Google receives over 5.6 billion searches every day. Years ago, people would travel miles to a major library just to find specific information or read more about a topic. Today, it’s very tough to live without doing few ‘’Google’’ searches in a day. People are searching for something every day or minute online. You are either searching for something or something is searching for you.
The demand for search cannot be over emphasized. How do you define the search path to your personal brand, product, company or services? These 3 ideas below can help you define the right path.
Think Mobile
Mobile is fast changing the way we make purchases. We are heavily relying on search engine results as a way of validating purchase reviews. Even more, we have gone from casual inquiry to researching brands while we are having a lunch break or even in a supermarket. Searching and reviewing brands has seriously impacted today’s customer journey path. Whereas traditionally, we would make purchases without consulting our phones, we now do it in consultation with our mobile phone’s advice.
It is in a brand’s interest to define a clear search strategy to be found by your ‘searching clients’. For example, new users of a phone will definitely search for reviews of a newly launched phone as a validation before making purchase.
Answer questions along your customer’s journey path. This is why i always recommend FAQs and Policies on websites. This information is helpful in addressing needs of customers. Provide all kind and forms of information as if you will not be needed in person. These are what most mobile searchers need readily. Reward digital customer reviews and product comparisons.
Think Content
For every product or service, you have to deliberately guess what people can search for that will lead them to either your product/service page. This is what I mean by thinking content.
Let me illustrate a typical search path for a wrist watch buyer.
- Google Search ‘Classic Watches’
- Visit ‘Brand-of-Watch-Manufacture’ Website
- Google Search ‘Affordable wristwatches’
- Review 6 websites (5 visits)
- Decides on ‘Brand-of-Watch-Manufacture’ online shop
Some are even more sophisticated in searching than this. You may realize that the first search ”classic watches” result led him/her to the ‘brand-of-watch-manufacturer’ website, but his/her needs was not exhaustively met and thus decided to re-search for ”affordable watches.” For such a buyer, the first search result may not be exhaustive but become essential in his/her final consideration. This is the impact of a clearly crafted search strategy that delivers relevant information such as reviews, location, price, value etc.
However, it is also important to note that the consumer may have ignored the first website completely if he/she finds more credible information with the other search results. This is why it is very important not to only have a digital presence, but a strong search path with ”strategic keywords” that will return your brand information to seeking clients.
Your product may be the best on the market but without documented online reviews, ratings, information that can be easily found when searched for, it may amount to nothing. Always be strategic of the content to create around your product or service that people will already search for.
Think Voice
With the rise and growth of voice search, you need to consider voice queries that should bring up your product or service as an answer. It is predicted that by 2020, half of all online searches will be made through online search. By January 2018, there was an average of 1 billion voice searches every month, proving that voice search is on the rise.
Voice search essentially allows users to speak into a device as opposed to typing keywords into a search query to generate results. Although it seems like a brand-new concept, voice search technology has been around for a while. Programs such as speech-to-text and voice dialing are great examples of voice search.
Ensure your website loads faster and create content in the way people speak. Longer keywords (Longtail) will be used more and you need to optimize your content for that intent.
Cherubim Mawuli Amenyedor
Account Manager, Digital Innovations
Global Media Alliance
LinkedIn: Cherubim Mawuli Amenyedor