The Future of Search: Voice-Activated and Essential for Your Business
With the evolution of online search, voice search has brought about significant changes in the way people optimize for search. Nowadays, consumers have the power to find what they want online instantly and efficiently thanks to mobile phones, and the introduction of voice search has taken this to a whole new level. Over one billion voice-enabled devices were circulated by the end of 2018, with over one billion voice searches conducted every month. This trend is reshaping the way businesses approach their local marketing, and it is essential for businesses to be equipped to make this transition. Here are five things that can help your business appear in voice search results.
Step 1: Get your business listed on relevant sites and directories
Your online presence relies on getting your business listed on all relevant listing sites and directories. Sites like Yelp, Facebook, Yellow Pages, and Google My Business can help increase your online citations and help you establish a strong online presence. You need to ensure that your listings are consistent and accurate across all these directories. Create a spreadsheet of all business information you’ll need to add to these listings, including your business’ name, address, phone number (NAP), business hours, availability of parking facilities, handicap-friendliness, etc. Write a short and a long description of your business and add photographs of your store location to your listings. You can also automate your listings creation and management as a long-term solution to automate local marketing and enhance your business’ online presence.
Step 2: Capitalize on Online Business Reviews
Positive reviews can help your business appear on voice search results. According to a study, 68% of consumers leave business reviews when asked to. Make sure the review generation process is not cumbersome for your customers. You can send out a review generation handout that directs your customers to leave you a review on your review sites when you collect your customer contact information. Automate your review management and use local review schema to direct search engine crawlers to understand your website information and present it on the SERP as snippets. Voice search results usually utilize this information to find the best-suited search results.
Step 3: Optimize for long-tail keywords in your keyword research
The nature of search queries differs when they are spoken as compared when they are typed out. Users using voice search may use conversational phrases that can differ from what they might type in. Hence, you need to find ways to optimize for long-tail keywords in your content. In addition to the long-tail conversational search keywords, optimize your present keyword strategy for “Near Me” searches. Users often use search to find answers to personal queries, so targeting search queries like “Should I color my hair?” or “How often should I wash my hair?” can be beneficial for businesses such as beauty salons.
Step 4: Ensure Your Website is Mobile-Friendly
With over 60% of searches done on mobile devices, it is essential for businesses to ensure that their website is mobile-friendly. Voice searches are commonly conducted on mobile devices, so having a mobile-friendly website can improve your chances of appearing in voice search results. Ensure your website is optimized for speed and has a responsive design that adapts to different screen sizes.
Step 5: Create Content That Answers Questions
Voice search users often ask questions in a conversational tone. To ensure that your business appears in voice search results, create content that answers questions users might ask. Conduct keyword research to find out what questions people are asking and create content that provides the answers. Creating a frequently asked questions (FAQ) page can also be beneficial as it can help provide answers to common queries.
In conclusion, businesses need to be equipped to make the transition to voice search. By following these five steps, businesses can be best positioned to rank in the voice search results.
