Everything You Need to Know About Semantic Search

Intro

(Image sourced from financesonline.com)

Every online business knows the importance of search engine optimization (SEO). It’s the key to gaining new website users and generating conversions. After all, the top-listed search result has a 28.5% click-through rate (CTR). As you get further down the search engine results page (SERP), this number drops. By position 10, the CTR is only 2.5%.

But just because SEO is well-known doesn’t make it easy. Perhaps you’ve got a fantastic link-building operation. You may have spent long hours researching keywords. Despite all these factors, you could be finding little reward for your effort.

You might not have realized it, but the rules of SEO have changed. Link building and keywords, while still important, are no longer enough. Search engine algorithms have changed and become cleverer. Google no longer focuses solely on search terms. Today, it’s much more interested in the context of a search.

This is where semantic search comes in. But what is it, and why is it important for SEO? Read on to find more!

What is Semantic Search?

Search engines have come on in leaps and bounds in the way they work to understand users. You will probably have noticed how AI is transforming the business world. It powers our marketing strategies and boosts internal processes.

AI-powered machine learning now ensures better search results. But it wasn’t always like this; going back ten years, search engines behaved quite differently.

Let’s imagine two search queries: ‘What is the tallest building in New York?’ and ‘How tall is it?’. Because we understand context, we can tell that these queries are related. Going back to 2013, however, Google would not spot a link between the queries.

(Image sourced from Google results)

Today if you search ‘What is the tallest building in New York?’ you will get the above result. As you can see, the answer to the initial query is displayed. But not only that, there is also an answer to the anticipated follow-up question. Google also provides additional information, listing other tall buildings within New York.

This was made possible through semantic search. Understanding this system, and how users search, is key to SEO success.

Factors Informing Semantic Search

As well as looking at the context behind a user's query, semantic search takes other factors into account. These include:

• The location that a user is searching from.
• A user’s search history.
• The global search history.
• Variations in spelling.

Together these factors work together to provide the most accurate search results possible.

Key Elements of Semantic Search

So, you may have improved traditional customer contact routes by using IVR software. You may also feel that you have nailed online interactions through enticing web pages. The bad news is that you still won’t get the results you want unless you are on top of SEO.

And to be successful in SEO, you need to understand how semantic search works. There are two elements that allow Google to find the best search results: search intent and semantics. Let’s look at each:

Search Intent

Users’ search results might not always make sense. For example, picture a user looking to buy batteries. The logical search might be ‘buy batteries’. But in this instance, a user queries ‘find batteries’. This search phrase doesn’t instantly link with buying. In the past, a search engine would bring up less relevant results.

(Image sourced from Google results )

Using machine learning, semantic search can properly understand a user’s intent. As shown above, not only does the query find a list of websites to buy batteries, it also lists local shops. In short, it makes the life of the searcher much easier.

Semantics

Semantics is a form of linguistics. It involves looking at words as a collective rather than singularly. The old search engine approach focused entirely on keywords. This meant that it produced results of varying reliability.

The modern search engine uses semantics to look for associations between different words. Essentially this approach attempts to mirror human communication. By doing so, a search engine can produce results that are accurate to a user’s query.

How Does This Impact SEO?

If your SEO efforts aren’t paying it off, you’re probably not giving enough focus to semantic search. Because search engines are more accurate, people interact differently with them. Your SEO approach also needs to change if it is to be effective.

Below are some of the ways that semantic search is impacting SEO.

More People Are Using Voice Search

(Image source: Unsplash)

One of the biggest behavioral changes has been in how to enter queries. As smartphones and voice recognition have become more and more popular, so have voice searches. In the US alone, 128 million people use voice-assisted searching at least once per month.

This requires a different approach to your SEO. Content needs to align with how people are searching. People don’t speak the way they write. When typing queries, most people adopt a shorthand approach. For example, rather than searching for ‘What are the best restaurants in Paris?’, they would search ‘best restaurant Paris’.

But when conducting a voice search, most people adopt the former approach. This means taking a much more informal approach to your content. Take some time to research conversational long-tail keywords. Using a free keyword finder can make the process a lot simpler.

Here are some other tips for making your content voice search friendly:

• Don’t waste time getting to the point. Ensure that common queries are answered straight away within your copy.
• Always make sure that your content is clear and relevant. Make sure that problem-solving is at the heart of your copy.
• Add comprehensive FAQs. People often ask questions in their queries. Ensure your article covers common questions and provides simple answers.

Shift Away from Keywords

For a long time the focus for SEO and content creation has been keywords. While they still have a role, the focus needs to shift. The old approach meant writing articles around keywords. This involved focusing on specific topics. Although this may have worked 10 years ago, it isn’t applicable to semantic search.

To optimize your content, you need to take a broader angle. Instead of narrow topics, your content should cover multiple topics. Ultimate guides and ‘how tos’ can be a great way of accomplishing this. Try to formulate a list of broad topics that relate to your field.

In addition, when writing your articles, be sure to consider the importance of terminology management. While this won’t have a direct impact on SEO, it will affect how a reader perceives you. Your articles should embody your company. For example, If you want people to associate your brand with being laid back, you might use less formal language.

Remember Mobile Users

More and more people are using mobile phones online. Despite this, many websites are still not friendly to mobile users.

When Google introduced semantic search, they also put a focus on user experience. Any website that doesn’t function for users on _all _devices will be penalized. For this reason, it's a good idea to have two separate versions of your website - one for users on desktop devices, and one for mobile users.

A simple test is to access your website on a mobile device. Navigate it as if you were a customer. Does it function as it should? Do you find that your website is slow to load or difficult to use? If so, your website needs to be more mobile-friendly.

Wrapping Up

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There are certain areas of business that are simply common sense. For example, investing in hosted contact center software to enable the best customer support. SEO should be treated with the same level of importance.

After all, SEO is vital for any website that seeks success. But the algorithms have changed, as have people’s approaches to searching online. Semantic search has altered everything, and to avoid being left behind you need to adapt.

Altering your content to be more friendly for voice searches should be top of the agenda. Try to make your content more conversational and focus on broader topics. Perhaps most importantly, don’t forget mobile users. If your website isn’t mobile-friendly, now’s the time to make a change.

The fact is, semantic search isn’t going away. Why not embrace the future and boost your SEO tactics? It might seem like a lot of effort, but the rewards are endless.