As you may have noticed, one of the hottest technologies of late is voice search. Its growth is mainly due to the voice assistants supplied with smartphones or smart speakers. These are becoming increasingly popular with consumers thanks to their functionality and precision. Simply give them commands or ask them questions, and they will carry out the tasks or services requested, thanks to voice recognition software.
The different types of voice assistants
Considering that 40.2% of American adults use a voice-controlled assistant, it's easy to see the importance and potential of this market. In France, there are some 20 million users of voice assistants, including 3.2 million via connected speakers.
That's why so many companies are investing in research and development in this field. Today, over 4.2 billion digital voice assistants are in circulation worldwide.
However, there are different types of voice assistants:
- Those integrated into connected devices such as speakers: Amazon Echo (Alexa), Google Home (Google assistant)...
- In phone operating systems: IOS (Siri), Android (Google Assistant), Samsung (Bixby), Windows phone (Cortana)
- In messaging platforms: WeChat secretary on WeChat
- Or in household appliances or cars: MBUX at Mercedes.
Even so, this market is dominated by some big names: Apple with Siri, Google with Google assistant and Amazon with Alexa.
For use at home and at work
These tools can be used in a variety of ways, both personally and professionally.
For phone voice assistants, they can be used to search or buy an item online, send messages or initiate calls, locate electronic devices or provide local or weather information.
Connected speakers can perform the same functions, but can also be useful for home automation. They can manage temperature, lights, shutters and door locks if all these elements are connected to the same network. Voice assistants thus act as true home valets for their users.
In the professional sphere, this technology can have many benefits. In particular, voice assistants can replace many secretarial tasks (making appointments, booking rooms, defining an itinerary...) or customer relations follow-up, replacing chatbots or after-sales services.
Future prospects for voice assistants
The potential of voice assistants is enormous, and many future uses are possible!
We can, for example, imagine an algorithm that includes the consumer's favorite references based on his or her history. The voice assistant could then help the consumer during the search, thanks to previous experiences.
Combined with CRM (customer relationship management), they could optimize prospecting by providing lists of customers to follow up and the type of service to offer, in order to increase sales or win back customers.
Already well developed in the United States, Voice commerce will account for over $40 billion in sales by 2022. Consumers will eventually be able to use voice commands at every stage of the purchasing process (adding items to the shopping cart, defining delivery, taking out insurance, etc.).
Finally, voice-activated payment, currently little used, could become even more widespread, with connected speakers playing an even greater role. When it's time to pay, the customer's smartphone will ring, and he or she will be asked to utter a phrase: "I validate the order", for example. This will be compared with a pre-recorded phrase to identify the customer. If the voice matches, the customer will receive a code to enter on the site.
How brands are using voice assistants and some concrete examples
Conversational commerce enables consumers to interact with brands without intermediaries, to get an immediate answer to their problem. This represents a major opportunity for brands to develop valuable personal relationships with their customers.
What's more, the voices used by voice assistants increasingly resemble human voices. This makes users more inclined to confer emotions on them and thus establish a bond of intimacy.
How are these major brands using voice assistants?
Domino's Pizza: During the Super Bowl in 2016, the American brand released its voice app on Alexa. Within two months, nearly 1 in 5 American customers were ordering their pizzas using voice. Competitor Pizza Hut was quick to follow suit.
Mercedes: the MBUX system gives the driver voice control of various vehicle functions. These include window control, cabin temperature, lighting and, of course, phone calls and text messaging. But also local business information and stock market news.
Bank of America : bank of America has created its own voice assistant; Erica, available via their mobile app. Between its creation in 2018 and 2019, Erica has answered more than 50 million customer requests and communicated with more than 500,000 new users per month from all generations over the age of 7. What's more, Erica is constantly evolving thanks to the ongoing expansion of conversational exchanges, thereby increasing its financial knowledge.
How can I improve my ranking in a voice search?
Advances in voice search have a huge impact on SEO. Sites must evolve to be competitive in this type of search.
Use the right keywords Voice search: during a voice search, the user will use "conversational" language. In other words, they will engage in a dialogue with the speaker or smartphone, often adopting a questioning tone. As a result, you need to give priority to content that best answers these questions, with longer queries and a natural, conversational tone.
Create a FAQ page: A FAQ page helps search engines better understand your website. By offering concise, clear answers to the various questions asked by web users, and by making the content more specific and precise, your SEO for voice searches will be improved.
Optimizing the site for smartphones: In 2021, some 5.3 billion people worldwide will own a smartphone, representing 67% of the population. Europe is the leading region, with 86% of the population owning one. More than half of all web pages are visited on a cell phone, and according to Comscore, more than half of all smartphone owners use voice search on a daily basis. A large proportion of searches are therefore carried out on mobile, which is why it's important to have a site optimized for these tools.
Optimize local referencing: Many searches are local in nature. That's why it's important to have a Google My Business listing that includes your company's geolocation and important information, so that you'll be highlighted in a search for your area of activity.
A booming market
Voice assistants are therefore particularly promising. They enable many different uses and simplify tasks in many areas. Their practicality in home automation is particularly interesting, enabling you to control your home by voice. On the Internet, they are playing an increasingly important role, a fact that should not escape the attention of brands, who need to adapt their digital practices to these new tools.
In any case, voice assistants are making their presence felt, and there's no end in sight!
