Internet of Voice (IoV), commonly referred to as ‘voice search’ is set to be the next big thing in marketing for various businesses. Several key leaders in the marketing industry are predicting IoV to be the marketplace disruptor in the coming years.
IoV Overview
Voice search refers to sending a query using your voice
instead of using a keyboard (or text). This basically includes using your voice
to command your media to perform different activities virtually. These commands
may include asking your voice assistant to send messages, read messages, check
emails, ask for directions (on map), look for nearby restaurants, sought flats for sale in Kharadi, etc.
Voice Assistants
Cortana by Microsoft, Siri by Apple, Google Assistant by
Google, etc. are some of the popular virtual voice assistants today which were
introduced in the market in the year, 2014, 2011, and 2016 respectively. These
applications integrate the latest AI (artificial intelligence) technologies,
voice recognition system, and relevant search mechanics.
Simply put, voice assistance can be termed as using your
voice to ask a question using an intelligent technology (chatbot, voice
recogniser, digital assistant) to get relevant results for your query.
Facts and Predictions
According to a report by Economic Times,
· President of Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI),
Subho Ray said, “Voice as
input will make a big difference for users who are not keyboard savvy.”
· Sumit Chauhan, Vice President, Lifestyle Audio at
Harman India, predicts, “By 2022, 80% of our interaction with audio visual
devices will be non-touch.”
· According to a study by Search Engine Watch, by 2016, iPhone and Google voice search has increased 35 times
since 2008. ‘Call mom’ and ‘navigate home’ were the common commands given on
Google using voice search.
· According to a research by Campaign, it is predicted that by 2020, 50 percent of all the online
queries will be driven by voice search.
Search engines that empower voice search
assistants are constantly upgrading and implementing different machine based
learning algorithms where AI can be used to scan various data signals
(available data). These search engines aim to provide users with precise
information/search results based on their query (geographical location, top
rated products/services, etc.).
Voice Search and Real Estate
As mentioned earlier, since 50 percent of
the online queries will be driven by voice search by 2020, as a real estate
agent, you will have to optimize your web pages according voice search
algorithms. Your web pages must be optimized to drive traffic to your website.
Keywords will stay play a crucial role
here. In this case, you’ll have to be updated about millennial lingos,
abbreviations, short forms, alternative terms, phrases, and other latest and
relevant search terms.
IoV will apparently make it possible to
interpret the meaning of provided queries as compared to text based doubts
where search engines had several limitations while analyzing and interpreting
them.
How to Optimize Your Real Estate Website
for IoV?
For your realtor services/business to
grow, it is essential to generate
real estate leads online. Apart from keeping up with the latest trends and
technological advancements, it is important to try different strategies for the
same. Starting now you can take one step at a time and see how it works for
your business.
Optimizing your website for voice search
can be considered as a marketing strategy in itself. Here are some of the basic
optimization techniques that will help you generate real estate leads online
with voice search.
Voice Search Keywords
Enlist, research, and analyse keywords
for voice search accounting its ranking factors. Rather than waiting for search
engines and other tools to provide a directory of ranked keywords, you can
create your own list of terms using most searched real estate keywords. It can
consist of sentences, phrases, and terms that are commonly associated with real
estate.
For example, if you are using Google
assistant, you’ll have to start by saying “Okay Google” and then search the
terms you’re looking for like
· Okay Google, I am looking for 2 BHK flats in Kharadi
· Gera’s World of Joy, Kharadi
· Realtors around me (based on geographical
location)
· Properties in Pune for real estate investment
· Luxurious apartments in NIBM
Specify Your Target Audience
When you run a marketing campaign (PPC
ads, or social media marketing – SMM), it’s crucial to specify your target
audience. While running such campaigns, you can specify,
· Age group of your target audience. For example,
in the case of child centric homes, you can mention target age group between 25
to 45 years, since most of the people who have kids in the age group of 3 to 15
years would prefer such homes. Health tech homes can be preferred by both
millennials and baby boomers
· Categorise the project as either as ‘premium
apartments’, or ‘affordable homes’
· Mention demographic location/s
Analyse Your Target Audience
Along with using the right keywords and
specifying your target audience, analysing their commonly searched terms and
phrases will aid you to keep a track of marketing strategies which have the
potential to work. Social media can aid you significantly in analysing your
target audience. You can try using different phrases or sentences and find out
which strike a chord with your readers and accordingly bank on such these terms
to run ad campaigns.
