Voice recognition is an incredibly useful way to gain information very quickly. There are a number of ways that the devices find the information and deliver it to you. Voice search has grown massively over the past few years, and it’s only set to get bigger. Today’s blog will teach you all you need to know about voice search and its effects on SEO.
Be natural
Voice recognition is constantly evolving and has been adapted to understand human language. It really feels like you’re having a conversation with a human now. Voice recognition allows us to speak in sentences to our devices, allowing them to find us relevant information. Where we used to type two keywords into the search bar, now we’re giving devices long sentences to dissect. These longer queries usually have less competitive searches, which means you’ll likely rank higher on the SERP if your website gives the individual the answer they’re looking for.
Snippets
Featured snippets are essentially ‘position zero’ on Google. The Google Assistant voice recognition device will very often read the snippets of your queries out first. Featured snippets are pieces of information that Google provides so that you don’t have to click through to the website to find the information yourself. They are often from a website that Google deems as the most valuable to the search query. Once you’re on page 1 of the SERP, you only need to make minor changes to your SEO strategy to be in with a chance to get into the featured snippet box.
Did you know that around 75% of voice search results rank in the top three positions on the SERP?
Local Search
Many consumers like to research companies that are local, but they also want the ‘best’ company for their query. You must register your company on Google My Business so that your business will appear in local search. Utilising local search means that if a user types ‘near me’ and your business is listed closeby to their location, your website is quite likely to appear. It’s a good idea to gather citations for your company as well, as voice recognition devices such as Alexa sometimes use third-party review sites to answer voice search queries.
Semantic Search
Where Google used to simply use keywords to offer results on the SERP, now it builds its own relationships between different subjects and keywords. Google can use your history as well in order to find you the best web pages for your search, which is why if you search a query, a site you’ve already viewed may appear. Google’s shift in semantic search means that it’s understanding your searches more. This also enables Google to read your queries more like a human, so it can provide even more assistance.
Question Words
When we search queries using voice recognition, we tend to ask for more information from the search. For example, you’re more likely to ask where, why or how something works. This is incredibly useful for your SEO because longer queries mean that your website will appear for more specific queries. Verbs and nouns are also more common in voice search, so it’s a good idea to work these words into your content. Consumers ask the device a question and your content has to answer it.
Thanks for reading today’s blog regarding voice search and its effects on SEO. If you’d like any more information or you’ve got any questions please don’t hesitate to contact us.