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Everyone’s heard of Search Engine Optimization, but how often these days to do hear “Hey Google, or Hey Alexa, or Hey Siri?” Probably more often than you think.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) has been around for a while, but with the rise of voice assistants like Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa, and Apple Siri, voice search optimization (VSO) has become increasingly important.
Tech giants are investing heavily in research and development of mobile and voice search technology. Smart devices are transforming the way we search for information and businesses need to adapt to remain competitive.
By being early adopters of VSO, businesses can get ahead of the competition and take advantage of new opportunities in the voice search market. It’s like how missing out on Google SEO in the late 2000s was a mistake, but businesses who quickly jumped on local SEO a few years later reaped the benefits.
So What Do I Have to Do?
The good news is that most modern websites already have the necessary technical components for voice search optimization (VSO) built-in. However, the focus should be on the content of the website. Natural Language Processing (NLP) is key. This means that the content should be written in a way that is easy for humans to read, while still being clear and concise enough for computers to understand the website’s purpose.
What are the Technical Pieces?
To be precise they are:
- Schema Markup is a type of structured data that assists search engines in comprehending a website’s content.
- Mobile-Friendly Design is crucial since most voice searches are performed on mobile devices. The device strives to provide the best possible user experience, and a website that isn’t optimized for mobile devices may be penalized.
- Natural Language Keywords are essential to sound conversational and human-like because voice assistants can’t communicate like humans. It’s critical to avoid “keyword vomit” since search engines have been penalizing this for some time.
- Page Speed is critical for user experience. A website that loads slowly, even if it provides the best results, may be penalized. Customers don’t want to use a sluggish website full of pop-ups and advertisements that make it difficult to find what they’re looking for.
Is there Secret Sauce?
Yes, there is. Based on my experience, Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) sections, especially in knowledge-based industries, are highly attractive to voice search queries because they offer prompt and concise responses to frequently asked questions. Additionally, interlinked blog posts that elaborate on the information in the FAQs can be quite beneficial.
