People are searching by voice more and more. While voice search was not something many people did five years ago, with the improvement of speech recognition on iOS, Android, and the web, voice search has taken off on all of these platforms. The trends all point to the same thing: if businesses provide a voice input option on the search bar in their apps and on websites, people will take advantage of it.

No download is needed to use voice search from Algolia. As the creator of an app or website, you can choose how to integrate the speech-to-text libraries. Algolia offers voice libraries for iOS and Android, as well as a widget for voice search in the browser via JavaScript.

There is very little you need to do to get your content voice-search ready. If you follow Algolia’s search optimization guide, you’ll be good to go. You may also consider adding synonyms and rules to address all of the ways people can search by voice. Dynamic synonym suggestions are another way to optimize your content to match user intent.

Not necessarily. While people may often use more natural language when they search by voice, they will just as often use keyword searches. So while you should follow Algolia’s best practices for natural language search, don’t worry about natural language search being “too advanced.” Algolia makes voice and natural language search easy.

Voice search is when people use their voice to search, regardless of the platform or what keywords they use. While many people think of smart speakers such as Alexa and Google Assistant when they hear the phrase “voice search,” people search by voice more often on their smartphones or on websites. Users look to Android and iOS apps, and websites, to see if they have implemented voice search.

The best voice search technology gives users and customers the ability to search by voice with natural language or keyword queries. This opens up more interactive opportunities when people are on the go, taking public transportation, or simply have their hands full. To best serve these types of voice searches, it is important to have technology that can understand what people are saying and personalize the results for them.

Voice search cuts across all types of people. Young people use it while out with their smartphones, and older people appreciate its accessibility benefits. Virtually anyone can use voice search to find items or products faster or when typing isn’t convenient.

Not only does voice search facilitate accessibility, it can be more convenient than typing, especially on platforms such as mobile or smart television, where typing can be error prone or a hassle.