Integrate Messenger Bot on Your Website
Messenger bots are commonly referred to as
‘message bot’, or ‘chatbot’. Webopedia explains messenger bots as, “Short for chatrobot, a computer program that simulates human conversation, or chat,
through artificial intelligence.”
Also, you cannot overlook the way AI is changing real estate. Incorporating chat bots on your website
will help you initiate conversations with your potential clients who land on
your website using voice search. You can engage with them by integrating
chatbot on your website. Through chatbot, you can,
· Ask their budget range
· Provide unit configuration options (1 BHK, 2
BHK, 3 BHK, etc.)
· Provide a list of popular projects in a
locality (Gera’s World of Joy, Nyati Elysia IV, Forest Edge, etc. in Kharadi)
· Ask their area of preference (Kharadi,
Hinjewadi, Balewadi, etc.)
· Enlist zone categorisation (East, West, North,
and South)
Do not Overlook ALT Text Field
Yes, you read it right. Always mention
appropriate ‘ALT Text’ when using images for property listings. It is often
said that ‘a picture is worth a thousand words’, but for that picture to be
seen, you need to provide search engines with thousand words (not literally) to
aid search engine crawlers in indexing an image.
For example, let us consider a project
named ‘Majestique Signature Towers’. So, if you are including images with 2 BHK
floor plans of a project, your alt text can be ‘2 BHK cozy 2D floor plan’.
Prioritize Local SEO
Become a local real estate expert.
Apparently, people will use voice search to get details about locally
(demographic specific) available product/services. Ensure that your website is
registered in local database. One way to optimize this process is getting
referrals through realtors from other localities and vice versa.
Always keep one thing in mind, that your
website and services will get online referrals from other realtors and credible
sources only when you provide apt, trustworthy, honest, and reliable offline
services.
Mobile Friendliness is the Key
Lately, prime search engines have started
prioritizing on mobile-friendly content on the web. And so, it has become
crucial for your web page to be optimized for mobile phone users. Even if you
implement strategies considering IoV but if your website doesn’t load within
seconds on mobiles, then, your website may not rank well in search engines.
Benefits of Voice Search for Realtors
IoV has already proved beneficial to many
businesses. One primary benefit of using voice search is that you can browse
through many properties within seconds. All you need do is speak your query
into the microphone of your mobile. Also, you can make queries in long
sentences in voice search as compared to text/character limitation.
IoV allows you to ask questions to search
engines and interact with them in a humanly manner. You can seek multiple
answers for your property query by directly speaking into microphone of your
mobile rather than typing it every time.
For example, ‘properties in Kharadi’,
‘properties in Pune’, ‘2 BHK flats in Balewadi’, ‘affordable homes in
Hinjewadi’, etc.
Epilogue
To conclude, we can rightfully say that voice search and
conversational AI is redefining the way information is sought today. IoV not
only has the potential to engage with people but also will provide answers to
consumer queries within seconds without the hassle of typing on screens.
A report from MarTech Today suggests, “The age of touch as the primary user
interface between consumers and devices is being disrupted. We’re entering the
age of conversational interfaces that are powered by our voice and gestures.”
“We’re entering the age of conversational interfaces powered by
our voice, sometimes even our gestures if there’s an AR/VR technology component
in place, and it doesn’t even have to involve a screen. Increasingly, these
devices do have screens, but their job mostly involves listening and delivering
a spoken response.”
*Note: The
given particulars are based upon market analysis and may or may not work for
every realtor.
Photo by Samer Khodeir on Unsplash