SEO for Voice Search | 8 Valuable Tips to Optimize Voice Search in 2020
Introduction
Voice search usage is rapidly increasing and it is expected that by the end of the year around 50% of all searches will be made via voice. It was always expected that voice search will become popular because it is easier to speak than it is to type.
As more voice technologies develop, consumers are likely to use voice search more frequently. Given how important voice search is and how important it is expected to become, it is imperative for all business owners and marketers to know the top voice search optimization strategies which they can use to get ahead of their competitors. Let’s have a look how you can optimize for voice search.
1.Optimize Your Website for Mobile:
Today optimizing your website for mobile is more important than it has ever been in the past. This is because most voice searches happen on mobile phones. Further, a mobile-friendly website can be a shot in the arm for your SEO initiatives.
You need to have a responsive layout which ensures that your website offers the same seamless experience on mobile phones as it does on websites. Further, you need to ensure that your homepage is clear and your website is easily navigable. You need to make sure that your website loads very quickly (3 seconds or less) on both smart-phones as well desktops.
A site which loads quickly creates a quality user experience and helps in boosting rankings. You can try the Google Search Console to see if your site is good to go or if it needs some improvement.
2. Create Conversational Content:
Your focus should be on creating conversational content because voice searches are more conversational than searches of other kind. It shouldn't be so difficult to understand. The fact remains that people don't speak the same as they communicate online and you need to create your content around that.
Voice searches contain more specifics to what people are searching and that is why your focus should be on targeting long-tail keywords which have a better chance of reaching targeted customers.
3.Long-Tail Keyword Research:
Your focus should be on long-tail keywords because they are the best possible way to show up in Google's prime spots. It won't be so difficult to achieve this since long-tail keywords have comparatively less competition. You can use different tools to discover the long-tail keywords that your target audience uses along with their search volume, keyword difficulty and other ranking metrics. Your focus should be on using conversational, long-tail keyword phrases in your content which is better placed in answering the natural language questions of the searchers.
4.Focus On Local Searches:
Your focus should be on local searches because most people use voice search to find local businesses, products or services. It has already been mentioned that by the end of the year voice search will account for around 50% of all Google searches.
Hence your focus should be on optimizing your website and content for local searches, to get leverage over your competitors. You need to target local keywords which will help you in gaining higher search rankings.
5.Restructure Your Content:
There is a need to restructure your content because it is common knowledge that voice search queries are a lot more conversational than traditional search queries. Hence your focus should be on creating short, concise answers to voice search queries. You need to structure your content to rank better for voice search results.
You can include Frequently-Asked Questions (FAQs) on your product pages because they are inclusive of question keywords and are very short as well. You should always break your content into small fragments with the help of pointers as it helps in achieving better rankings.
6.Improve Content Readability:
Your focus should be on creating good and readable content. Your aim should be on creating content which can get a ranking of around 8 on the Flesch Kincaid Grade. When you create precise content at that level it will help you in ranking your content.
7.Leverage Google My Business Listings:
It has already been mentioned that most people using voice search are looking for local businesses, products and services. One of the most important factors for ranking for local searches is your Google My Business listing. If and when you leverage your Google My Business listing, you let Google know that your business is located at a particular place.
This works for you because any time anyone asks Google to display businesses like you in that particular area, your business stands a chance for ranking for that query. You need to include accurate NAP information in your listing. Further, you need to choose the right categories and also provide the accurate area codes. Once you improve your local SEO and have a proper Google My Business listing, you will be able to see positive results right away.
8.Focus On Answering Questions:
41% of all people use voice search in a way that they would talk to a friend. Most people using voice-search don't use keywords, they ask questions. That is why your focus should be on using conversational, long-tail keyword phrases in your content which will help you in answering natural language questions.
Your focus should be on creating conversational content around natural language keyword phrases that your target audience is most likely to ask.
The Bottom Line
Voice search is expected to impact the future of SEO and digital marketing as a whole. With every passing year, voice search continues to grow and its popularity and usage isn't expected to slow down anytime soon.
Given the changing behavior of the consumers at large, it is imperative upon marketers to be prepared for any marketing trend to be better placed to meet the expectations of consumers. If you haven’t optimized your website for voice search, then it is time that you do so. You can do so on your own or can hire digital marketing services of an offshore digital marketing agency for the same purpose.
