Imagine asking your phone’s virtual assistant, “What is voice search?” instead of typing “voice search definition.” This conversational search style is different from traditional text-based queries and requires a fresh approach to search engine optimization (SEO).

Unlike traditional text-based searches, voice queries are more conversational and specific, so they require brands to adopt a different SEO approach. That’s where voice search optimization steps in — tailoring your content to match how people speak and search aloud.

What’s voice search optimization?

Voice search optimization is the process of tailoring your website’s content and structure to improve its visibility and ranking in search engine results for longer queries. When people ask Google Assistant, Apple’s Siri, and Amazon’s Alexa questions, these tools read the highest-ranking content aloud.

For example, instead of typing “coffee shop near me” into Google, folks can ask their virtual assistants, “Where can I find a coffee shop in my area that’s open right now?” To attract these customers, a nearby coffee shop would include their address, hours, and conversational phrases on their Google Business Profile and website. Adding these elements helps the site appear in voice search results, driving more traffic.

Voice search vs. text search: What’s the difference?

Voice and text search primarily differ in the way people phrase their queries and the nature of the questions themselves.

In text search, you’ll typically type concise phrases into Google, like “weather today” or “best pizza shop near me.” But voice searches are more conversational, resembling everyday speech. For example, you might say, “Hey Google, where’s the nearest coffee shop to my coworking space?” instead of typing “coffee shop near me” into a search bar. This is why optimizing for voice search helps — voice queries are more conversational and specific, which means websites must adapt their content to align with natural language and local intent.

Voice queries also often reflect micro-moments or local intent for quick answers, directions, or regional business information. That means voice search optimization involves using long-tail keywords, natural language, and local SEO best practices to address these queries’ specific and instant nature.

Benefits of voice search optimization

Incorporating voice search optimization into your SEO strategy offers several advantages, including:

• Establishes your business as credible and reliable. Voice search optimization positions your brand as a trustworthy and authoritative source. When virtual assistants like Google Assistant and Siri choose your content, it signals that your information is reliable, in turn boosting your credibility.
• Enhances the user experience. Voice search optimization requires you to create conversational, user-friendly content crafted in everyday language. This improves the user experience by catering to those who prefer to search your site hands-free. Providing clear, concise, and relevant information helps people find what they want quickly.
• Boosts brand awareness. As voice search grows in popularity, featuring in search results increases your brand’s visibility. When virtual assistants read your content aloud and direct people to your website, this introduces your brand to new audiences and reinforces your presence among existing consumers.
• Keeps you competitive. Implementing voice search optimization helps you stay ahead of competitors. Thousands of businesses compete for limited high-visibility slots on Google rankings. Adopting this strategy helps you gain a competitive advantage over companies that haven’t optimized for longer queries.
• Prepares for the future. As voice-enabled and artificial intelligence (AI)-powered smart devices become more common, people will use voice search more often. Optimizing for this search style as early as possible allows you to future-proof your SEO strategy so your online presence and business remain relevant and adaptable to emerging trends.

How to optimize for voice search: 5 best practices

Here are five tips to ensure your site’s content addresses your target audience’s queries.

1. Research keywords for voice search

Traditional SEO practices focus on short queries like “best running shoes” or “time-tracking tool.” When optimizing for voice, add longer phrases to your content like “What are the best running shoes for beginners?” or “What are the best time-tracking tools for enterprise organizations?”

Conduct keyword research to identify natural language phrases and common questions people ask their virtual assistants. Voice search optimization services like Google Keyword Planner and Google Search Console provide insights on keyword search volume, competition, and new terms. To speed up the research process, use AI tools to track SEO metrics and integrations to monitor your site and suggest improvements.

2. Focus on local SEO

Many voice searches have local intent, with people quickly asking their virtual assistants to point them to nearby businesses like gas stations and restaurants. When optimizing, ensure your information is up to date on Google Business Profile. Include local keywords and phrases from research done in the previous step to add relevant content for nearby audiences.

A global business consultancy can enhance their visibility by targeting local queries like “Where can I find a business consultant in New York?” Their website and Google Business Profile should include up-to-date details about their office locations, hours, and contact numbers to make it easier for voice assistants to surface their services for geographically specific searches.

3. Optimize your website content to answer longer queries

Structure and scale your content to answer queries directly and concisely. At the same time, it should be in a conversational tone that mirrors natural speech patterns. This aligns your copy with how people perform voice searches. For example, an ecommerce website might create an FAQ section addressing common questions like “What’s your return policy?” and “How do I track my order?”

On the rest of your site, use a conversational tone for headings, bullet points, and body paragraphs to help the content flow more naturally and improve readability. More importantly, this style encourages virtual assistants to pull useful snippets from your website.

4. Implement schema markup

Schema markup is on-page code that uses a shared vocabulary to provide search engines data about your business, including its location, hours, reviews, ratings, and contact information. Including schema and metadata in your content helps search engines and audiences find and view content at a glance. Using this code also increases the likelihood that search engines will feature your site in rich snippets and search engine results pages (SERPs) because web crawlers will have a better understanding of your content.

A software company can use schema markup to display organization details, client testimonials, support contact information, and office locations in search results. This helps digital assistants quickly access and present this information for voice queries like “What software solutions does [company name] offer?” or “Where is the nearest office of [company name]?”

5. Improve your site’s technical SEO

Most mobile devices and smart speakers have voice assistants. With global mobile usage increasing, you must use responsive design to ensure your site is mobile friendly. This means layouts automatically adjust to any screen size, and images and videos load quickly for smooth performance.

For example, a SaaS website’s product and service pages must have fast-loading images, straightforward navigation, and concise descriptions. Slow and confusing websites frustrate people, which increases bounce rates. To avoid this, compress images, cache your browser, and use a content delivery network (CDN) to reduce the burden on hosting servers.

The future of voice search optimization

As voice recognition and natural language processing evolve, search engines will better understand complex questions and return precise, conversational answers. Voice search is convenient and accurate, making it more likely that customers will rely on it to find businesses like yours.

In the U.S. alone, about 142 million people — nearly half the country’s population — use voice-assisted tech. Experts expect this number to grow to 157.1 million by 2026. To rank well in these results, your content must be optimized for different search styles.

Transform your SEO strategy with Webflow

Voice search optimization is crucial to effective website SEO. As voice-related technologies advance, leverage SEO best practices to boost your visibility and meet changing search trends head-on.

With Webflow, you can improve your website’s SEO and stay ahead of search trends. Automate SEO updates, edit schema markups, and manage your content — all with Webflow’s built-in SEO features.