In recent years, the voice search technology has changed the way many of us conduct online search. These days, every smartphone and tablet device comes with a built-in voice assistant. Furthermore, as adoption of these devices has become nearly universal, the voice search and voice commands have become more prevalent. Likewise, the influx of connected speakers on the market has further entrenched voice search in daily life.
As of July 2019, Adobe reported that 44% of survey respondents reported daily use of some form of voice technology, and that 48% use voice technology to conduct general web searches. These numbers indicate that the outlook for voice technology and voice search is positive, and we expect growth in adoption in the years to come. Virtual assistants are a new reality, including the adaption of the smart speakers and digital assistants at the rate faster than ever before.
Exponential growth of voice search will impact businesses in every sector of the economy, including healthcare. In this article we discuss why businesses and institutions should make voice search a priority now, and cover practical tips on how to adapt a text-based search optimization to a more voice-forward culture.
Why now is the moment for healthcare organizations and businesses to make voice search a priority
As the quality of voice recognition software advances, patients and providers can expect to see more of this technology in both healthcare research and treatment. The COVID-19 outbreak has accelerated the need for online communications further than anyone could imagine even a few weeks ago. At this time, our daily activities are plugged-in to the online environment – we are connecting, shopping, communicating, conducting business and even attend church services via virtual medium at unparalleled levels.
A current pandemic has forced a rapid shift from traditional models of communication to online interaction. Many organizations are redirecting their resourced to address such a shift viable for both providers and clients.
However, this crisis presents unique opportunities to focus marketing efforts on digital optimization. Businesses who want to remain visible to consumers in the coming years will have to find a way to incorporate voice technology into their digital marketing strategies. Now is the time to make voice search a priority.
What does voice search optimization look like for healthcare organizations?
Adopting a voice search strategy isn’t just about remaining relevant—it’s also about creating a unique and optimized customer experience that will foster relationships and build brand loyalty. So, how can you optimize your marketing strategy to make your content more voice-friendly?
Topical optimization – or focusing on long-tail keywords
There is a single word to explain why long-tail keywords are important: intent. Search engines have a hard time understanding intent from a single keyword – searching for “Healthcare provider” is not the same as “fastest route to St. Vincent’s” or “fastest route to St.Vincent’s in St Augustine.”. Incorporating long-tail keywords into a business’ content will help search engines deliver more accurate results. Unlike text search, voice search returns a single result at a time. A research on long-tail searches related to the healthcare field should will improve the content creation.
Businesses need to continue to pay attention to important keywords for their industries, but they also need to pay attention to how people are using the keywords to search for their services with voice-enabled devices. If searchers are using multiple words or a certain phrase repeatedly, it’s time to optimize for that popular search query.
Use natural language search terms
When we talk to each other, we’re more informal than we are when we write a guide or give a speech. This is just a part of basic social behavior. When we talk to our friends, we use slang, contractions and relaxed linguistics. This informal use of language carries into our text messages and social media posts, too. To be voice search ready, businesses and brands need to take things down a notch in the formality department when creating content. According to Google, 70 percent of the requests asked to their voice assistants are in natural language. These assistants work the best when they’re talked to like humans.
Create conversational content
Remember that voice search queries differ from traditional text search queries in terms of how they are structured — the former is more conversational in nature. Expand your view of search intent based on the types of question-based queries a user might ask via voice search. It’s essential to deliver more accurate results based on the anticipated context. It is essential to optimize your website and content for intuitive but specific queries. This can be accomplished via a detailed FAQ page or a blog containing authority content created around longtail keywords and conversational but specific questions. This would require you to research the kind of questions your target audience most frequently poses to digital assistants and produce content around those queries.
Key takeaway
Optimizing your content for voice search is all about patience and practice. Content production is leaning towards relaxed conversational tones while having a much greater depth in order to target long-tail keywords. Build content that answers questions quickly. Make sure structured data markup is integrated into your website where appropriate.
Published on: April 13, 2020 by Benon Design