The Voice Search Trend: 2020 and Beyond

Speech Recognition

More and more people are doing searches on the internet using voice command. It seems that they don’t want to waste time typing anything they want to search anymore. Hence, voice search is their go-to option.

According to a study by Adobe, 48 percent of consumers are using voice queries for “general web searches.” Likewise, satisfaction with voice technology is also pretty staggering, with 79 percent of consumers saying that voice technology contributes to their quality of life.

Today, you can find a host of predictions as to the future of voice search. So, how will this new technology shape the future? To answer that question, let’s take a look at how voice search is shaping our daily lives now and what the future holds for this new technology.

Internet Queries Will Be Done Without a Screen

If you’re not aware, smart speakers are selling like pancakes since its first introduction in 2014 with the release of Amazon Echo.

In the third quarter of 2018, there’s a 200 percent increase of smart speaker shipments year-over-year based on a study by Strategy Analytics. In the United States alone, the number of people who own smart speakers is at 74.2 million.

This meteoric increase in the number of people who own and use smart speakers can lead the way to the rise of voice search on the internet in the future. Gartner predicts that 30 percent of all internet queries will be done using voice technology by 2020. Of course, it also means that we will search the internet without the aid of a screen in the future.

Local Search is Easier Using Voice Search

Smart speakers are user-friendly gadgets that you can use even while you’re driving. So, when you’re looking for a local restaurant while on the go, you simply have to ask your smart speaker about the nearest place where you can eat.

This capability of voice technology and other voice-related software to make peoples’ lives more convenient can result in the increase of local searches.

The Rise of Voice-Friendly Content

The popularity of voice search will transform the way we create content, and we see this trend already. Nowadays, brands are getting more clever when it comes to producing content that’s voice-friendly.

For instance, for the promotion of the show Sesame Workshop, HBO developed the game “Esme and Roy,” which children can play using smart speakers. So, with the voice search trend, brands should adapt their marketing strategies to it.

Voice Search SEO vs. Traditional SEO

There’s a difference between traditional SEO and voice search SEO. As voice search will become a staple in web sessions, your SEO approaches must adapt to this trend.

Like traditional SEO, you need to make sure that your website loads quickly and compatible with mobile devices. It’s also necessary to focus on local searches as many people use smart speakers to look for local businesses. You can also use AI assistants to make your business stand out like what the pizza chain Domino did.

Takeaway

Voice search is already shaping the technological landscape, and it will likely have an even greater impact in the future. And, of course, like any technological advancements, the best that we can do is to adapt to this trend.