How to Implement Voice Search Optimization: A Step-by-Step Guide For Modern Marketers

At a time when smart devices and voice assistant tools like Alexa, Siri, and Google Home are all too common, voice search is a trend that’s going to be deeply entrenched in our lives.

In fact, its popularity is at an all-time high right now, with more than 142 million active users, only in the United States (which is almost half the country).

There are other reports that suggest there are more users than this number, with a report from NPM detailing that 62% of Americans over the age of 18 are voice search users.

In any case, all the facts point to one thing: Voice search is one trend you should be implementing sooner rather than later.

In this piece, we’re sharing exactly how voice search optimization can help your business and the seven steps you should take to implement voice search. [We also have a few SME insights and case studies in this piece for you!]

Let’s get started.

What is voice search optimization, and how does it help?

This is when you optimize your website and online presence to get noticed by voice queries. For example, if you have a restaurant, and someone asks Siri for restaurants near them, yours is the one that should pop up through visibility in voice search.

Aside from gaining visibility, here are the other ways voice search SEO can benefit you:

• It can boost traffic and get leads/sales.
• It improves the search experience for the user (due to this, you also improve your brand authority and experience).
• Optimizing for voice search queries also helps you get featured for traditional search queries. (You appear in the “Featured Snippets” and “AI Overviews” boxes.)

In the next few years, SEO and marketing experts like Trish Carey are predicting voice search will evolve and will result in the following:

• Voice-activated devices will understand the user’s diction and talking style and customize their answers.
• They will gather insights into the context of the conversation before giving a response (although to be accurate, the prediction is that people will come to expect this from voice assistants).

How to implement voice search optimization (step-by-step)

Ready to optimize your content for voice search? Well, here’s a step-by-step process that’ll guide you!

Step 1: Understand the difference between traditional and voice search

First, before you implement a voice search optimization strategy, it’s always ideal to understand how this differs from traditional search.

So, to quickly get this out of the way, traditional text-based searches are often concise and have short-form keywords (e.g., “Pesto pasta recipe”). Voice search, on the other hand, will typically have long-tail keywords and more conversational queries (e.g., “Hey Siri! Can you share the best pesto pasta recipe?”).

User expectations (and their chosen devices) differ, too.

For example, with traditional searches, it’s expected that users will scroll for a bit, whereas with voice search queries, they require quick, concise answers. They also might use laptops or mobile devices and types of mobile apps for the former, whereas it’s common to use smart devices (smartwatches, mobile devices, voice assistants, etc.) for the latter.

Lastly, the way both these searches operate differs at an intrinsic level. Search engines may use ranking factors like website DR, keyword usage, content quality, etc., for text-based searches, whereas they require structured data and contextual, relevant keywords for voice searches.

Step 2: Approach voice search optimization with a goal in mind

Now that the nitty-gritty details are out of the way, for the next steps, you’ll need to approach your voice search strategy with a goal in mind. For example, your goal could be to:

• Improve sales through local SEO visibility (i.e., making your business appear in “near me” searches).
• Position your content at the top and capture user attention through featured snippets, AI Overviews, and zero-click content.
• Optimize for mobile and hands-free searches, ensuring accessibility across devices like smart speakers and virtual assistants.
• Gain voice search traffic by optimizing for conversational keywords.
• Establish brand authority and enhance brand recall.

Doing this will not only help you be more targeted with your actions, but you can also measure the success of your efforts more effectively and allocate resources appropriately.

Step 3: Do keyword research

Once you have a goal in mind, you’ll now need to research the keywords that’ll help you get noticed. According to Shonavee Simpson-Anderson, the Senior SEO Strategist at Firewire Digital, natural language optimization is key.

She says,

“Our research shows that 80% of voice searches are conversational, averaging 25 words. By structuring content around complete questions—like transforming “Best Running Shoes” to “What are the best running shoes for beginners?”—one client increased voice search visibility by 156%.”

Other experts agree with Shonavee and reiterate that you should ideally look for conversational, long-tail keywords, question-specific keywords, and location-specific keywords.

At this step, you can use keyword research tools like AnswerThePublic (great for conversational searches), Semrush, Ahrefs, or Google Keyword Planner.

You might even benefit from doing keyword research in native languages, too, especially if you cater to a global audience. We say this because studies have shown people use their local language when looking up queries.

For example, an older study found that 90% of Indians prefer to consume content in their local languages. More recently, a 2024 study found that Vietnam (a country where 86 million residents speak Vietnamese) is the leading user of digital voice assistants.

