What makes search engine optimization (SEO) so fascinating? At InVerve, we love it because the process is constantly evolving. As the world continues its pattern of technological innovation, people regularly change how they consume information.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai claims that 20 percent of queries on its mobile app and Android devices are voice searches. This percentage is only expected to grow; comScore predicts that 50 percent of all searches are going to be voice searches by 2020.
You get the point. Voice search is the next “big thing.”
Digital assistants are no longer confined to smartphones, so it’s up to inbound marketers to stay relevant in search results. Keeping up can be hard, so how do you stay successful in an industry that’s constantly changing? You stay one step ahead, that’s how.
Here are four ways to get a head start on voice search optimization:
keep your content coversational
The biggest difference between voice search and written search is tone. Natural language is key when it comes to voice search; voice-based searches are typically conversational and contain longer phrases. When you’re speaking, you can ask a precise question. With the improved accuracy of voice search, typing a short set of keywords into a search engine can be time consuming and, ultimately, unnecessary.
Start plugging keywords and phrases into your content that reflect the nature of everyday speech. A Q&A format for blog posts can target some of those precise questions. Ask yourself if your content asks and answers detailed questions your customers might ask their digital assistant. You could even consider a FAQ strategy to address the “who, what, where, when, why and how” questions.
Understand Knowledge Graph
Google uses the Knowledge Graph database to provide relevant, contextual information about millions of topics and their relationships to other entities across the web. This tool helps Google understand what an inquiry actually means in order to provide smarter search results. Many words have a variety of meanings depending on the context in which they’re used. Knowledge Graph allows Google to understand that context.
You’ve most likely experienced Knowledge Graph already. When you make a search, a Knowledge Graph appears on the right sidebar of Google’s results page or as a direct answer at the top of the results page. Understanding what type of information is included in Google’s Knowledge Graph is imperative before you optimize.
mark up your data with schema
In order to optimize for voice search, you can optimize for Knowledge Graph by marking up data. This helps Google understand what your web page is about. The best way to do so is through schema.org.
Schema.org is an initiative launched by Bing, Google, and Yahoo! in 2011. Basically, it’s a set of tags that can be added to HTML to improve your page’s presentation. Adding extra tags your web page’s HTML can help search engines and other applications better understand your content and display it in a useful, relevant way.
Your web developers may want to step in and help with this one. Nevertheless, marking up your data is a crucial part of the future of SEO in voice search. Interesting fact: Raven’s site auditor analyzed over four billion on-page SEO issues and found that just 20 percent of pages use schema.org data. Act fast to get ahead of this trend!
Love your local audience
If you’re skeptical about voice search optimization bringing traffic to your website, consider this: voice searches are more likely to be local-based then typed searches. Phrases like “near me” or “around me” are frequently used to get information about places people want to go.
For most of this information, Google is going to turn to “Google My Business.” Make sure to submit your sitemap to Google and Bing so you are included in those “near me” voice searches.
Voice search optimization is still in its pioneer stage. That’s good news if you’re a marketer trying to lead by innovation. Consider this voice search information a new piece of the never-ending puzzle we know as search engine optimization.
SEO got you feeling overwhelmed?
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Topics: inbound marketing, marketing, search engine optimization, voice search optimization