, with the latest version of Windows, you are able to speak to your desktop as you could to your Smart watch.

Lastly, on a scale of 1 to 10, more than 6 people agree that life would be very difficult without using voice-activated devices.

To that end, it is reasonable to believe that by the end of 2020; more than 50% of the searches on the internet will be entirely on voice search.

As a website owner, is there anything you need to know about voice search? What can you do to improve your site’s voice search tool? What are the benefits of using Google voice search as opposed to typing? You will learn all these questions in this guide.

 

SEO For Voice Search

Even as we talk about voice search, many questions arise. For instance, you may ask, ‘what is the difference between voice search and normal Google searches?’ The following section answers that question.

How is Voice Search Different from Traditional Search?

For a long time, people have searched for various things online using a traditional means–typing on their computers or phones.

As tipped by its name, a voice search is talking to your gadget. You simply command the gadget or computer using your voice.

Depending on a few things such as signal strength, your geo-location, and the strength of the microphone, you will get the precise results as if you were typing.

The other main difference you might like is how effective voice search turns out to be.

For instance, when you type your search queries, chances are you avoid certain things that are important in any traditional conversation such as salutation. Nonetheless, it doesn’t mean you are going to introduce yourself to a search engine.

However, a candid approach matters. Look at this typical example on what people do when they type and what you are likely to do when you are voicing yours search:

Example #1: Traditional Typing Search

“Cleaning mop head”

Or

“How to clean mop head”

Example #2 Voice Search

“Hey Alexa, how do I clean a mop head?”

Or

“Hey Alexa, how can I clean a mop head in a washing machine/dishwasher?”

Alternatively, you’d say

“Hey Alexa, how can I clean a mop head the right way?”

Perhaps, you’ve noticed that in example #2, the voice search, the tone is more conversational, leading to better search results.

With voice search’s longer keywords, chances of landing better results are almost inexcusable. That is what you want!

You don’t want to spend the whole day on the search engine typing a few isolated keywords without getting the right results.

 

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How Voice Search Changes Where People Search?

Thanks to voice search’s convenience, many people are now searching for ‘near me’ phrases. This is particularly important because voice search is more conversational.

As such, many people are now searching for virtually anything than before.

For instance, people search for public washrooms, restaurants, gyms, restrooms, eateries, movie theaters, and local businesses. In the end, people are able to find whatever they want using the ‘near me’ tag.

In fact, Google now reports that the ‘near me’ searches have risen from a meager 60% two years ago to a whopping 150% in 2020. That alone is a clear indicator that voice search is bringing local businesses to a limelight than before.

Here is a typical example to explain the voice search revolutionary:

Suppose you were traveling to Chicago and coincidentally, you smear your white shirt with chocolate or ice cream. If you were in the early 2000s, you would wait until you reach a public place near you, ask a stranger or if lucky, head into a cyber café, which evidently someone had to guide you to type ‘public washroom in Chicago.’

Things are different now.

Today, you simply whip your Android or Wi-Fi enabled phone from your pocket and do a quick yet concise voice search of a ‘public washroom near me.’ Immediately, you’ll be directed as if you have frequented the town whereas in fact, you are a total stranger!

Voice Search Changes How People Get Search Results

In the past, when people depended entirely on traditional searching techniques of doing a simple typing, various websites had a high number of organic clicks. That is not happening now.

In fact, many websites have dropped their organic clicks from over 75% to a meager 37% and this number keeps going down. Why are websites losing organic searches? The basic reason is voice search, which has transformed the search engine from what it used to be to a more convenient thing, the ‘answer engine.’

It is understandable that no one would want to waste time to read a 5000-word document, however well written it may be, to find the answer, when the answer you are looking for is right in front of your screen, simple and straightforward, as you want it.

To elaborate, let’s assume you want to know the amount of calories in a strawberry.

In those days, you’d be forced to type, ‘strawberry calories’, or ‘calories in a strawberry.’

Before you got the right answer, it could force you to compare more than 8 results (8 different websites).

Besides, it would take you several minutes to compare those websites because you do not know at which point the author will decide to answer your question.

Thankfully, things have changed a great deal. You don’t have to go through that agonizing journey to find the right answer. In fact, the answer is ahead of you.

