Voice search examples: a deep dive into the most popular voice assistants and their capabilities

Voice search examples are becoming increasingly necessary for businesses to consider because voice assistants are becoming more popular and integrated into our daily lives.

Understanding the capabilities and unique features of popular voice assistants such as Alexa, Google Assistant, and Siri is crucial for businesses looking to improve customer engagement and drive sales.

In this article, I will explore the various industries and scenarios where voice search examples can be applied.

Also, I’ll highlight the strengths and limitations of each assistant and the future trends in voice search technology.

Brief Introduction of the most popular voice assistants

See below a brief introduction to the 3 most popular voice search assistants.

Google Assitant

Google Assistant is a virtual assistant developed by Google that is primarily available on mobile and smart home devices.

Alexa

Alexa, like Google Assistant, is also a virtual assistant. However, Amazon developed it. You can use Alexa in the Amazon Echo and Echo Dot smart speakers.

Siri

Siri is another popular virtual assistant. Apple developed it. Basically, you can use Siri on any Apple device such as iPhone, iPad, HomePod, and Mac.

3 Voice Search Examples each for 10 Different Industries

See below a table showing a total of 30 voice search examples across 10 industries.

SN	Industry	Voice Search Example 1	Voice Search Example 2	Voice Search Example 3
1	Healthcare	Find a doctor near me	What are the symptoms of the flu?	Is it safe to take ibuprofen and acetaminophen together?
2	Food and Restaurant	What are the best sushi restaurants near me?	What are the ingredients for a Margarita cocktail?	Can you order me a large pepperoni pizza from [pizzeria name]?
3	Retail	Where can I buy the new iPhone?	What are the reviews for the Samsung S21?	What’s the price of a Fitbit Charge 4?
4	Travel	What are the best places to visit in Europe in the summer?	What are the cheapest flights to New York City?	What are the top-rated hotels in Las Vegas?
5	Entertainment	What are the top-rated movies on Netflix?	Play the latest album of Beyonce	What are the showtimes for the new Marvel movie?
6	Automotive	What are the best cars for a family of five?	What is the gas mileage of a 2020 Honda Civic?	What are the reviews for the new Tesla Model Y?
7	Real Estate	What are the median home prices in my area?	What are the open houses near me this weekend?	How many bedrooms does this house have?
8	Education	What are the best universities for computer science?	What are the top-rated online courses for Python?	What are the requirements for a teaching certificate in [state]?
9	Finance	What are the best savings accounts with the highest interest rates?	What are the best credit cards for travel rewards?	What are the best savings accounts with the highest interest rates?
10	SEO	What are the best SEO practices for e-commerce websites?”	How can I improve my website’s ranking on Google?	What are the top SEO tools for keyword research?

The capabilities of Alexa, Google Assistant, and Siri

Voice assistants like Alexa, Google Assistant, and Siri have become an integral part of our lives. About 80% of internet users use these virtual assistants to perform a wide range of tasks.

Understanding the capabilities of these popular voice assistants is crucial for businesses looking to optimize voice search and improve customer engagement.

Siri vs Google Assistant & Alexa: Uniqueness and Capabilities

Siri is unique in several ways. See below the uniqueness of Siri when compared to Alexa and Google Assistant.

1. Integration with Apple ecosystem: Siri is tightly integrated with the Apple ecosystem. This means it works well with other Apple products and services such as Apple Music, iCloud, and Apple HomeKit.
2. Privacy: Siri is designed to protect users’ privacy and data, using on-device processing and encrypting user data.
3. Personalization: Siri can learn the user’s habits and preferences, providing personalized suggestions and recommendations.
4. Voice recognition: Siri uses a unique voice recognition technology that can recognize the user’s voice even in noisy environments or when the user has a cold.
5. Proactive assistance: Siri can provide proactive suggestions and reminders based on the user’s calendar, location, and habits.
6. Hands-free activation: Siri can be activated hands-free by saying “Hey Siri”
7. Language support: Siri supports more languages than Alexa and Google Assistant.