Step 4: Optimize your website to get noticed

Once you have the necessary keywords with you, now’s the time to integrate them into your website. Just to reiterate, look for the following types of keywords:

• Conversational ones (that use everyday language)
• Keywords that pop up on mobile searches
• Location-specific
• Question-driven
• Long-tail

At this stage, it’s also ideal to keep room for errors and mispronunciations, as people have different accents/talking styles.

Pro Tip: Study your target audience to find which reading level they are talking at, and consider revising the content on your website based on that reading level.

Since voice search users are typically looking for quick answers, Ron Evan, the SEO link-building manager at Thrive Agency, recommends optimizing for Core Web Vitals, using a mobile-friendly design, and ensuring your content loads quickly.

Step 5: Improve your website structure

Aside from optimizing your website, you’ll also need to make improvements to its whole structure so it’s easier for search engines to crawl and gather information.

For example, the first thing you’ll need to improve is your schema markup. Olivar Brandrup, the SEO Director at Neurogan, says schema markup helps search engines grasp your material, increasing your chances of being shown as a rich result, which makes it a perfect catalyst for voice search responses.

He also says they used FAQ schemas across blog entries and “People Also Ask” searches on product pages to increase zero-click search visibility, and this helped Google pull responses for highlighted snippets.

You can also consider looking into Speakable schema markup, as this identifies sections within an article or webpage that are best suited for audio playback using text-to-speech (TTS) technology, making it easier for Google Assistant to read content aloud.

Aside from this, here are a few things you can do:

• Interlink all your web pages as it shows search engines where to crawl.
• Invest in technical SEO to improve user experience.
• Optimize your site’s URL structures (shorter URLs are always preferred!).

Step 6: Invest in your social listings (e.g., Google My Business) for local SEO

Once you’ve optimized your website, now’s the time to look into your other online presences—e.g., your social media pages, Google My Business profile, directories, and other business profiles.

These are just as important to maintain and optimize to get noticed for local SEO through voice search. For example, on these pages, you can consider talking about:

• Services you offer and your USP
• Business hours and location
• Areas your business is near (e.g., landmarks or other places of business)
• User reviews and testimonials

Again, it’s best to use easy-to-read sentences, conversational language, and location-specific keywords when optimizing these online presences.

You’ll also benefit from adding high-quality images of your products, team, or office so your leads have a well-rounded understanding of what they’re getting into (plus, it helps build trust!).

Step 7: Monitor performance and keep testing to get better results

Last but not least, the next steps are to monitor performance through key metrics (e.g., ranking, organic traffic, engagement, etc.) and analyze if you’ve achieved the goal you set in mind.

You can always improve results by testing new actions, using different SEO platforms, and keeping an eye out for customer reactions.

Even if everything is A-OK, voice search technology will keep evolving, so you’ll need to evolve with it—this means looking out for new tools and trendy tactics to improve your presence and get noticed!

Voice optimization case studies and examples

For this piece, we reached out to a few SEO pros to get their insights. In turn, we got a few excellent examples/advice on voice search implementation from Maurizio Petrone, an SEO expert with over 15 years of experience. Here’s what he shared with us:

Create FAQ clusters around main keywords

Instead of just targeting “best Italian restaurants,” Maurizio created multiple FAQ pages addressing conversational queries for company search like “Where can I find authentic Italian food near me?” and “What’s the best Italian restaurant for a date night?” This approach increased one of his client’s voice search visibility by 47% in 3 months.

Implement “answer rich” meta descriptions

He recommends including complete answers within your 155-160 character limit. For example, instead of “Learn about Italian cuisine…” use “Our authentic Italian restaurant serves homemade pasta and wood-fired pizza in downtown Seattle, with prices ranging from $15-30 per dish.”

Focus on local intent markers

In his experience, adding neighborhood names and local landmarks to your content significantly boosts voice search performance. One small pizzeria saw a 31% increase in “near me” voice queries after he added references to nearby universities and parks.

He also recommends using voice search yourself to find your business. The results often reveal gaps in your optimization strategy that analytics might miss.

Wrapping up

In this piece, we learned all that it takes to implement voice SEO—from structuring your site to identifying relevant keywords, to optimizing your social presence, and everything else in between.

If you’re ready for the next steps and wish to actually implement these strategies IRL, we’re happy to report we can help you out in this journey.

At Mallee Blue Media, we can help you create (or update) a mobile-friendly, SEO-optimized site that’s ready to get noticed by all voice search queries.

To learn more about how we can help you in this journey, book a call with our staff.