Last modification on July 18, 2021 by Loïc Frissard
Voice search is undoubtedly the future of online search: simpler, more precise and faster, it offers a better user experience and is therefore increasingly adopted.
Google has equipped itself with a conversational agent, Google Assistant, which analyzes natural language to respond to queries using different voice commands via Ok Google. This trend is here to stay and should not be taken lightly: here are our 10 Tips to Optimize Your Voice SEO Strategy.
Identify the differences between text SEO and voice SEO
Before you start working on your Voice SEO, it is important to understand the specificities, namely, longer queries (often questions or sentences), more natural, more specific and precise, for an immediate result. In a word: more keywords to integrate into your content strategy!
Don’t neglect the long tail
Google voice search changes the way you phrase your query. Internet users will no longer search for keywords (3 to 5 on average for a classic search) but will ask questions by formulating sentences. To optimize your voice SEO, you will therefore need to optimize the long tail and exploit the conversational language in your keyword study.
Optimize your mobile site
According to a Google report, 20% of Americans use Google voice search on Mobile. And for good reason: it’s much simpler to be able to speak into your phone to carry out a search! It is therefore crucial to optimize your site on mobile: it’s all well and good to appear in the first results, but the Internet user must not leave your site in the first seconds of navigation (The Rebound). To do this, first improve the loading speed of your site: it should not exceed 3 seconds because beyond that, most users leave the site. Second thing to do: ensure that your site is Responsive Design, that is to say, adapted to all mobile media (tablet, smartphone, connected TV, etc.). To help you improve your site, Google provides you with various tools to test your site (Test My Site, Mobile Friendly Test) and then offers you optimization options and recommendations based on the result.
Aim for position 0 or featured snippet…
Position 0, or featured snippet, highlights the first Google search result with a preview of an excerpt from the relevant page. It is this extract that is read by the Google voice assistant when you do a voice search on Google. To aim for this coveted position, you will need to code your articles differently than for a textual search, by integrating the words used orally (how, what, what is it, what is it? what, where, can we…). By placing yourself on these queries, you will have a greater chance of appearing in position 0 of Google voice search.
…as well as PAAs
PAAs (People Also Ask) complete the featured snippets for a while. This is a box offering the questions most asked by Internet users on the same subject, with for each of them a featured snippet which can be expanded by clicking on the question. This has become a major feature of Google voice search: if the Internet user does not find his answer with the featured snippet, he will see in this box. It is therefore important to integrate it into your voice SEO strategy.
Adapt your content to conversational searches
It is important to adapt your content to voice search keywords: “how”, “what”, “where”, “can we”, etc. Create content that can respond precisely to this type of query, such as paragraphs in the form of a question or paragraph titles (H2) such as: “Where to find an SEO agency in Levallois”. The FAQs are also a good place to start.
Be able to respond to specific requests
Direct consequence of natural language queries: Internet users will expect more precise and complete answers to the question asked. Your general pages will need to be refined and each page will need to be optimized to answer a specific question likely to be asked by the user.
Enrich your content
More precise content also means richer content! Let’s take the example of the page presenting your activity on your site: while a page including a general paragraph was very suitable for text search, the advent of Google voice search will require a richer and more detailed description, with for example a paragraph answering the question “who are we?” ”, one for the question “what are our prices?” », one for the question “where to find us?” “, etc.
Take care of your local SEO
You should know that voice search on Google is not used in the same context as text search. We talked to you about the prominence of Mobile: in fact, users will be more likely to use it on the move. And therefore, logically, for immediate searches (finding a restaurant near you, opening hours, having information on a particular store, etc.): Voice SEO thus promotes local SEO. Local SEO already having its dedicated tool, Google My Business, Google voice search will allow it to be even more valued: a boon for local businesses! A tip: display essential information such as address, opening hours, email and telephone number visibly on your website.
Say goodbye to misspelled keywords
Good news: Google voice search will eliminate spelling mistakes! Whereas before, you had to integrate all the possible spellings of your main keyword into your keyword cloud, you will no longer have to worry about it for Voice SEO. You will also need to make sure you have perfectly spelled texts, because if they are to appear in featured snippeta mistake can quickly discredit your site.
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