Google Assistant vs Siri & Alexa: Uniqueness and Capabilities

See below 7 unique ways Google Assitant is different from Siri and Alexa.

1. Natural Language Processing: Google Assistant is the most advanced when it comes to natural language processing and understanding context. It handles more complex queries and commands than the other two virtual assistants.
2. Integration with Google services: Google Assistant has the ability to integrate with a wide range of Google services such as Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Maps, and Google Translate.
3. Personalization: Google Assistant can learn the user’s habits and preferences, providing personalized suggestions and recommendations.
4. Hands-free activation: Google Assistant can be activated hands-free by saying “Hey Google” or “Ok Google”.
5. Multilingual support: Google Assistant can understand and respond to multiple languages, and it can switch between languages on the fly.
6. Smart home control: Google Assistant can control a wide range of smart home devices and it can also be integrated with Google Nest.
7. Visual Responses: Google Assistant can also provide visual responses on smart screens, such as Google Nest Hub, or Smart displays. Also, it provides additional information like weather forecasts, recipes, and more.

Related: Learn How To Set Up Hyperlink On GMail Mobile App

Alexa vs Siri & Google Assistant: Uniqueness and Capabilities

Alexa has its own unique qualities that make it different from Google Assistant and Siri. Let’s consider some.

1. Skills: Alexa has a large library of “skills” or third-party integrations. This allows it to perform a wide range of tasks such as ordering pizza, controlling smart home devices, and even ordering a taxi. Alexa has a much larger number of skills than Google Assistant or Siri.
2. Smart home control: Amazon designed Alexa to work with a wide range of smart home devices. This makes it easy to control your lights, thermostat, and other connected devices with your voice.
3. Multi-room audio: Alexa allows you to play music or other audio content in multiple rooms at the same time. Also, you can control the volume and playback of each individual device.
4. Customizable wake word: Alexa allows you to choose from multiple wake words, such as “Alexa”, “Echo”, “Amazon”, or “Computer”.
5. Drop-In feature: Alexa allows you to call other Echo devices in your home or to call other Echo devices that are logged in with the same account.
6. Inexpensive: Alexa-enabled devices such as Echo Dot, Echo Dot with clock, and Echo Dot with clock and temperature sensor is relatively inexpensive compared to Google Home and HomePod (Siri)
7. Open-source: Alexa has an open-source platform, which allows developers to create new skills and integrations

All three virtual assistants are positively unique in their own way. Now let’s consider their individual limitations.

The limitations of Alexa, Google Assistant, and Siri

While Alexa, Google Assistant, and Siri are all capable of performing a wide range of tasks using natural language processing and voice recognition, they also have their own limitations.

In this section, we will examine the limitations of each virtual assistant to help you understand the potential challenges you may face when using them.

The limitations of Google Assistant vs Alexa and Siri

Google Assistant, like Alexa and Siri, has its own limitations. Some of the limitations of Google Assistant in comparison to Alexa and Siri are:

1. Location and Language restrictions: Google Assistant’s capabilities vary depending on the user’s location and language, some features might not be available in certain regions or languages.
2. Integration with Smart home devices: While Google Assistant can control a wide range of smart home devices, its integration capabilities are not as extensive as Alexa’s.
3. Limited range of third-party skills: Google Assistant has a limited range of third-party skills compared to Alexa, which may limit the number of tasks it can perform.
4. Limited voice recognition capabilities: While Google Assistant is good at understanding and responding to voice commands, it may not be as effective in noisy or crowded environments as Siri or Alexa.
5. Limited support for older devices: Some older devices do not work with Google Assistant. This limits its accessibility.
6. Limited Proactivity: Google Assistant’s proactivity is not as advanced as Siri’s and may not be able to provide as many reminders or suggestions based on location, habits, and preferences.

