Google the Dominant Search Engine
“Ok, Google, find a Chevy dealership near me.”
“Hey Siri, what’s the average price of a Dodge Challenger?”
Chances are, you’ve used Google, Siri, Alexa, or another voice search assistant to help you find the information you’re seeking. Chances are, those assistants are using Google to see their results. Google is the dominant search engine, but what does that mean about the other search engines? You should still optimize voice search for search engines like Bing, Yahoo!, and the new player: DuckDuckGo. According to the Global Stats Counter, Google takes up 88.6% of search engine market shares. That still leaves 11.4% up for grabs among other search engines.
Your Search Engine Preference
It is easy to change your homepage on your desktop to your preferred search engine, meaning you’re not forced to use Google and only Google. Your preferred search engine may be Google, Yahoo!, MSN, or something else entirely. Some customers may have a search engine preference that isn’t Google, and you need to make sure your content is searchable for them through their favorite search engine. Think more of what your customer wants, how your customer acts, and focus your marketing efforts toward your customers, who aren’t all going to think like you.
Mobile Voice Search
Voice search is growing rapidly, so you need to make sure your marketing plans are including ways to optimize voice search. Voice search is making searching easier for customers and giving marketers a chance to reach customers quicker with more specific results. Your content may or may not need updating to reflect voice search. Instead of focusing your content around keywords comprised of one or two words, think of keyword phrases of three or more words. This will make your content appear more likely in voice searches because your content will be answering voice search phrases. Voice search makes searches more practical in the way we speak versus placing the focus on one-word keywords that isn’t representative of conversational speech.
Reach Those Customers
Don’t let the ruler of search engines, Google, be keeping you from optimizing your voice search for search engines like Bing, Yahoo!, MSN, DuckDuckGo, or others. It’s essential that you put your marketing focus on your customers. Craft those audience profiles and see who you are targeting. If part of your customer base includes older generations like Baby Boomers, they may still be using MSN or Yahoo! as their preferred search engine. If you’re targeting Gen Z or younger folks looking to buy their first car, focus on DuckDuckGo, a rising search engine that’s growing popularity for its unbiased, non-personalized search results.
Voice Search Goes Beyond Google
It’s essential to implement a voice search in your marketing efforts. It’s also important to not leave any potential customers in the dust because you’re an avid Google user. Let your customers find you and your content quickly, no matter what search engine they’re using.
