Voice Search – How Will It Affect Your Future?

We’ve previously discussed how visual search will affect your business, but given the recent rise in voice search and the smart speakers that live in our homes as our own personal assistants, we’re looking at what’s in store for your business and what you can do to make sure you stay on top of the latest technological developments.

What Is Voice Search?

It’s highly likely either you or someone you know will now have a Google Assistant, Amazon Echo or a variation of these in their home. Activated by a name, these smart speakers listen to our commands and provide us with the relevant answers to a query or make an action, such as turning on an appliance or playing music. Technology is becoming such a huge part of our everyday lives, and people want to keep up with the latest gadgets as much for social reasons as it is for convenience, hence why voice search is taking off in a big way.

How Voice Search Is Developing 

The sophistication of voice-recognition software is vastly increasing, and with Google’s new guidelines similar to that of web search quality, voice search is developing into a much more natural process. In order to deliver the best possible experience for users, Google uses a rating method to judge whether an answer successfully fulfils the query of a user and whether that quality of speech mimics that of a natural exchange. The goal is to bring this process into everyday normality that people feel comfortable using.

Securing Your Future With Voice Search

You may be starting to question how this might affect your business and whether the implications of voice search will be good or bad for you. Failing to keep up with developments in technology is bad for business, which is why it can only be a good thing to start thinking now of how you can optimise voice search. Here are a few things you should be aware of:

Local search – Chances are, voice searches will have a local focus, with people relying on it for on-the-go queries or while at home searching for nearby businesses and facilities. This is why it has become more important than ever to have your information readily accessible in order to make sure you are appearing in those relevant local searches. Google My Business is a valuable resource for making sure all your vital business information is listed correctly and is optimised for voice search. This is key if you want to be in with a chance at being top of the SERPs.

Changes in keywords – With developments in algorithms meaning search engines are able to handle more complex queries, users no longer have to provide details in order to receive relevant results. The goal is to match this with voice searches, but as this method of search becomes more used, keywords will need to change to fit with these new methods. They will more than likely favour longer keywords and overall topics, instead of more precise queries, so you will need to adapt your strategy accordingly.

Quick and sharp – Voice searches are used in order to get a quick response to a query, which means that interaction through a voice search can be short-lived. It’s important to think about how information is presented to users so that it is easier for them to make purchases or interact with your business through voice search. You must grab their attention immediately as you will have a much shorter opportunity to make an impression.

The main thing to keep in mind is that it’s important to consistently adapt your marketing strategy and adjust your advertisements to match new developments in technology. It is necessary to always think of how users will be interacting with your website or ad and what will make the experience smoother for them.

Always stay prepared and on top of your game with a digital agency such as 5874 to lend you the support you need. Contact us today for more information.