Put simply, a voice search provides you the right answer within seconds. You don’t have to waste any more time clicking and perusing different websites.

However, we all want to know the big question, how does voice search affect content creators or website owners? We’ll address this question in a short while.

For now, it is prudent to conclude that Google voice searches are quick, prompt, and precise. In other words, if you want straight to the point answers, stick to the voice search.

 

How To Conduct An In-depth Voice Keyword Research?

By now, it is easy to say that voice searches are the thing. However, how to go about the search is important. Remember, as mentioned earlier, voice searches are precise and straight to the point.

In a nutshell, instead of focusing on things that were seen important at one point such as CPC, search volume, and seasonal trends, go for keywords that are more conversational in nature.

In other words, the search engine is shifting from giving results on keywords it seems robotic and it is now replacing it with meaningful and conversational keywords.

As a content creator, do not be afraid to go out of your way.

For instance, as more and more people shift from using traditional search techniques such as typing on the search bar, and deciding to use voice search, they demonstrate that they are willing to speak freely to the voice search engine.

Take up the challenge and change how things go. Take charge and revolutionize how the voice search works. For your information, a huge chunk of content creators avoids the use of insanely long keywords. Don’t join the bandwagon.

They reason that very few people are searching for extra-long keywords. That is not true.

What used to look long in the 90s is extremely shorter now, and what looked longer than 10 years ago is considered short.

Simply don’t avoid those extra long keywords. They are the next big thing because they yield in the MOST precise search results.

Ideally, doing a keyword with 5 or so words is not a bad idea. The other thing you may want to try is to sprinkle the long keywords throughout the content.

Google loves to scroll through the content, and if it finds the same words used repeatedly, it is most likely going mark them useful for a voice search answer.

Apart from extra-long keywords, you might also want to include other forms of keywords. In fact, if you try voice search keyword variations, chances are you will reap big.

Here is another trick you may want to capitalize on:

Question Keywords

What are question keywords? How and where will you place them? How effective are question keywords?

To be honest, many people who decide to use voice search actually ask questions. Do you remember some of the examples you’ve read in this blog post? Here are a few of them …

From the above snippet, the voice searches have one thing in common – they are all questions, yes, question keywords.

Typically, if you want quick answers from a voice search, you are probably going to ask a question rather than speak a statement to your iPhone or computer mic. That way, you will help your readers find the right answers to well-thought questions.

With those few question keywords in your fingertips, it is time we shift our focus on the next thing – how to optimize your article effectively around the seemingly long keywords and question-targeted keywords.

 

How To Optimize Your Content For Better Voice Search?

After such a candid discussion on the various statistics surrounding the nature and use of voice search, it is now time to delve into the real gist – how you can optimize your content for voice search like a pro.

Just before we continue, it is important to know that people write content for different reasons. Some websites you stumble upon when you are carrying out a simple typing search are not necessarily what you should have found.

Some sites have been ranking for months, perhaps years not because they have quality content than yours but because of the following three things:

Domain Authority

This means the site was registered many years ago and has retained online presence for decades. Some sites were started at a time when few people knew about setting up businesses online. As such, these sites tend to command online presence.

It is just like the West Wing that was built in 1902. That is over 118 years ago. Now, think of that!

Suppose you want to build a house that looks like West Wing or the Oval Office and even go ahead to name it the same. If you think that will change people’s perception on the original West Wing or Oval Office, you are mistaken!

 

People’s Perception

This second reason is debatable. However, changing what many people think about a particular site or company is really hard.

For instance, if people believe a certain eatery across the street bakes the best sandwiches, it would be hard to convince them otherwise by starting a new shop opposite the original eatery.

 

After looking at few important ways some sites used to remain on Google’s first page for months, it’s time to look at the various specific and practical steps you can do to ensure your content matches the voice search.

Perhaps before we look into the strategies, allow me to talk about one more thing …

You may be wondering, what if my site already has a lot of content, should I be forced to do a complete overhaul?

The simple answer is, NO!

You don’t have to do that. However, you may need to do a few tangible things to optimize your site for voice search. That means you will be needed to make a few changes here and there within your site to make it voice search-friendly.

If you do it carefully, you will neither lose your content nor spend many days making major changes on your site.

