Study Finds 80% of Google Home Results Come from Rich Snippets

Voice search is top of mind for many search engine marketers. It’s an ever-evolving mystery. Digital agency ROAST hoped to de-mystify voice search with their Voice Search Ranking Report. The goal of the study was to categorize and comprehend how Google processes and responds to voice search queries.

The study also hoped to find out when Google Home uses featured snippets and the Answer Box to answer queries, and when it does not.

Google Home Results

To find the answer, ROAST used 616 key phrases in the UK featuring snippet answer boxes. Next, they compiled a list of top phrases by query volume across a wide range of verticals. They ran the test in November, comparing Google Home results and Google search engine results.

The study specifically attempted to answer the following:

• How many search phrases were answered on Google Home results?
• Do Google Home results match those of the answer box results?
• Which keywords does Google not use in the answer boxes?
• Is there a correlation between visibility on voice search and answer boxes?

The Results

The study found that in most cases, Google Home results mirrored the rich snippet Answer Box. However, in some cases Google Home provided no answer or a different answer despite their being a rich snippet and Answer Box.

It’s important to consider that simply rephrasing a query can lead to a different response, so a query that initially resulted in “I can’t help with that yet” can produce an answer if rephrased.

According to the study, Google Home was able to answer about 75 percent of the voice search queries used in the test. When Google Home did provide an answer, about 80 percent of the answers were the same as the Answer Box used in traditional Google search query results.

As for the other 20 percent of answers, they came from different data sources like local, flight search, etc.

Takeaways

While getting featured in the Answer Box is certainly a good thing, it doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be the answer to a voice search. If you’re a local business, you’ll want to focus on your Google My Business account. That’s the key to being featured in local related searches.

It’s a good idea to start tracking your voice search reports separately from your traditional search reports as results will vary. The study also shows the significance of the Answer Box for voice search.

 

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