How to Best Optimize Your Content for Voice Searches

Marketing experts predict that by 2020, half of all searches will be performed without a screen but instead through voice. While pretty incredible, it isn’t really unexpected when you consider the popularity of virtual assistants such as Alexa and Google Assistant.

This doesn’t mean that you have until 2020 to prepare for voice searches because every single day, more and more voice searches are taking place. In fact, it is estimated that a billion voice searches already are occurring every month.

People talk and type differently. The conversational tone of talking means that there is an ever-growing emphasis on long-tail keywords and optimizing question-based terms. Semantic searches are also important. These searches focus on the fact that the initial question is usually followed by more questions. While this may seem complicated, it is really just figuring out the likely next question a person will ask about a particular subject.

Local information also is a huge component of voice searches. This is especially true of voice searches conducted on mobile devices. Local information is three times more likely to be relevant when a search is conducted on a smartphone, for example.

So how can you make sure that your content comes up during a voice search? You need to optimize your content. Here are a few of the best ways to do just that:

1. Incorporate questions into content. This is probably the best way you can optimize SEO for voice searches. Think of the commonly asked questions about your business and go from there. Not only will this help your overall SEO ranking, voice assistants will actually pull from your copy to answer questions. When parts of your copy is pulled, the answers are usually short and to the point so keep that in mind when creating content.
2. Location, location, location. Voice searches and SEO work closely together. That’s because people searching for local businesses are usually looking for one close to where they are. Make sure you have a complete profile for your Google My Business listing because that is the first place devices look for businesses. The more information you can put in your profile the better. And always make sure that the information is optimized to answer questions.
3. Monitor voice search trends. The behaviors and keywords that work well for voice-activated searches continue to evolve at a dizzying pace. Therefore, you need to track how well you are doing when it comes to voice searches and constantly refine your content to get noticed.

While voice search is popular, it is still not the easiest option for searchers. According to a survey conducted by Ignite Visibility, only 6% say they prefer using voice search over typing. Make sure you are ahead of the competition by becoming an expert on how people use these searches and what they use them for.