30 November 2022
What is audio SEO?
Over the past few years, an increasing number of companies have realized the importance of search engine optimization (SEO) practices, and have begun implementing strategies to help them rise up in Google’s search rankings. The benefits are clear: the closer a company is to the top of a search, the easier it is for potential consumers to discover them. This extended reach then has the potential to be converted into higher revenues, as long as content throughout the consumer funnel remains high-quality.
However, not all search keywords are created equal: a much larger number of consumers searching ‘best games 2022’ compared to ‘best European-produced sci-fi horror games in November 2022’. Of course, this is an extreme example, but it’s important to note that some search keywords are going to get a lot more traffic than others.
Unfortunately, with such a vast number of companies now adopting SEO practices, it’s increasingly difficult to rank for these ‘high traffic’ keywords. In this case, companies need to look for new, creative ways to rank higher. Enter audio SEO.
With smart assistants such as Amazon’s Alexa and Apple’s Siri becoming more popular, along with the current podcast and audiobook boom, companies should look into optimizing their audio content for search rankings. This is a relatively new field for SEO, with Google only rolling out podcasts in search results in 2018.
There are a couple of things companies should do when planning and creating audio content, such as podcasts, to ensure it’s optimized for search engine indexing.
As with written features, it’s important that the quality is there. When thinking about audio SEO, however, it’s not just one type of quality that is being judged by the audience. Back when the podcast market was just beginning, audiences were more lenient in regards to audio quality, but with the market now booming, it’s important to ensure that all audio products are recorded using high-quality, professional equipment. Similarly, the content itself has to be held to a high-standard: listeners aren’t going to keep coming back if the podcast is poorly written or just plain dull.
It’s also important to make sure that content is available on a variety of platforms. Don’t limit the potential audience by only making a podcast available through one channel. Then, when writing the descriptions for podcast episodes that will be released to these platforms, think carefully about the keywords that customers are searching for. Make sure to include these in order to improve discoverability.
Similar strategies can be applied to Youtube videos, where the content is indexed by voice too, allowing companies to rank for their relevant terms in this huge video search engine platform.
Alpha Creative provides expert advice for companies looking to improve their audio SEO rankings. With a network of in-house copywriters and international linguists and SEO experts, Alpha Creative helps clients improve their search rankings in multiple regions. As part of the Alpha CRC network, Alpha Creative can also call on the audio expertise and state-of-the-art recording equipment available through Alpha Studios to help clients improve their audio quality.
