Introduction

From shows like “Dexter” (the cartoon) to “CyberPunk”, books like “Ready Player One” to “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep”, talking to your computer and getting an answer has been a dream in the heart of humanity for decades. Even Batman had a talking computer that could cross-reference images at a moment’s notice! So, technology companies began trying to make that dream a reality. 

Nowadays you can ask your iPhone or Google any question out-loud, without even needing to press a button, just issue a trigger phrase like “Hey Siri” or “Hey Google”, and voila! Information coalesced from around the world at the tips of your fingers, or should we say, the tip of your tongue?

Functions like Voice-Search, and Graphic Search, have become the new normal, with every phone, and most major search engines and applications, having the ability to listen to their users and fetch the information they need. Many also come equipped with a Graphical Search functionality, meaning that users will never have to fumble to remember name-brands for the products they want, or even have difficulty looking where to buy it, ever again.

So, What does this kind of Optimization do for Your Audience?

Well? It’s a valid question. Google and various other search engines seem to do that job just fine. But there are a multitude of reasons why integrating such search maneuvers will not only drive more traffic to your website, but also help you retain and engage with your current audience! As experienced software developers like Genetech Solutions  will tell you,  audience engagement and retention is just as important, if not more so, than drawing in customers in the first place.

So, how do these features make it easier for your audience to find and navigate your website?

Well, consider how websites used to be structured, as compared to how they should be now. According to G2 and Invoca, 20% of the world now uses voice search on the daily (that is one in every five people) and applications like Siri have approximately 86.5 million in the US alone, with over 1 billion voice searches taking place generally every month (according to Yaguara).

Adding voice and graphical search functions also act as SEO. It has a higher chance of rocketing up the Google results page when similar phrases are searched through Google voice search. Graphical Search also allows potential buyers to browse your site based on products they saw and liked, rather than products they know the names of, no prior research needed!

Finally we would heavily urge you to consider the diversity of your audience base. Some of them may have vision issues, or physical issues, making it difficult for them to efficiently use functions like text-search. Voice search, and even image search if you consider issues like Dyslexia, or memory issues, make up for the shortcomings of simple text-search.

So How Does One Build Their Website for Such Search Functions?

Now this is where it gets a little technical but bear with us, and if after going through this you still feel overwhelmed, don’t be a stranger and reach out to us with your questions and concerns!

All of this is basically a new form of website optimization, much like what we used to do for simple Google Text Search SEO. The only difference is that optimization is expanding to further include other forms of search, while also considering the “human factor” more carefully. Some of these new optimization tactics include;

Using Structured Data (SCHEMA Markup)

Schema markups help search engines identify the context of the content on your page, thus allowing users to be directed to them more easily if their question fits similar contexts as the content on your website. They are especially important for search engine voice-search, since it can access the concise details of your website and draw information from it more efficiently.

There are resources on the web, such as FAQ SCHEMA, and How-To Schema, that can help you set up a better Schema Markup for your website. You can also consult professionals to help set it up for you, such as with us considering our many years with web development and design.

Focusing on Conversational Keywords

We touched on this earlier but to go a bit more in-depth, conversational keywords or “key-phrases” are separate from the classical concept of SEO Keywords. When we use voice-search, our vocabulary tends to shift, meaning keywords that are popular due to their frequency of being “searched”, will shift, likely into more common “key-phrases”. Collections of words that users tend to repeat during search.

Speed and Mobile Optimization

These are not just pieces of advice for general optimization. If you want your website to gain traction and be visible when people use voice or image search, both of these aspects are equally important.

Speed matters because often, people opt to use voice or image search because they do not have the time to go deep-diving with text search to find the information they need. Mobile Optimization is along the same vein of thought, since most voice-search tends to happen on mobile devices. 

This is both, because of the earlier argument that this audience tends to be in a hurry and thus will likely be searching on their phone, and also the growing menagerie of apps and AI assistants that are mobile-based that utilize these features heavily.

Speaking of AI assistants…

The Role of AI in Search Algorithms

Before we conclude we would also like to touch on the current up-and-coming search practice, which is AI-powered search. This is a mechanic that has been on the rise since the use of Chat GPT became mainstream and users began turning to AI chatbots to search up the information they need with minimal context. Even Google has added an AI-Powered section to their search which draws relevant information from the top few Google links and summarizes it for the viewer.

This trend is necessary to bring up for two reasons;

• Firstly, it highlights the need to bring SEO for most websites up to the modern era. Websites that choose to stick to “classic” SEO practices that only revolve around text searches will quickly be left behind.
• Second, we must take the time to learn what AI considers to be reliable sources, and how best to mimic those conditions in our web pages. Something that our AI and Marketing teams are focused on figuring out as well. 

So, where does all of this information leave us?

Conclusion

The landscape of web search is undergoing a massive transformation, with what were initially niche forms of search becoming mainstream, and quickly. Websites have to adapt in an effort to stay ahead in the race of staying relevant, and one of the ways to do this is incorporating the mechanics and optimization for voice and graphical search into their sites.

If you feel like we’ve struck a chord and may be on to something, I would urge you to reach out and have a conversation with one of our senior web developers. We may be just what you need to take your website to the next decade.