lsa17: getting found through voice optimization & virtual assistants (soleo, talklocal)
TRANSCRIPT
Getting Found Through “VEO” and Virtual AssistantsCherith Meeks, Soleo CommunicationsManpreet Singh, TalkLocal
Voice Search Continues to Grow
The use of voice search is skyrocketing.• By 2020, 30% of searches will be done without a screen 1
• 40% of adults now use voice search once per day 2
It’s redefining the way people search for local.• Mobile voice-related searches are 3X more likely to be local-
based than text 3
• Nearly 50% of people are now using voice search when researching products 4
1 MediaPros; 2 comscore; 3 Search Engine Watch; 4 Social Media Today
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Consumer Searching Habits Continue to Adapt
Consumers are adapting to voice search from traditional text search.• A text query is fewer than three words on average
• Voice queries are often much longer and more detailed
• These longer queries provide richer intent
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Sample Search Categories for Voice Search
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Consumers use voice search for things they need in that moment.
RestaurantsCoffee & Cafes
Delis
General Contractors
Beauty SalonsGroceries
Bars
Gas Stations
Pet Supplies
Banks & ATMs
Icons from Flaticon.com
The Value of Understanding Natural Language
Natural Language Processing underpins the work of conversational search.• It is important for search devices to leverage natural language
processing to support voice search.
For example, consider these two searches:“I need my lawn mowed” and “I need my lawn mower fixed”
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“I need my lawn mowed”
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A search engine should understand the user’s need (lawn mowing) and location and return relevant results.
“I need my lawn mower fixed”
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In this case, the search engine should understand the difference between lawn mowing and lawn equipment.
Businesses Must Evolve Too
Businesses will need to optimize for what they offer rather than simply who they are.
In the past, a roofer in San Diego, CA simply had to ensure that they would show up in searches within the business categories of “General Contracting”, “Contracting – Roofing”, “Roofing”, and similar categories.
But that doesn’t consider how users search by voice:“I need some shingles replaced”
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Voice Search and Associated TermsBusinesses must ensure they are aligned with their product and service offerings:
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“I need some shingles replaced.”Contractor
Replacement
RoofingService
Asphalt
Roof
Shingles
Repair
Residential
Solar Panels
EfficiencyEnergy
Installation
Slate
Maintenance
Rebates
Commercial
What Does This Mean for SMBs?
Traditional SEO and SEM are changing too.
• Be found on more search ecosystems– Get listed in local directories
• Make sure local directories know what you do, not just who you are
• Make sure you choose partners who are equipped for conversational search
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Lessons from Mobilegeddon
ENGE , ERIC. (2015 , Jun 3) Mobilegeddon: Nearly 50% of Non-Mobile Friendly URLs Dropped in Rank. https://www.stonetemple.com/mobilegeddon-may-have-been-bigger-than-we-thought/
NonMobile Friendly URLS Mobile Friendly URLS
Bad dog. Good dog!
Source: Thrive Analytics. (2016, June 6) Adoption of Voice Search Continues to Gain Traction. http://www.thriveanalytics.com/blog/?p=709
Tighter Competition
“If you’re not first, you’re last.”
The Ricky Bobby Law of Ranking is now in effect thanks to…
• Voice based interfaces• Direct answers• Google rich answers• Action buttons
Impact on the Search Landscape
Tabeling, Jason . (2014, Dec 1) How Will Voice Search Impact a Search Marketer’s World? https://searchenginewatch.com/sew/how-to/2383498/how-will-voice-search-impact-a-search-marketers-world
Best practices
Come up with Who/What/Where/When/Why/How questions regarding your offerings
Create content with a conversational tone responding to common answers
Factor in the intent indicators in your different responses and when building campaigns around answers
Find out which mobile voice commands are best for your business
Update your site with schema.org/structured data markup Remember to test your structure data. Google’s is here
https://search.google.com/structured-data/testing-tool/u/0/
Extensions
• On the go voice search users will be more responsive to quick call to action offers in search results. They don’t have time read your website.
• Types of extensions: – Location Extensions.– Call Extensions. – Dynamic Search Ads: With help from structured data markup, a ad
partner like Google can actually crawl a website and promote the aspects of the site that are relevant to the searcher based on indicated intent.
New Gatekeepers
• Voice technology creates the need for new digital gatekeepers
– Virtual assistants (i.e.HelloAlfred)– On-demand and referral companies (i.e.
AskAlexa and HomeAdvisor)
• Access through these gate keepers only makes the normal digital strategy more important