In The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams, the number 42 is the Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything, calculated by an enormous supercomputer over a period of 7.5 million years. Unfortunately, the answer is useless since no one knows what the question is.
Developing an SEO strategy without thinking about what questions your ideal consumer is asking is just about as useful as the answer 42 when it comes to getting meaningful search results and conversions.
Speak Your Search
Great SEO requires website content to be in human speak. Ugandans are no longer just typing in 1-2 word searches into a desktop or laptop computer. Now they are speaking their searches in full sentences into their mobile phones.
Voice Search went live on Google’s Chrome browser back in 2011.
Google is paying attention to each word in the search query, instead of individual words in the sentence. It does not make a difference whether the search is spoken or typed. Google is serving up answers with pages that match the entire query or the meaning of the query.
How ironic is it that Google names the algorithm update that allows the search engine to think like a human after a bird?
The Google Hummingbird algorithm update of 2013 literally changed the face of search results pages. This Hummingbird algorithm update allows for the entire search query to be taken into consideration and understood and then delivers search results based on that understanding.
Mobile Voice Search is Taking Over in Uganda
In a recent study: Growing “Mobile Fanatics” Segment Search More, Increasingly Shun PCs 60 percent of users now choose mobile devices over PCs for local search.
A new segment has been dubbed ‘mobile fanatics’-folks who conduct at least ten searches a week on multiple devices from different locations.
Not to mention according to the industry report for Telecommunications, Broadcasting, and Postal Markets for 2019's sector performance, Uganda's internet market saw exponential growth in internet usage for the year 2019 dominated by mobile internet. The mobile internet subscription as of Q2 2019 stood at 15 million up from 14 million in Q1 2019 reflecting a growth of 5.4%
What is the connection between searching like a human and all these mobile stats? Most mobile users are speaking their search.
Google Talks Back - Voice Search
To make this whole concept a step further, Google’s Chrome browser has voice search, available on desktop-it is not just mobile! All you have to do is hit the picture of the microphone next to the Google search box and speak your search. Google delivers answers. But now you can add follow up questions, and Google delivers even more specific answers!
For example, the query, What can I expect from a divorce lawyer will bring up a list of answers. I can further define this by then saying, How much is the consultation fee on average? Google will know I am referring to the consultation fee for a lawyer.
In 2013, the Google "search by voice" added the function of being able to speak theses answers back to you.
Taking Advantage of Voice Technology
Adding a blog or a FAQ section to your website, written using plain speaking, everyday words is key to good SEO content that Google can read and pull answers from!
When creating an FAQ page, ask your customers what questions they have when searching for your products or services.
Ask whoever interacts with customers, whether by phone, email, or direct contact what potential customers are asking. Put these questions directly on your website with answers; link the answers back to the pages on your website with those services or products.
Blogs give you a slightly different kind of opportunity. Writing blogs allows you to go into some detail, and perhaps give examples to some of these questions. (Generally, FAQs are short and to the point). Blogs also can take on a personality.
Ultimately, the search is more personal now and you should use this to your advantage. For more information on how you can use content to beef up your SEO, contact us for a free consultation.
Ruth is a Senior (SEO) Specialist with Campaign. She spends most of her time optimizing client's websites so they perform well in Google search. Away from official work, she volunteers with Wikipedia and plays volleyball at Kansanga in her free time.