Hey Google, what will the weather be like today? Asking questions with the help of voice assistants is being used increasingly. This is an innovative way of searching, which announces the start of a new SEO-era for us. It’s not just talking to our phone or tablets to play music or to check our agenda. For example, smart speakers have been released that will make our lives a lot easier, and soon the first alarm clocks and even microwaves with built-in voice assistants will appear on the market. In short, we can no longer ignore it: voice search is becoming an important trend within online marketing, and we can anticipate on it now!

The relevance of responding to voice search

In a single minute, up to 150 words can be spoken in a search query, while on average only 30 to 40 words can be typed per minute. This indicates that voice searches are more specific than when the user enters the search manually. It is also noticed that with spoken searches, the local search results are used more often. More than twenty percent of the spoken searches relate to words such as "nearby" or "close to". This means that it is more important than ever to focus on local keywords during SEO optimisations, in order to reach people within the vicinity of your company.

Nowadays we get answers to our questions faster than ever, because of voice searches you no longer have to go through all the search results. Google gives you the right answer straight away. The consequence of this is that we have to say goodbye to the hundreds of search results that we are used to from Google. Given that the number 1 positions we want to achieve are now rarer than ever, this provides a completely new challenge. But, as an online marketing agency, we naturally take up this challenge and do everything we can to ensure that our customers rank as high as possible in Google.

How do I respond to this voice trends as a company?

Now that you know why it is important for a company to respond to this development within online marketing, you are probably wondering how you can do this in the best possible way. First of all, it is important that the current SEO work within the company is in order. This means that, among other things, all content on the website is optimised and high-quality links refer to it. In addition, the loading time of your website is also an important factor to rank higher in Google, but now that spoken search results are being used more and more, this factor has become even more important.

Now that you have mastered all the basics of keyword results, it's time to focus on local SEO. As previously discussed, spoken searches are often based on a location. To be found locally, a business page must be submitted to Google My Business first. In addition, optimised content must be created focusing on search terms related to place names. Focusing on how the target group searches is therefore inevitable, which means that the use of frequently asked questions or conversational keywords on websites has become necessary. At The Dare Company we respond strategically to this, and we provide optimised FAQ pages for many websites.

Want to know more about Voice Search?

Of course there are more factors that influence a high ranking in Google, which we would like to tell you more about! We are happy to help you achieve more results in Google and take all worries off your hands. Contact us or drop by to discuss the possibilities, while enjoying a delicious cup of coffee with us!