By 2020, voice search­es will make up for half of all search­es con­duct­ed on the inter­net. As mobil­i­ty ris­es and con­sumers turn toward hand-held devices, it is nat­ur­al that they use built-in AI sys­tems, such as Siri. 

Along­side AI bots embed­ded with­in smart mobile devices, one in six Amer­i­cans cur­rent­ly owns a smart speak­er, such as Alexa or Google Home. These devices enable con­sumers to ask their queries via dia­logue at home or on the go. 

What defines voice search?

Voice search is defined by its con­ver­sa­tion­al tone and ques­tion-phrased queries. A typed query tends to look like a key­word, such as “healthy dog food”. A voice search, on the oth­er hand, tends to be more con­ver­sa­tion­al as con­sumers adopt a feel­ing of cama­raderie with the AI sys­tem at play. A voice search for healthy dog food sounds more like “Hey Google, which food brand is the health­i­est for my dog?”

Voice search SEO is real and worth adopting 

As shown above, voice search pro­duces queries in the form of ques­tions, a habit Google’s algo­rithm has been prepar­ing to accom­mo­date. As more con­sumers turn toward voice searchers, the habit trans­lates to typed queries as well, prompt­ing users to search for answers in longer for­mat ques­tions in the search bar.

How voice search optimization works

Google accounts for the change in query habit by includ­ing an added vari­ety of key­words to search­es. Know­ing this, brands can improve their web­site SEO by includ­ing voice search key­words phras­es and questions

How Voice Search Will Continue To Impact SEO in 2019

We might not yet be at the pre­dict­ed fifty per­cent of search­es via voice, but we are not far away. Cur­rent­ly, brands are striv­ing to accom­mo­date lan­guage and con­tent to keep their SEO updat­ed and this trend will only expand fur­ther next year to remain com­pet­i­tive in the mar­ket­place and on Google’s algo­rithm.voice search seo

Here Is a Few of the Ways Voice Search Will Continue to Impact SEO:

Content becomes more answer-focused

If more con­sumers are ask­ing ques­tion-for­mat queries, then they are expect­ing more answer-for­mat respons­es. Try to pro­vide answers to key­word ques­tions your users are search­ing, and try to pre­dict what oth­er ques­tions they might ask per­tain­ing to your prod­uct or ser­vice. Amongst oth­er rank­ing fac­tors, Google will favor the most straight-for­ward and thor­ough answer to the searcher’s question.

Brands will include longer form SEO keyword phrases and questions

Short key­word phras­es will still be includ­ed as an impor­tant ele­ment of SEO, but brands also need to include ques­tions-for­mat phras­es in head­ings, sub­head­ings and body text. 

Searches are localized

There is a pos­i­tive cor­re­la­tion between voice search­es and mobile search­es, indi­cat­ing that many voice search­es are made on the go. In response to this con­clu­sion, Google is match­ing con­sumers with com­pa­nies who not only answer the ques­tion at hand but also who are in near prox­im­i­ty. Make sure your site is reg­is­tered with Google My Busi­ness so it shows up to con­sumers when search­ing for your prod­uct or ser­vice in your geo­graph­ic area. 

Websites are mobile-responsive

If a soon-to-be major­i­ty of search­es are con­duct­ed on mobile devices, it is imper­a­tive that com­pa­ny web­sites are mobile respon­sive. Mobile respon­sive takes a site one step fur­ther from mobile friend­ly and ensures that it is entire­ly inter­ac­tive in its UX expe­ri­ence. If a con­sumer on a mobile device can­not flaw­less­ly engage with a web­site which Google lists as an answer to the searcher’s query, Google will demote said web­site in its algorithm. 

To learn about voice search and how to embed it in your mar­ket­ing strat­e­gy to opti­mize your SEO in 2019, get in touch with our team at Rosy Strate­gies. We look for­ward to guid­ing your brand through the ever-evolv­ing present of dig­i­tal marketing.