The limitations of Alexa vs Google Assistant and Siri

See below the limitations of Alexa in comparison with Siri and Alexa:

1. Limited natural language processing capabilities: While Alexa can perform a wide range of tasks, its natural language processing capabilities are not as advanced as Google Assistant’s, which may limit its ability to understand more complex queries and commands.
2. Limited integration with other services: Alexa’s integration with other services is limited compared to Google Assistant, and it may not be able to access as much information as Google Assistant can.
3. Limited voice recognition: Alexa’s voice recognition capabilities may not be as advanced as Google Assistant or Siri, which can make it less effective in noisy or crowded environments.
4. Limited proactivity: Alexa’s proactivity is not as advanced as Siri’s and may not be able to provide as many reminders or suggestions based on location, habits, and preferences.
5. Limited support for languages: Alexa supports fewer languages than Google Assistant or Siri.
6. Limited support for older devices: Alexa does not work well on older devices, which limits its accessibility.

The limitations of Siri vs Google Assistant and Alexa

Siri’s limitations include:

1. Limited third-party integration: Siri has a limited number of third-party integrations and skills compared to Alexa, which limits the number of tasks it can perform.
2. Limited integration with non-Apple devices and services: Siri is tightly integrated with the Apple ecosystem, which means it may not work as well with non-Apple devices and services.
3. Limited smart home control capabilities: Siri’s smart home control capabilities are limited compared to Alexa and Google Assistant, and it may not be able to control as many smart home devices.
4. Limited voice recognition capabilities: Siri’s voice recognition capabilities may not be as advanced as Alexa or Google Assistant, which can make it less effective in noisy or crowded environments.
5. Limited proactivity: Siri’s proactivity is not as advanced as Google Assistant’s and may not be able to provide as many reminders or suggestions based on location, habits, and preferences.
6. Limited multi-language support: Siri supports fewer languages than Google Assistant or Alexa.

Voice Search SEO tips for online businesses

As a business owner, you should be thinking of how to tap into the Voice search space given the various examples outlined above.

Here are some Voice Search SEO tips for online businesses:

1. Optimize for long-tail keywords: Voice search queries tend to be longer and more conversational than traditional text-based queries, so it is important to optimize your website for long-tail keywords that match the way people speak.
2. Optimize for local search: Voice search often includes a location-based component, so it is important to optimize your website for local search. Make sure your business name, address, and phone number (NAP) are consistent across your website and all directories, and include location-specific keywords in your website’s content and meta tags.
3. Optimize for featured snippets: Featured snippets are the answers that appear at the top of the search results, and they are commonly used to answer voice search queries. Optimize your website’s content to target featured snippets by providing clear and concise answers to common questions related to your business or industry.
4. Optimize for mobile: Voice search is often done on mobile devices, so it is important to optimize your website for mobile. Make sure your website is mobile-friendly and loads quickly on mobile devices.
5. Use structured data: Structured data, also known as schema markup, is a way to provide additional information about your website to search engines. Use structured data to provide information such as business hours, pricing, and reviews, which can help your website show up in voice search results.

How Voice Search could change in the future

Voice search is expected to continue to evolve and change in the future. See below 3 potential developments that I forsee about voice search:

1. Improved accuracy and natural language processing capabilities: Voice search technology is expected to become even more accurate and better at understanding natural language, which will enable it to handle more complex queries and commands.
2. Greater integration with other technologies: Voice search is expected to become more deeply integrated with other technologies such as smart home devices, connected cars, and virtual and augmented reality, which will enable it to provide more personalized and context-aware responses.
3. More personalized and proactive experience: With machine learning and AI, Voice search will become more personalized and proactive, providing users with more accurate and relevant information based on their search history, location, and other factors.

Final Thought

One takeaway from the voice search examples I mentioned earlier is that voice search queries tend to be more conversational and natural-sounding than traditional text-based queries.

They often include questions, commands, and location-based information, and people tend to use more natural-sounding language when speaking than when typing.

So, online businesses should optimize their website’s content to match the way people speak and provide clear and concise answers to common questions in a conversational tone.

This is likely to increase the chances of appearing in voice search results.

Finally, you may want to learn how to use multiple keywords on the free Yoast plugin, understand the misconception of SEO, and how to improve your LinkedIn SEO.