What is a phrase?

Keywords are queries that a user enters into a search engine – for example on Google – when he searches for something on the Internet. Of course, there are billions of passwords entered into the search engine and new ones appear every day, but there is a large pool of those that are repeated many times – from this group we choose valuable phrases for website positioning.

But one by one: what is it about positioning for specific phrases? When a user enters a specific term into a search engine, the algorithms rank the results for them. It contains the pages that most likely answer the internet user’s question best. The assessment of whether a website should appear high in the search results for a specific keyword is influenced by many factors – including the quality and credibility of the website, the correctness and formatting of texts or links from other websites. However, one of the most important is whether the headings and the texts themselves on the page contain the specific phrase that the user has entered on Google. When it appears, it is a signal to the algorithms that the recipient is likely to find the answer to their question on this site, which makes them rank it high in the results.

Key phrases in texts

The discovery that algorithms take into account key phrases has brought a real plague of texts written exclusively for bots. They were packed with the most searchable keywords, but they were of no value to the user. However, Google quickly put an end to these practices by introducing an algorithm aptly named Panda to the search engine. It was created to promote high-quality websites that provide reliable knowledge and contain original content. From that moment, inserting phrases in each sentence ceased to make sense and today it is necessary to ensure that the optimal number of phrases is included in the text and that they are naturally woven into the sequence of the narrative.

Key phrases – types

Key phrases can be short – one word – or even a few words. Most often, we divide them into general phrases and long tail phrases, i.e. the so-called long tails.

General phrases are short and – as the name suggests – rather imprecise. They are entered by users who are usually at the beginning of the shopping path, i.e. do not yet have specific expectations as to the service or product. General phrases can be, for example, slogans like “summer dress”, “sneakers” or “car mechanic”. They have a lot of searches on the web, which is why they are often considered the best for website positioning. In fact, this is not always the case, because often the user entering such a phrase is only doing initial research and is not determined to make a transaction.

Long tail phrases are much more complex and quite precise, because they are entered by users who already know what they are looking for. Long tails have fewer searches than general phrases, but are often more effective – because if the Internet user has already formulated his expectations for a product or service, it means that he is most likely ready to decide on them. Long tail phrases are becoming more and more important in website positioning, as the popularity of Voice Search, i.e. voice search, increases every year. This type of search favors the use of longer and natural-sounding search terms, i.e. long tails.

Selection of key phrases

How to choose key phrases? There is no universal way here. It all depends on the type and scale of business, offer, competitors’ activities and many other factors. For example, if we run a hairdressing salon, local phrases will work first, i.e. those that give the name of the city or district in which the establishment is located. Positioning for very general phrases is unnecessary, because the logic requires looking for customers only in the area. Online stores will not use local positioning, but should focus on longer passwords that match their product range. The selection of phrases should therefore always be preceded by a thorough analysis of the industry and competition and the formulation of the goals we want to achieve.

The number of voice search queries for Google has more than 35 times over the last 10 years. Of the 3.5 billion daily searches carried out under voice search, they account for almost a third. Voice commands are an increasingly popular method of finding information on the web. What does this mean for the SEO industry?

How does voice search work?

Voice search is based on the combination of language processing (Natural Language Processing) and software speech synthesis of a given language Text-to-Speech (TTS) to understand the user’s query. The system then searches the database for relevant information and displays the most relevant answers. Its task is also to determine the intentions of the user based on the history of previous queries. According to Google, the error rate during voice search has clearly decreased – in 2014 it was 25%, and at the moment it is only 8%.

Voice search – when we use it most often?

Until quite recently it seemed that the voice commands would not be a search standard – to the detriment of this way of searching for information on the Internet, there was a kind of self-confidence associated with talking to the search engine. If we have already decided to search for voice, then only in the comfort of your own home or among your loved ones. At present, the speed, convenience and accuracy of the information obtained is the most popular way of searching.

As is clear from the statistics, we usually use this solution when driving a car (nearly 53%), during domestic duties (about 21%), while watching TV (over 7%), as well as at work (over 7%). Voice search is therefore of great importance for both website owners and specialists dealing with their positioning on a daily basis. Due to the fact that searches are more and more similar to our natural language, websites should be modified in this respect.

How to optimize pages for voice search engines?

The key change in positioning in terms of voice search concerns language – it’s all about how we ask questions to the search engine. In the case of traditional text search, we have typed the most common terms so far – e.g. “Miami architect” or “short red dress”. When we start to express questions aloud, the way they are asked is quite different. Instead of the slogan we use increasingly full sentences, much longer, and sometimes more colloquial, which makes them less accurate – eg “Where can I find a good architect in Miami?” Or “Where can I buy a short red dress?”.

The previous approach to targeting, as well as the selection of key phrases and their analysis, must therefore change. Due to the fact that search engines increasingly support more complex internauts’ queries, special attention should be paid to long tail positioning, ie the so-called long tail. It is about using key phrases consisting of long phrases or complete sentences – they reflect the natural language and the way of asking questions in the case of voice search.

As users ask specific questions, it is important to provide them with the answers as quickly as possible. The vast majority of their inquiries start with “How?”, “Where?”, “Why?”, “When?” or “What?”. Answers to these questions are most easily included in the FAQ section of the website. It will help you find the information you need, while increasing the visibility of your site in voice search results.

The voice search method is often used when searching locally. To help you find your business, focus on local positioning. In this case, it will be helpful to provide the site with high visibility using key phrases relevant to local users. It is worth taking into account the characteristic landmarks, local attractions and places of interest or phrases or the area in which the company is located.

Remember also that most mobile devices are used by voice commands – your website must be mobile friendly, and therefore adapted to use smartphones and tablets. The combination of the website and the review and opinion systems also greatly influences the search results. It’s important to keep track of and respond as quickly as possible to reviews and reviews that appear in search results – thanks to this you are able to increase the click-through rate and influence the image of your company.

The voice search rate is currently increasing at a much faster pace than traditional text searches. This is mainly related to a more convenient way to use voice commands and high accuracy of the search results – so it’s worth optimizing your websites for voice search.