Back in 2018, PwC reported how voice assistants had become the norm, with 65% of people between the ages of 25 and 49 using a voice-enabled device daily. In 2020, around 40.2% of the US population was leveraging voice search. Fast forward to today, and voice search has become integral to the success of eCommerce businesses.
What Is Voice Search All About?
Voice search is a technology that enables users to perform searches by speaking into their devices rather than typing. Voice search uses natural language processing and machine learning algorithms to interpret the user’s voice and provide relevant results. It is a convenient way to search for information, products, and services.
With the rise of voice assistants like Siri, Alexa, and Google Assistant, voice search is becoming popular among users. To optimize for voice search, businesses need to focus on creating conversational content that uses long-tail keywords. This helps them rank higher in voice search results and provide an overall better user experience.
Voice Search In eCommerce
Voice search is revolutionizing the eCommerce space. It offers a new way for customers to search for products, making shopping more convenient and efficient. With voice search, customers can find what they’re looking for without typing a single word. Essentially, the technology (or the search engine AI) comprehends human speech, capably discerns the words and phrases, and initiates a search based on the most appropriate interpretation of human speech.
In sum, voice search helps consumers quickly narrow down on exactly what they’re looking for, making shopping convenient and faster. No surprise, then, that a host of voice search trends have been doing the rounds in the eCommerce space.
1. Advancements In The Virtual Assistant Technology
Voice search is becoming popular for eCommerce as assistants like Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and Siri gain immense popularity. This tendency will continue as virtual assistant technology develops, becomes more mainstream, and gets integrated into the eCommerce landscape. For instance, customers use assistants to read through product reviews, perform product searches, learn about deals and promotions, reorder, etc.
2. Local Search Growth
Voice search, in general, had been centered on searching for local businesses. Back in 2018, a BrightLocal survey had outlined how voice search was used by 58% of US consumers to look for local businesses. The emphasis on “local” is certainly a noteworthy trend in the eCommerce space, where businesses are targeting local keywords for their product listings. In fact, many companies are improving their eCommerce websites and local listings for voice search results.
3. Voice-Activated Devices
Voice search is proliferating in the eCommerce space thanks to the increased use of smart speakers, smartphones, and wearable gear.
4. Voice Search Optimization
eCommerce businesses must improve their websites and listings for voice search to compete. Long-tail keywords, FAQs, and explicit product and service information are integral to this.
Benefits Of Voice Search In eCommerce
With voice search, eCommerce businesses can enjoy:
- Increased Accessibility: Voice search helps people with disability to conveniently make purchases.
- Faster Results: Voice search provides rapid, error-free results. The search engine AI can, in fact, understand mispronounced words and phrases to rectify the search.
- Customization: Voice search recognizes accents, languages, and user preferences.
- Better User Experience: Voice search is more natural and conversational, making shopping more fun.
- Increased Sales: Voice search makes eCommerce sales more probable due to its simplicity of use.
- Improve User Experience: All the above benefits contribute to nurturing an improved user experience.
How Does Voice Search Work For eCommerce Stores?
Here’s how it works in 6 easy steps:
1) Activation: Start by activating the microphone on the search engine of the eCommerce website – or perhaps the virtual assistant on your device, such as Siri or Google Assistant.
2) Voice Command: Give the voice command, such as “find a new pair of shoes.”
3) Search Engine: The search engine AI interprets the voice command and generates a results list.
4) Selection: Select the product you want by speaking the product name or number.
5) Buy: If you have an account with the eCommerce store, you can complete the purchase using your voice.
6) Confirmation: The virtual assistant confirms your purchase and provides a receipt.
This way, voice search technology boosts consumer engagement and, subsequently, revenue for eCommerce enterprises.
eCommerce Product Data And Its Relevance To Voice Search
Product data is an often overlooked but crucial element to eCommerce success. With the emergence of voice search, it’s more important than ever to optimize product data and make sure it’s optimized for voice search. For example, businesses must look to:
- Add long-tail, conversational keywords to their product listings
- Create FAQs and other helpful content to assist customers in finding answers faster
- Avoid ambiguous product names and descriptions to avoid confusion
- Enhance eCommerce SEO by making better use of descriptive keywords in product titles and descriptions
- Prioritize local search (if applicable) by ensuring that the product descriptions are relevant to the local market
Product category, pricing, product reviews, recommendations, and the associated brand information – everything that makes up the eCommerce product data – must cater to accommodating seamless voice search.
Popular Brands That Make Use Of Voice Search To Boost Engagement
Brands have taken notice of voice search and are incorporating it into their marketing strategies. Here are some popular brands that have embraced voice search to boost engagement.
- Johnnie Walker: Johnnie Walker leverages voice search to enhance customer engagement by allowing them to access information about their products and promotions easily.
- Domino’s: Domino’s utilizes voice search technology to make ordering pizza easier and more accessible for its customers.
- Patrón Tequila: Patrón Tequila has integrated voice search into its marketing strategy, allowing customers to access information about its offerings. This has helped Patrón Tequila connect with its customers in a more personalized manner.
- Burger King: Burger King facilitates voice search to allow quick and easy access to information about its menu and promotions.
These brands have embraced voice search to provide a more convenient and engaging eCommerce experience. Doing so has set them apart and established a competitive advantage in their respective markets.
Wrapping Up
Voice search is the future of eCommerce, and it’s critical that businesses understand its potential. Optimizing product information and eCommerce websites, on the whole, for voice search is a critical component to making sure your business sees the full potential of voice search. But that requires a deeper dive into the intricacies of voice search, eCommerce product data management, and more – precisely where EnFuse can help. Connect with us to learn more.
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