Essentially, if you follow my suggestions on this blog, you are likely to rank your content for voice search by conducting minimal and simple tweaks.

 

Now, here is the first step towards creating and optimizing your content for voice search:

Create Compelling Content (Persona-Based)

Content is KING! I’m sure you’ve heard about this a million times. No matter where you go, content will always be the first thing to think about.

However, here is something unique about content creation that many people do not seem to understand:

Great content is one that answers the reader’s questions, concerns, and uncertainties.

It is like a map that shows one the right way to a place he/she has been looking for. With that in mind, you need to create content that satisfies your reader. In other words, when a reader comes to your site, they should be sure to get what they are looking for.

It would be pointless for a reader to type a specific keyword on Google’s search bar and click on the first site that pops up only to peruse through without finding the answer (s) to their question (s).

Good voice search SEO practice dictates that you should put your reader in mind when creating content.

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Talk to the reader. Try to understand their thoughts, concerns, and worries. Go an extra mile in providing them with answers they may be looking for when they visit your site.

To be able to do this, you need to think of yourself as the reader. What would you like to find when upon clicking on a site shows up first? Without a doubt, you need the answer right there. That is exactly what your readers want. They don’t want to spend 8 minutes to find the right answer on your site.

With the invention of voice search tool, things should be much easier. When a reader is speaking to the mic, all he/she wants is a direct answer to their query. That is all.

In short, unless you are narrating a story, don’t take your readers in circles before you give them the answer. The shorter and the quicker you do it, the better. Your readers will definitely come back because you helped them save time.

You cared about them the last time they visited your site and they will be convinced you will care about them this time.

But you may ask, how can you make sure you don’t waste your readers’ time when they visit your site? Learning the art of answering your readers is of utmost importance. Here is how you can do that.

 

Provide Short & Concise Answers

One of the most interesting things you will learn in this voice search revolution is the manner is which you should present the answers to your readers.

Although we have mentioned it somewhere in this blog, there is no harm to emphasize that the shorter and concise the answer is, the more the search engine is going to love your content. In other words, you don’t have to beat around the bush to provide your reader with the right answer.

One study into the length of voice search answers that are loved dearly by readers shows that many readers don’t want to read more than 30 words to locate the exact answer.

In short, strive to answer all your readers’ queries in few words. Do not exceed 30 words when answering someone. In fact, try as much as you can to bring out the answer to a single question to utmost 28 or 29 words.

If you are able to give your reader a quick yet correct answer with 10, 15, or 20 words, that’d be FANTASTIC.

However, you may wonder, how will it look like to create a 10, 15, 20, or even 30-word blog post?  Hahahaha …

That is not the point I’m trying to put across. What I’m saying is whenever you decide to customize your content for voice search, you need to provide short and straightforward answers that do not exceed 30 words.

As for the length of your blog post, you have the liberty to decide. Several factors determine the length of your blog post, including the complexity of the subject.

If you are handling a complex or technical topic, you are likely to write a long post. Even so, you need to break down your blog post into short readable sections.

Dividing your blog post into chapters and subheadings is one of the most successful ways to tackle a long topic.

Besides, you need to bread down each subheading into paragraphs. Bold copy will not appeal to anyone, and I’m sure the search engine will not love it either. You need to separate ideas under one subheading into paragraphs that carry separate ideas.

Additionally, make sure paragraphs have short sentences that are written in a conversational tone. That way, you will not only appeal to your reader but also receive the search engine’s approval.

So, how will you ensure your less 30-word answers are captured in your long blog post? The following section will address that question. But, as a reminder, you do not need to limit your creativity to question-answer write-ups. Your reader deserves to hear the WHOLE story.

 

Create Voice Search Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) Separately

Perhaps you have seen established bloggers and site owners use this method. It is because they know the value. After explaining whatever it is, you wanted your reader to get on your blog post, you may decide to include an FAQ section.

Voice search FAQs are increasing steadily. More and more bloggers realize the potential of creating voice search questions because they know the search engine is ranking them fast. Website owners who do not want to create voice search FAQs, start with a few normal FAQs at the end of their blog posts.

Get this!

