Whether it’s on the go in the car, working out, cooking, or doing home projects hands-free, we all use voice search at some point.

Voice search results give us quick, authoritative answers to what’s important to us at the moment. 

When we choose to search using voice assistants like Siri, Alexa, or Cortana, we expect high accuracy in getting the best answer.

The facts show that in 2020 voice search is on the rise. Consider some of the latest statistics:

• A 2019 Microsoft’s report showed that 69% of people had used a digital assistant within the last year
• Gartner has predicted that 75% will own at least one smart speaker by the end of 2020
• Google CEO Sundar Pichai reported 20% of searches on Google are through voice

The trends look promising. But this also creates a problem for most companies. 

Typical written search results don’t automatically transfer into voice search results. For your content to be chosen by voice assistants, it must be properly optimized.

Let’s look at three tips to help optimize your website content for digital voice assistants.

1) Write in a Conversational Voice 

Writing in the same way people speak helps digital assistants and find and show relevant content. People will ask questions verbally in a different way than they write them.

Also, humans can speak 150 words per minute while compared with 40-60 words, the average person can type at the same time. Speaking is different from writing, and you have to match the way people are searching.

Think about the way your customers phrase their questions over the phone or in person, and how you answer them. Then, write the same way online.

Optimizing for voice search begins with planning and outlining your content, and providing useful information. Ideally, if you can get your content to show up as a snippet result, it is also more likely to be shared via voice.

2) Answer Specific Questions your Customers are Asking

If you want to be found online, there’s a simple method: solve people’s problems.

This all starts with identifying customer pain points. You can look to your top ten ranked queries on your site. Then directly answer questions being as concise as possible.

You have to aim to satisfy users’ intent. Remember, context matters! 

For example:

A person searching for pizza ingredients to cook at home is a different intent than pizza home delivery. A human understands the difference, but the voice assistants are still learning. Make it easy by being clear about your customers’ search intent.

The three most common types of search intent are: 

• Informational: general info to solutions and answers: “who, what, how.”
• Navigational: find specific product brand or service, “near me, directions to.”
• Transactional: ready to take action:” order, download, reserve.” 

3) Add Proper Structure to your Content

Also, aim to use long-tail key phrases, give clear answers, and use simple words, so it’s easy for digital assistants to repeat back through Text-to-speech (TTS). 

Wherever possible, write your content in the form of paragraphs, lists, or tables. Search engines will have a much easier time sourcing and sharing this type of information.

Proper schema markup will increase the likelihood of Google finding this information and serving it up as featured snippets for digital assistants. This is important because 40% of spoken responses come from featured snippets, according to Microsoft’s report. 

Currently, there is no structured data specifically for featured snippets. However, Google is rolling out a new ‘speakable’ structured data markup [which is currently in Beta stage].

Use this for specific content focusing on key points. Then follow Google’s guidelines to submit markup for eligibility. 

It’s important to note that this feature is currently limited only to News article-specific queries, and only available for Google Home device.

As Google’s is continually changing this markup, it could potentially roll out for web pages soon. 

There’s no doubt that voice search will continue to grow in popularity and becoming increasingly important for online businesses.

Remember that Google is always aiming to make its search results more accurate and more useful. As much as you can, try to target common questions and match the search intent of your potential customers.

While voice search capabilities are still in a nascent stage, it’s a good idea to start prepping your site content correctly now.

Ready to improve your online rankings? Brandastic is a digital marketing and SEO agency based in Orange County, with offices in Los Angeles, and Austin. We specialize in helping businesses optimize their website for better SERP rankings and to reach more customers. Contact us today to see how we can help you grow.