Studies predict the voice recognition market will hit $26.8 billion by 2025. If you’re not yet optimizing your SEO strategy for voice search, your website could become invisible to a massive and ever-growing audience. 

“Hey Siri: How do I optimize my website for voice search?”

With the evolution of conversational AI, assistants like Alexa, Siri, and Google Assistant have entered the digital zeitgeist. People search via voice for everything, from the closest Apple store to the best recipe for homemade sourdough. This demonstrates a fundamental shift from typing to more convenient, hands-free talking. We even use VoIP to connect online for a fraction of the cost of traditional long-distance charges. 

Google and other search engines constantly adapt alongside shifting user preferences or needs, as evidenced by Google’s ongoing research and development in natural language processing for search results. 

What does this mean for you? 

Your SEO strategy must adapt to include this whole new world of search queries. Let’s look at the how and why of voice search optimization, so you can assess your content strategy and find simple ways to stand out with voice SEO.

The Importance of Voice Search Optimization

Voice search isn’t a passing fad: 

• 62% of Americans use voice assistants across smart devices
• The Canadian speech recognition market is projected to reach $276.25m in 2025
• 36% of Americans own smart speakers, and over 30% of Canadians

Voice search offers the convenience we need in our busy lives. As Murtaza Oklu, owner of OMO Transfer, shares, “I find myself using voice search all the time, both in my personal life and for my business. If I’m rushing between meetings or even on the road, I can activate search with a quick voice command and find the nearest coffee shop, when a store closes, or whatever answer I need. And if I’m using voice search nearly every day, that means a big chunk of our customers likely are, too.”

If you aren’t honing your SEO strategies to include voice search, you’re bound to get left behind—especially because so many of these searches are bottom-funnel inquiries. 

People using voice search are often committed to making a purchase and looking for the best place to do so. When we optimize a website for voice, we have the potential to earn as much traffic to our websites and storefronts as possible. And in today’s competitive market, SMBs need every advantage we can get. 

Voice search optimization also complements traditional keyword SEO, and builds a competitive SEO advantage over businesses that haven’t yet adapted. 

SEO Strategies for Voice Search

Fortunately, with a bit of time and effort, voice search optimization doesn’t have to be complicated. Shift your mindset, shift your keyword language, and unlock user intent to understand how best to approach voice SEO. 

1. Focus on Long-Tail and Conversational Keywords

 To optimize for voice search, you need to write content that mimics how people actually speak. This is the biggest difference compared to older on-page optimization tactics.

In the early days of Google, simpler terms yielded better results, and keyword strategies with 2-3 simple word strings were born from that. Search engines are now significantly smarter, so they better understand conversational language. Google uses natural language processing (NLP) to effectively understand intent from longer search strings. Since we naturally speak in sentences, that’s reflected in how we use voice search, too. 

This means you need to build your voice search strategy around those long-tail keywords and full-sentence questions that voice searchers will likely ask. You should still include short-tail keywords, but balance your priorities across both and consider how short-tail keywords might look different in voice versus text-based search. 

Brooker Webber, Head of Marketing at Ninja Patches, has seen great results optimizing for long-tail, voice-driven keywords. After prioritizing more long-tail keywords and targeting conversational phrases, like ‘Where can I order high-quality custom embroidered patches online,’ search visibility improved by nearly 30%. 

Webber says, “It’s a more nuanced approach to SEO, but the data is clearly demonstrating its effectiveness as we move into the age of voice search. And we always want to move towards better meeting user needs through our marketing efforts.”

2. Create Content That Answers Specific User Questions

Voice search users look for quick answers, so design your content around the specific questions they’re asking. 

For example, FAQ-style rich snippets are invaluable in voice search optimization, because they give you insights into the actual questions users are asking Google about your topic. By tailoring your content strategy to address these specific queries, you increase the chances of capturing a coveted position in the almighty featured snippet or ‘position zero,’ and increasing your search visibility.

You can build site content and blogs around specific user questions that match voice search queries, but don’t limit yourself—Jonathan Feniak, General Counsel at LLC Attorney, has had great luck building FAQs and a robust knowledge base. 

He shares, “Our FAQ and knowledge base have become our best secret weapons for voice search. We’re not just answering questions but anticipating them—especially those long, detailed ones people ask voice assistants about LLCs, compliance, and legalities. We’ve been able to turn complex legal topics into bite-sized answers that better suit how our audience naturally searches, and it’s helped us see a real jump in traffic and thought leadership positioning within our niche.”

