Ok Google, How Does Voice Search Affect My Search Results?

“Ok, Google. Explain yourself!”

I don’t think that worked… Let’s try to explain it ourselves.

Google Voice Search is a function that allows users to search the web through verbal commands on both desktop & mobile.

By proclaiming the words, “Ok, Google.” followed by a search request, Google will begin to analyze what the user is looking for. This feature can be utilized either hands-free on certain mobile devices & operating systems, or by simply tapping/clicking the microphone icon on Google’s main search field:

This neat, hands-free feature isn’t anything new, but how does it affect your search results? Well, according to John Muller, it doesn’t. The feature transcribes the verbal query and performs a regular search.

That doesn’t mean you should close this blog post just yet. With 60% of all traffic coming from mobile devices, there’s still some info you may need to know.

Voice search has seen rapid growth and is believed to dominate 50% of searches by 2020.

So, how can you prepare for the seemingly inevitable? Luckily, several researchers had the same question. Here’s what we know so far:

• Google prefers short answers for voice search queries and will display snippets of information of 29 words. Approximated 41% of all voice search results come from Featured Snippets, so having one is always plus.
• With that being said, make sure your content has high social engagement (voice search results tend to get more shares via Facebook & Twitter).
• Content that ranks high in desktop searches will also rank high in voice searches. You should be putting out easy-to-read, high-quality content with an average word count of 2,312 words (looks like this blog post won’t make it, then).
• Make sure your PageSpeed is up to par. This means it should load in 4.6 seconds, which is 52% faster than the average page.
• Finally, having an authoritative HTTPS website will help you dominate the voice search game.

As for the question of how to track voice search queries? Simple. You don’t.

Due to the verbal query being transcribed, Google doesn’t differentiate between voice and written searches.

Even though Google is not prioritizing this at the moment, it is still important to keep the above points in mind in order to optimize your site to the fullest.

For more info on Voice Search or other related topics, don’t hesitate to contact our SEO experts!