Voice search trends and statistics in 2024
Voice search features can be found on many different devices. Most people will run voice searches simply by using their phones. But there are also many in-home devices – such as an Amazon Alexa speaker or a Google Nest node – that allow people to search without even holding the device in their hand. These devices respond to a trigger word that activates them, and the user can then run whatever search they would like.
This is becoming incredibly common. For example, some studies report that there are about 8.4 billion voice assistant devices as of 2024. Considering that the population of the world is also around 8 billion, you can see how prevalent these devices have become. Everyone doesn’t have access to them, of course, though many users own multiple devices themselves.
As far as direct use goes, just over one out of every five people on the globe will run a voice search this year. In the United States, studies suggest that just under 150 million people will use them. Nearly a third (27%) of all mobile phone users will activate voice searches, and over 38 million Americans use smart speakers and other such devices. All of these statistics show that voice search continues to become more common and easier to use.
What does this mean for SEO?
You need to consider this carefully when determining what keywords you want to use. Someone who is using a voice search feature is much more likely to use a longer and more complicated string of words than someone who is typing into a Google search bar.
The reason for this is simply that typing is relatively slow, while talking feels much more natural and efficient. People are therefore more likely to mimic their normal speech patterns.
For example, someone who is looking for a place to eat may run a voice search by saying “Where are the best Chinese restaurants near me?” This allows them to include qualifiers, such as geographical data or a request to rank these establishments based on online reviews – showing the user the “best” options and not just the ones in close proximity.
By contrast, someone who is typing into a Google search bar may simply write “Chinese restaurants.” This will bring up a wider range of results and they will then filter them as they like, reading reviews or checking the map to see which ones are closest to them. The end result is similar, but the search terms that they start with are much different – and much simpler.
Using a variety of keywords
In order to attract the most attention to your website, it’s often best to use a variety of short keywords and longtail keywords. Remember that your potential audience will use both of these tactics. You can’t ignore some of the more simple and generic keywords, or you miss out on a large portion of traffic. But you do need to incorporate more complex keywords, especially when including information that helps the reader – such as geographical data – to help them find exactly what they’re looking for. The goal for Google and other search engines is always to rank the results based on what will provide the greatest benefit to the reader.
The complexities of modern search engines
As you can see, SEO is no longer as simple as it was decades ago, when all you needed was a dense block of a few basic keywords to get the right traffic. Fortunately, we can analyze your SEO efforts here at Content Customs, and our experienced team can help you create the type of content you need. Just get in touch with us today to find out more about what we do.
