Remember when touch screen technology wasn’t that good? That sure changed.
And now, we have voice. In fact by 2020, Gartner predicts that 50% of all searches will be voice searches. Which means your content needs to be conversational and voice-ready.
Gulp.
No worries—we’ve got you covered.
Voice-Assisted Technology and Your Content
Siri, Alexa, Cortana … voice is here, and it’s captivating an important marketplace: More than half of teenagers use voice search every day and 37% of mobile users regularly use voice assistants.
Why voice?
- Faster: Most people type 40 words per minute. Voice is way faster.
- Easier: You can ask questions while driving, cooking, exercising, folding laundry, walking the dog …
- Better: Not so fast. Voice-activated technology is improving, but the marketplace is still forming. Now’s the time for digital marketers to jump in … and fast.
What you need to know about voice:
- Apps vs. skills: The programs that run on voice assistants are called skills. Examples include asking for Campbell’s soup recipes, ordering Domino’s pizza and controlling your appliances through Amazon Echo.
- Apple vs. Google vs. Amazon: The voice-activated technology space is becoming crowded. For companies starting in voice, design a voice program that you can deploy across all platforms. (This is like the days of Betamax vs. VCR. Don’t get stuck on the platform—and I date myself with that example.)
- Conversation: You’re a major hospital system in the United States, building a skill for your healthcare content. The promise? People can ask their voice assistant to tell them how to take out a splinter or how to care for a sprained ankle. But to succeed, the content has to sound conversational. Otherwise, people will avoid asking you for that type of information.
- Voice isn’t voice only: Don’t think you have to jump to creating skills for your brand. Rather, begin thinking about brand conversations that would make sense as you plan your future content.
- Measurement: Understanding the measurement behind voice is still complex, but some ideas include:
- What are the utterances? (These are like keywords.)
- How long do they engage in the course of a session? (Similar to measuring page or site visit.)
- When do they drop off? (What is the bounce rate?)
- Who is using the voice assistant?
Promoting a new skill also raises a question: How do you let your audiences know they can find your content on a voice assistant?
Whatever happens, voice is going to be taking up a larger part of your portfolio soon. Remember when social media was just a fad? Or you didn’t need a mobile website because most people weren’t using smartphones?
Get ahead of this new trend by understanding that all of your content needs to be ready for voice. The No. 1 way to do that? Approach it like you would your written content—make it conversational, clear and personable.
Make good decisions about your next move with voice.
