There’s a lot of talk about the importance of voice, especially now that businesses are updating their content to match the needs of people using voice to text software. Consumers are also responding to their own computers using voice to text applications, so it’s vital for your website text to be optimised for these.
A common example is the Amazon Echo device, which provides a robot named Alexa to search the Internet for information. Whether you want to know the date a person was born or listen to a favourite song from the radio, Alexa has got you covered.
It is increasingly important to ensure your content is written in a compatible manner to these devices, particularly as Amazon Echo and others become more popular.
The Background
A year ago, an article in The Economist described the situation like this:
“Simple though it may seem, voice has the power to transform computing, by providing a natural means of interaction.”
If you think about it, it’s just easier for users to speak into a computing device and ask for information. Then, the robot speaks back to them after searching for relevant data. The computer then makes some decisions for you, such as if you’re satisfied with the information or if they need to continue the search.
This is the same process we use when we go shopping for a new car and discuss the benefits and drawbacks of specific models with a live salesperson. Computers just make this process faster, all from the comfort of home.
The Importance of Dialogue
It’s not that difficult to update your website so that it will be readable by robots or a website design agency can help you do a review. Google and many others already review and rate this content regularly. These robots solely determine how useful the information is to user searches. They use the content on your site to establish your search engine page ranking.
In the era of voice to text searches, the quality of the language on your site matters more. If the information is not correct, then it won’t satisfy users who often aren’t even looking at a screen to review the information. The quality of the text, including syntax and geographic details, must help people find your company.
When It’s Time to Update a Website
If companies change their business models every year, it would make sense to update their website text. However, many organisations are so busy with product or service delivery, marketing, and other business functions, they often overlook this need. We recommend that you review your website text at least 4 times a year.
Here are some things that regular text review will help your brand address:
- Do you still have the right voice for your brand?
- Is it time for change?
- What might you change about the voice without updating all website text?
- How will a new or updated voice gel with a revamped site?
- Do you need all new content if you decide to change the voice in the text?
A website’s voice, or tone and style of written language, must be consistent with a brand’s current voice and marketing objectives. Each brand should have an overall voice before the website gets any new text. If you aren’t sure what your brand voice looks like, take time to create one before changing text on the website. For example, you write content in a different voice if you were to sell adults-only vacation packages than to designer baby clothes.
Both reading audiences are adults, but they are responding to different needs and wants when they read the content on these sites. In the first example, adults want to plan time away, and they don’t want kids around. In the second example, they want to find suitable apparel for a child. Your site should include language that matches user expectations for the subject matter. A government website would be more formal than a celebrity’s blog.
Website development agency pro advice
As a website design agency in Australia, we’ve helped hundreds of customers determine the right voice for their site. For more details, please contact us today.