Did you know that over 80% of Google answers to readers are from voice search queries? As mentioned earlier, people are busy with different things. As such, they do not have the luxury and the time to type long queries on Google search tab.

They use the little time within their disposal to voice questions as if they were talking to a friend. In turn, the search engine samples up the straight to the point answers and delivers to the reader within seconds.

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What is more, many of Google’s searches are done from hand-held gadgets, something that shows how the voice search revolution is dictating how people find answers from the search engine?

Therefore, be rest assured that Google loves to give people your well-thought and short answers to their numerous voice queries. It is up to you to arrange your article and provide short, precise, and sensible answers in 30 or fewer words.

That is not all. You can provide short voice search answers to your readers by employing other techniques that have seen other websites rank for vice search.  The other practical method you can use is to include featured snippets. What are featured snippets?

 

Optimize Your Content For Featured Snippets

Many website owners don’t know this hidden secret. Google collects and gets approximately 50% of its voice search answers from Featured Snippets. What does that tell you? Simply put, the search engine collects the remaining 50% of the answers from other sections of your content.

In other words, a half of the search engine’s answers come from Featured Snippets while the other half comes from the other sources include general content and typed Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) among other sections.

The most important thing about Featured Snippets is that when Google, or the search engine for that matter, decides to give your reader an answer from a Featured Snippet, it gives ONE answer.

Yes, using its algorithms, Google sieves through several Featured Snippets to give your reader the most authentic answer.

The challenge is how to get your Featured Snippet pass through Google’s sieve. However, with quality and consistent content that adheres to all that I have shown you on this blog post, you will without fail be featured.

Featured Snippet Example:

In addition, do not be surprised that Google will crawl on your site to look for more satisfying answers to your readers’ voice search queries.

One downside you should beware of is in the event your site doesn’t rank for Featured Snippets, your readers, especially those who are using hand-held gadgets to find answers will not at any point see or locate your site.

 

Use Natural Language When Writing Your Content

This is where it gets interesting. Some content creators think that for them to standout, they need to do something weird. While people strive to do things differently, which has always made some popular, it is not always the case.

Good content does not always require having alien terminologies.

Instead, if you want to rank in voice search, you need to write your content using simple and natural language. Depending on the language you choose, use simple words. I have emphasized before on this topic when I said you use conversational language.

Do not worry about the length of the statement or question you want to optimize, the search engine will surely do its job in finding the right keywords in your content as long as you use simple and conversational language and place the keywords strategically in your content.

Having said I think is important to point out you will fair badly if you want to try something crazy like:

“How to txt someone on Twitter”

While that sounds modern, with the belief that many people are accustomed to using such terminologies, the voice search has not been ‘intoxicated’ to that level. In fact, the voice search is so ‘reserved’ and chooses to use a more conservative approach of using natural language.

You can try one more trick if you want the search engine to rank your voice search content and actually provide short and concise answers to your readers.

 

Key-in Long Tail Keywords Carefully Into Your Content

I’m sure this isn’t the firsts time you’ve heard that long-tail keywords are the cream de la cream nowadays. I mentioned that earlier.

In addition to using long tail keywords, you also need to create long-form content. Of course, this depends entirely on the subject but usually; if you are speaking on a particular topic, make sure you talk about it exhaustively.

However, it is important to remember that we are not just speaking at typed long-tail keywords. Rather, this post talks about long-tail voice search keywords.

Many content creators are, however, not sure where to place these long-tail voice search keywords. Where you place your voice search keywords is as important as the choice of your topic. The search engine is not going to locate your voice keywords haphazardly.

 

Where To Embed Long-Tail Voice Keywords?

Although there is no rule on where to place your long-tail voice search keywords, common sense dictates that it is a good practice to place the keyword or the main part of the voice keyword on the title.

The interesting thing about voice search keywords is that Google tends to pick most of its voice searches from the title tags. Therefore, if you can, focus on the way you can embed your long-form voice search keyword in its entirety on the title tag.

You also need to embed the the long-tail keyword in the first paragraph. If possible, let the keyword in its exact form appear in at the beginning of your first paragraph. That way, you will be announcing to Google and any other search engine what your post is all about.

