Impact of Voice Search SEO on your Website Ranking in 2022

Voice search is becoming increasingly popular. For users, it means more straightforward search queries and faster answers. For marketers, it means greater traffic on their site and improved search rankings. However, this optimization requires tweaks in your SEO strategy that helps boost website ranking in 2022.

Here are a few statistics that touch upon the tremendous reach and impact of voice-search amongst audiences on the web.

• Close to 50% of people are now researching products using voice search
• 27% of the global online population is using voice search on mobile.
• Gartner predicted that 30% of all browsing sessions would include voice search by 2020.

Integrating voice optimization in your website strategy has short-term and long-term benefits on your search rankings and visibility.

How will voice search impact SEO strategies?

Searchers are constantly looking for information on the go, and voice search is the fastest way to do so. Hopping onboard this need can increase traffic for site owners, as well as improve site relevancy for certain keywords.

Another reason why voice search is predicted to be a key criterion for website performance in 2022 is UX. User experience is one of the main ranking determinants for Google's algorithm, and optimizing your website for the increasingly popular voice search helps you score big with your users, and thus the search engine itself.

Sites across industries can leverage this need for voice-accessible website content, including small business owners, leaders in the music industry, e-commerce sites such as Amazon, and those in the content marketing sector.

When it comes to specific steps for accessibility, improving and changing one's current SEO strategy is essential. SEO and voice-search should go hand-in-hand while crafting content for your site, and here's why.

When a user uses voice-search to query on a search engine or e-commerce site, they search differently than they would if they were typing a query out.

For example, typing out a query on his mobile phone would probably type something like "burgers near me". The same user using voice-search on Google would say, "where can I find good burger places near me?" Use of such a conversational tone is why optimizing the content on your website is essential for better Voice SEO.

In other words, creating content that answers questions is what sets a voice-search-friendly website apart from a regular one.

Here are a few ways you can make sure your website content is voice-search friendly:

1. Keep recent SEO trends in mind while creating content and website design (emphasize UX, mobile-friendliness, etc.).
2. Use long-tail keywords in your content.
3. Use conversational language in your website copy.
4. Focus on answering location-specific queries.
5. Work on semantic search and user search intent.
6. Write crisp, easy-to-understand content - the more complex your content is, the harder it is for a search engine to establish relevancy.
7. Include an FAQ page that answers "What", "Why", "How", and "Where" questions.

It's not the end for written content

The overwhelming number of users turning to voice search does not mean written content turning obsolete in the coming year. As large as the numbers are, voice search is still a long way from becoming a preferred search mode by most users.

Voice search still comes with its problems, including glitchy language recognition, less relevant pages (due to minimal optimization of website copy), and incomplete integration with search engines and other online platforms. Certain content niches rely solely on written content and are yet to utilize voice-based accessibility. Rest assured that textual content will never die.

The takeaway

2022 will see many changes in how websites are deemed relevant or irrelevant by search engine algorithms. Voice-search is a major trend predicted to affect SEO in the coming year, as well as other website features that help enhance UX (such as Core Web Vitals). Optimizing your website for better voice search accessibility is a great way to reach new ranking heights in 2022.

About the author

Paul Fraser is a Freelance Content Writer at Commerce Mentors. He has two years of experience in writing about eCommerce, Technology, and Marketing. Paul is also a number guy who enjoys reading novels. When not working, he loves visiting new cafes and spending time with his friends.

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Tags: SEO, Voice Search, Guest Post