3. Optimize for Local Search Queries

Local SEO impacts organic search traffic for local businesses, and it’s absolutely crucial for voice search. When people use voice search on their phones, it’s often because they’re on the go and looking for products or services nearby.

Optimizing those location-based searches is essential to your voice search success. Use them to connect with customers who are primed to buy and build long-lasting local relationships. 

To help your business rank for ‘near me’ searches, ensure that your business has a fully populated Google Business Profile, and that your website sends all the proper location signals through on-page local keyword SEO and location details in your site’s footer and Contact page. If you have a blog, publishing location-specific content is another great way to increase your relevance to local searches.

Web Design Optimization

Beyond creating content that draws more voice search traffic to your website, your site’s design can greatly impact your voice SEO results. 

1. Ensure Mobile-First and Responsive Design

According to Statista, around 94.1% of global internet users go online via their smartphones, and habitual voice searchers use them even more often. In this day and age, you absolutely have to have a mobile-friendly web design. 

Although you can start with a mobile design and work your way backwards to desktop, it’s a much smarter (and efficient) process to work with an agency or designer who focuses on responsive designs at every stage. 

A responsive design allows your site to automatically adapt to different resolutions and screen sizes. This means whether a voice searcher accesses your site from a small smartphone, a large one, or a tablet, your website will always look great.

2. Implement Voice-Activated Interfaces Where Applicable

Integrating Voice User Interfaces (VUIs) directly in your web design can add value and improve the user experience for voice users everywhere. You might add features that allow users to search your site or book an appointment simply by speaking into their smartphone, improving accessibility and experience signals across the board. 

VUIs are still relatively new, but we’re starting to see industry leaders use them to better serve voice users, people with disabilities, and those who prefer hands-free interaction. Just don’t use VUI as a gimmick; use it as a carefully thought-out tactic to add genuine value to every user’s experience. 

3. Improve Site Speed and Performance

Every user expects fast and reliable loading times, but voice search users especially demand near-instantaneous results as they multi-task. Google’s recent algorithm updates prioritize page loading speeds as an integral part of the user experience, so your site has to be fast-loading if you hope to rank well—especially for voice search queries. 

As Reyansh Mestry, Head of Marketing at TopSource Worldwide, succinctly put it: “In the world of voice search, every millisecond counts—there’s a very slim margin of error. Users are often on the go and want immediate answers. A slow-loading website won’t cut it and can lead to losing not just a potential customer but brand trust and loyalty. We’ve found that our bounce rate is significantly lower when we’re working hard and maintaining great load speeds.”

Use site speed check tools, keep image and video sizes relatively small, and keep coding clean to optimize your performance. Low-code site builders like Refoundry can yield high-performing websites when used by professional developers. 

Technical SEO & Voice Search

To conquer voice search, you must look under the hood at the technical components of your website. If the foundation is shaky, it will be difficult to stand out in voice search—or even text-based search!

1. Implement Structured Data to Improve Search Engine Understanding

Structured data, aka schema markups, help search engines make sense of your website to serve you up in the right results pages. Since technologies have advanced and web design has grown more complex, structured data is standardized so Google can easily decipher who you are and what your website is all about. 

Nick Esposito, Founder of NYCServers, explains, “Schema markups serve as that translator between your website’s content and search engines. They can better understand the context and meaning behind your pages, making it more likely that you’ll show up for the right voice searches. With the rise of voice and AI increasing competition across the board in SEO, structured data is no longer optional.—it’s essential.”

Use schema.org as your guide to understand the world of markups, and find the schema markups most relevant to your brand. If you’re hosting an event or releasing a book, there’s a schema for that—and nearly 800 other options. 

If you’re not a coding master, use tools and plugins that recommend and inject structured data into your website’s code for you. 

2. Ensure Website Accessibility and Clear Navigation

The same SEO best practices for other types of search results are equally relevant for voice search—if search engine bots can’t crawl and navigate your site, you cannot rank well. 

Organizing your site structure with a clear hierarchy and breadcrumb navigation is a best-practice design that helps search engines understand your content and audiences enjoy a great UX. 

You’ll want intuitive and mobile-friendly navigation so that when voice searchers click on your site, they can quickly figure out where to go. And make sure to learn about web accessibility and follow all WCAG guidelines, so that visually impaired people using assistive technology to navigate your site can easily get around. 

Conclusion

The rise of voice search isn’t a fickle trend, but a shift in how users interact with websites on a global scale. Look into the strategies above, from conversational keywords and schema markups to page loading speeds, to position your website to thrive in the world of modern voice search. 

Don’t wait for the competition to jump on voice SEO—start optimizing for voice search today, so you can grow a powerful voice-first audience.