The third place you need to include your voice search long-tail keyword is on the body. This is the point content creators do a huge mistake. Although there is no exact number of times you need to mention the keyword in its exact format, it would be unfair to saturate it.

Considering the length of your content, you can place the long-tail keyword sparingly on your content. Thankfully, you can supplement the long-tail voice search keyword with other shorter variations of the keyword.

The fourth and important place is the conclusion. As you finish your content, remind your reader about the main topic of the day. There is no harm in crowing your writing with good words on what your reader needs to do but also mention the voice search keyword in its exact form.

What have you learnt?

Although there is no rule on the number of times you can mention the voice search keyword in its exact long-form, Google and other search engines are more interested in NOT the number of times, BUT the short and concise answer you provide to your readers.

However, do not limit yourself to a few times. Depending on the length of the content, define for yourself the specific positions where you can embed those long-tail keywords for better ranking and readership.

Is that all? Relax, we are not done yet. Here are a few more secrets you can implement to ensure your voice search queries rank and readers keep coming back.

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Consider These Advanced Tips And Strategies

After looking at those ‘basic’ tips you need to implement on your site for voice search queries and keywords, it is time to dig deeper into some advanced strategies you can put in place.

Here are a few strategies that can boost your site’s ranking and it will rock for months, perhaps years:

Insert Filler Words Onto Your Voice Search Queries

Including a filler word is important.

But you may ask, what is a filler word and what is the importance of including it in a question tag.

First, a filler word is a simple, sometimes one word that when omitted, you can still get the meaning of the sentence.

For instance, ‘a’ is a filler word in this sentence: “Including a filler word is important.”

As you can see, you can still understand what the author means even if the sentence did not have the word ‘a’.

Other filler words include ‘and’, ‘for’, and ‘me’.

 

Target 9^th Grade Reading or Below

As mentioned earlier, it is a good thing to write in simple language. It is needless to include jargon in your content.

For your information, Google HATES jargon. So, don’t waste your time pouring all the vocabulary in the world to tell your reader what you mean.

You will be stressing your reader to search for the meaning of terminologies in your content instead of finding answers to his/her queries.

In other words, write as if you were talking to a toddler. You wouldn’t want to bombard the young mind into looking for a meaning in the words you use.

Rather, you want the toddler to understand what you are saying as quickly as possible.

 

Make Sure Your Site Is Fast

Site speed is one of the major problems site owners face. Although this depends on many things, including your host, it doesn’t mean your hands are tied.

Software engineers have come up with tools that can help boost your site speed. When a reader clicks on a link on your site, it doesn’t have to take years to load. In fact, people are busy.

They don’t have time to wait.  They need answers when they need them.

Because we are speaking about voice search queries, the speed of your site should be 3.8x faster or more compared to when a reader is typing their queries.

 

Focus on Your Site’s Domain Authority

Although I mentioned earlier that domain authority depends on when the site went online, that is not all. It is true that some sites have been online for close to a century, but that doesn’t mean they dominate the web.

You can improve your site’s domain authority by publishing quality content CONSISTENTLY.

Provide quality answers. Give your readers tangible reasons why they should come back to your site. Consistency is key. Have a regular pattern of posting content on your site. Do not run out of idea.

Content creators are always on the lookout. Find nice trending topics, do your in-depth research, and publish content regularly.

 

Include Videos in Your Content

When YouTube came, many people rushed to create channels. Today, YouTube has millions of channels and is the leading video uploading center the world has ever had.

However, with the advancement in technology, you don’t have to rely solely on YouTube for your readers to see your videos.

Today, more than any other time in the history of humankind, you can embed a short video inside your content.

For instance, if you want to optimize a voice keyword, ‘how can I clean a mop head in a washing machine?’

Apart from providing a quick and concise answer, you can also EMBED short video explaining the steps of cleaning a mop head in a washing machine. That way, you will not only provide an answer to your reader but also SHOW them how to do it.

Cool. Isn’t it?

 

Final Thoughts

What have you learnt? That it is not rocket science to rank for voice search keywords. You can do it. However, you need to take bold steps to ensure you rank for those voice keywords and at the same time provide your readers with short, clear, and complete answers to their questions.

The time is now to put all you’ve learnt into practice. Wish you success in your quest of optimizing your content for voice search keywords.