The rising popularity of voice search digital marketing platforms influences the optimization strategies that marketers can employ.
Have you ever tried searching for something online through voice search? It’s quicker and easier than the traditional text-based search, right? Today, several people are adopting voice search because of its convenience. According to statistics, more than 50% of adults use voice search daily. And this is why you should revisit your digital marketing strategy.
The rising popularity of voice search digital marketing platforms influences the optimization strategies that business owners and their marketers employ for their websites, social media channels, and local search listings. Read this article to learn more about voice search marketing tips for business owners.
Traditional Text-Based Search Versus Voice Search
Before, a text-based search was the only way to look something up online. You simply type your query or keywords in a search box, press enter, and you’re shown various results. You can perform a text-based search if you have a desktop, laptop, smartphone, tablet, or any smart device.
In contrast, a voice search’s input method is through verbal commands on supported devices such as smartphones, smart speakers, and virtual assistants like Siri and Alexa. Although there was already a form of voice search in the late 1990s, like Voice Xpress, it was only until the mid-2000s that voice search became more widely accessible during the surge of smartphones and virtual assistants.
Regarding search intent, text-based searches tend to be formal and concise, while voice searches adopt a more natural and conversational tone as users articulate their queries verbally. Regarding keyword length, text-based searches generally use shorter terms, while voice searches often incorporate longer phrases as questions or statements.
Digital marketing in the Philippines is continuously evolving, and integrating voice search into your digital marketing strategies will give your business an edge over your competitors. If you want to optimize your business online presence for voice search, here are some valuable tips:
Incorporate long-tail keywords in your content
Have you ever compared your search behavior between text-based and voice searches? For example, you’re searching for information about garden net suppliers. When using text-based search, you often type in significant keywords like “garden net suppliers.” However, with voice search, you tend to ask complete questions, resulting in longer keyword queries such as “Where to find garden net suppliers?”
To optimize your content for voice search digital marketing platforms, consider incorporating long-tail keywords into your website, blog posts, product descriptions, and social media posts.
Use conversational language in your content
Aside from injecting long-tail keywords in your content, make sure also to use conversational language. When using voice search, people often speak casually. Here are some examples:
| Non-conversational | Conversational |
| Italian restaurants near me | Can you recommend some Italian restaurants nearby? |
| Benefits of meditation | Is meditation good for my health? |
| Best places to visit in Paris | What are the top attractions I should see in Paris? |
| How to invest in stocks | Can you explain to beginners how to invest in stocks? |
As you may have noticed, conversational content uses casual language, has a friendlier tone, and talks to the readers. It also often uses first-person and second-person pronouns such as “I” and “you.”
Make your website mobile-friendly
When using voice search, they often do so on smartphones and smart speakers, so you must provide your users with a mobile-friendly experience. To do this, make your website responsive.
With a responsive design, your web pages will automatically adjust and appear excellent on various devices, eliminating the need for your users to zoom in or out. If your website still lacks a responsive design, you can ask a web developer for help or pay for a premium web design template with a responsive design feature.
Focus on enhancing local search visibility
If you want to adopt voice search digital marketing platforms, you should focus on optimizing your business’ local search visibility. A Semrush article stated that most voice search users often ask about local businesses nearby and current weather conditions. To leverage this data, ensure your web content and social media posts are optimized for local search.
For example, you’re an automotive parts supplier in City Z. To increase your chances of appearing in voice search results, make sure that most of your content mentions what you do and your location. You can also add location hashtags so your content will pop up in local search results.
Explore voice search optimization tools
If you’re keen on optimizing your content for voice search, exploring voice search optimization tools can help! Several free and paid online tools can enhance your content’s visibility. You can try Google Keyword Planner, Answer the Public, Ahrefs, Semrush, or Wordstream for keyword research tools. You can use Buzzsumo, Clear Voice, MarketMuse, and more for content development.
Brands Embracing Voice Search
Perhaps you’re still contemplating including voice search in your digital marketing strategy. Voice search is one of the best digital marketing solutions for business. Top brands already embrace voice search, boost engagement, and create better customer connections.
PayPal
PayPal is an online payment system that allows users to send and receive money worldwide. To improve their service, PayPal integrated their app with Apple’s Siri, so users can quickly send money with just their voice. However, currently, this service is only available in 30 countries.
Starbucks
Starbucks is already a well-known beverage company with several branches worldwide. Despite being an established brand, it never ceases to improve its services. Starbucks has enabled voice ordering to offer greater convenience among its loyal customers. Integrating voice technology helped increase their sales by up to 16%.
Nike
Have you heard of Nike’s self-lacing basketball shoes? Nike integrated Google Assistant into its Adapt BB 2.0s, enabling users to use voice commands to tighten their shoelaces automatically. This feature is convenient for many fitness enthusiasts as it allows them to continue their activities without interruption.
Other brands, like KFC and McDonald’s, have also adopted voice search technology, though it may be limited to certain countries. KFC received praise for its AI voice mimicry of Colonel Sanders’ voice. However, McDonald’s AI voice ordering has not been well-received, with several people sharing their unpleasant experiences on social media platforms like TikTok.
Not everyone may be successful with voice search on their first try. Even big brands have struggled with it. However, if you continuously test and observe what others are doing, you can refine your approach and improve your chances of success.
Stay Ahead of the Curve in Digital Marketing Trends
What worked yesterday may not work today. Therefore, watching for emerging marketing trends, such as voice search digital marketing platforms, is essential. As the importance of digital marketing in business becomes increasingly evident, the surge of voice search highlights businesses’ need to refine their digital marketing strategy. This ensures they remain visible to customers exploring products and services through voice search.
If you want to stay up-to-date with the ever-changing digital marketing landscape, contact Eight Media for help. We offer various digital marketing services, such as content marketing, digital ads management, digital design creation, social media management, and web development. For a free consultation, contact us today.
