Marketing experts spend a lot of time talking about your brand’s voice — that is, the tone and style of the communication you share on digital channels. While that is still important, it isn’t the only “voice” strategy you should be considering. With so many voice-enabled devices in the market (and more to come) it is past time to start considering what your voice marketing strategy should be. We’ll discuss that and more in this week’s Content Radar.
Voice-enabled devices and what a revolution sounds like
Devices like Amazon Echo and Google Home have continued to see greater penetration into homes and businesses over recent months, but most organizations’ voice strategies seem to be battling a serious case of laryngitis. Given the newness and fluidity of the technology, it’s hard to blame you if your brand doesn’t have a solidified voice strategy. But consider this your notice that if you don’t have one yet, now is the time to start.
Why? Consider the following information:
- An April 2017 eMarketer report predicted that by 2019, nearly 40 percent of millennials will have a voice-enabled device in their households. The same report estimates that 17 percent of Gen X and 10 percent of baby boomers will have voice-enabled devices.
- A Juniper Research report in November 2017 estimated that by 2022 more than half of all U.S. households will have a voice-enabled device in their homes. This means that more than 70 million households will have at least one voice-enabled device in the home.
- More than 35 million Americans used a voice-activated assistant at least once per month in 2017. Nearly 3/4 of those who use voice-enabled devices say that using these devices are part of their daily routine.
- Those who use voice search are searching for deals, sales, and promos (52 percent); personalized tips and info (48 percent); events and activity information (42 percent); business information (39 percent); and customer support service (38 percent).
Suffice it to say, the voice revolution isn’t coming: It’s already here. However, as was true in the early days of social media, brands are struggling to get a grip on the changing technology and accompanying opportunities.
Alex Cleanthous, chief innovation officer for Web Profits, offers a list of four ways that voice search is going to have a big impact on the search industry. The four items include:
- Longer search queries
- More questions
- More local
- More competitive and expensive
Fortunately, Cleanthous also provides five recommendations of actions you can take to catch up your brand with the voice revolution.
- Make sure you have a mobile-optimized website.
- Expand your search campaign to include broad match keywords.
- Consider all the questions that might be asked.
- Be listed in local properties.
- Create FAQ-style content.
“We can expect in the future that our artificial intelligence assistants — the Siris, the Cortanas, the Alexas, and so on — can start to predict answers even before we ask them,” Cleanthous says.
“Add to that the internet of things, and we’ll be controlling our environment through voice. So voice is here to stay. The only question is, ‘Are you prepared to adapt?'”
For an additional detailed perspective on the future of voice marketing and its related “sound effect,” check out a roundup of 10 articles on the topic: What the Future of Content Marketing Sounds Like.
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