Why voice search is shaping the future of local marketing

Hey, Google, where do I find the best matcha latte near me? Alexa, I need an oil change, where is the best auto repair shop near me? People are talking to their devices more than ever—so, what does this mean for your business? Voice search is the future of local marketing with 145 million people in the US alone using voice search in 2024. Most people that use voice search report that voice search is faster, and far more convenient than searching the web, and they might just be right. The average voice search result typically populates in about 4.6 seconds, much faster than normal web results. Now that search is as simple as using a digital voice assistant in the car, in your home, or in the palm of your hand, investing in voice search optimization is vital for local marketing success.
Getting voice search optimization right
The good news about voice search is that since it is still relatively new, it can be initially somewhat easy to ensure your company shows up for the local results. However, it does take a concentrated effort and a clear strategy as text-based SEO is different from voice search optimization (VSO). To start off, here are some quick tips to make sure your locations show up in “near me” searches.
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- Incorporate more long-tail phrases into the content you want to appear in voice searches. When people complete voice searches, they tend to use more conversational phrasing, such as “Hey Google, is there a coffee shop near me with WiFi?” It also tends to be more general vs what someone might type into their browser when searching for something similar. For local searches “near me” is the biggest trigger for local results. If you want your local business to come up in the voice search results, you will need to ensure you have clearly listed your location, have content that addresses long-tail conversational phrases and the general phrases your audience might be looking for, such as “urgent care near me” “coffee shop near me” or “best dentist near me” Additionally, it’s a good idea to incorporate question words and phrases that trigger voice search, including how, who, what, when, where, can, and more.
- Optimize for each location. Voice search is useful for looking something up quickly or when you don’t have the ability to type, such as when you’re driving or working. Ultimately, this meas that someone might not scroll very far through the voice search results or spend time reviewing every restaurant or dentist in the 15 mile vicinity like they might if they were searching in maps. So, your locations need to be appearing at the top of the list for local searches! “Near me” is the most popular local phrase, followed closely by the exact neighborhood in a city and then the city more broadly for those that might not be familiar with it. Make sure your locations have a business profile for both Google and Bing, and that websites or landing pages are also optimized to show up for any searches in your neighborhood meeting the right criteria. As a services or product provider, it is in your best interests to show up every time someone searches in any of the communities you serve.
- Create FAQ pages. FAQ pages work wonders for search optimization, both text and voice. You can search for the most commonly asked questions people have about your industry, product, or services using any number of tools, and your real-life experience of course, and use those to build out a comprehensive FAQs page. Ideally, you only incorporate relevant, useful content that your audience will use, helping you improve your site’s authority overall. It used to be that you had to incorporate an FAQ schema in order for Google to read the text correctly and incorporate your site’s info into featured snippets, but they have since done away with that in favor of featuring relevant information. Bottom line, always keep brand and site content relevant and clear, don’t go chasing search results!
- Implement speakable schema markup. While still in beta, speakable schema markup highlights text that is more suitable for text-to-speech playback. That means that if you have information that would be relevant to a voice search on your website, adding the schema may make it more likely that parts of your content are returned during voice searches. It won’t do any harm to your website to add it where needed, but make sure that you have optimized the text for speech first.
- Register on the right platforms. In order to make sure all of the above work drives results, each business location must have a profile on Apple Maps, Google Business profile, Bing Places for Businesses, and Facebook with the exact location, hours of operation, services, and reviews. Without a strong digital presence for each location, you will lose ground and market share!
Will voice search result in foot traffic and online bookings?
If you get it right, voice search can help boost foot traffic and drive online conversions. With over 145 million people in the US alone using voice search on a regular basis, yesterday was the perfect time to start optimizing, but right now is the second best. The most common follow up action people take after a voice search result is calling the business, and the second most common search performed on voice search centers around “near me” local searches. Most people that perform voice searches for local places should be considered hot leads as they are actively engaged and most likely looking for an immediate answer.
Useful tools for voice search optimization and staying on top of trends
- Answer the public – Want to know what people are thinking or saying about a particular brand, product, or service? This is the best tool for highlighting the questions your audience is asking to keep your brand top of mind.
- Google Suite – The hero of digital data for marketers, the Google suite is invaluable for measuring where your audience is coming from and what they are responding to. If you are not already connected to Analytics, it’s time to get started.
- SEMrush or Ahrefs – When you need to optimize for voice and for text an SEO tool is an invaluable resource for your team. You can lookup keywords, track your domain authority, get recommendations for ranking, and so much more.
Lastly, if you need a marketing partner to guide your brand through VSO and local marketing, MDG is just a call away.