The marketing and advertising scene is changing exponentially and search engine companies are taking more advantage of available technology around them. Search engines have evolved from just text-based searches to using voice searches and smart speakers and this is what most industries are thinking of when it comes to marketing and SEO. The pharmaceutical industry is no different.
What are Voice Searches?
A voice search is a speech recognition technology that allows users to search for something by saying the words rather than typing them into a text field. Voice searches are being integrated into smartphones and computers to help people navigate the internet easily.
These devices integrated with voice search software are called smart speakers.
Consumers are adopting the use of smart speakers in their daily life much faster anyone predicted. People use them in their homes while driving, on their way to work, while at work, etc. Smart speakers are taking over the market and it has never been better for marketers. What we’re seeing is the birth of an entirely new way for brands to engage with their audiences.
Why Pharmaceuticals Brands Should Use Voice Search?
There are a lot of reasons why pharma brands should be interested in voice search. I mean aside from the fact that they are very convenient to use, they are also very accessible. Voice search could be the solution for patients who might have difficulty searching the web with texts. They could use voice assistance to surf the web, communicate with family, friends, and even healthcare physicians. It could help them stay connected and improve their quality of life.
The use of smart speakers is on an exponential rise. Patients, caregivers, and physicians are all using smart speakers. The number of people who use smart speakers increased with over 50% from July 2017 and the number has risen in 2020. Smartphones are the major proponents of the rise as almost all smartphones have voice search software, and half of all smartphone users engage with the voice on their device, and 1 in 3 uses it daily.
HCPs are not left out. Most HCPs uses voice search to discover the latest drugs available to treat a specific condition. It would certainly be beneficial for your brand to come up first in search. For drug and device manufacturers whose products help patients with conditions that limit mobility, voice search is an especially essential tool for providing educational information.
By exploring the technology now, pharmaceutical companies could take advantage of the technology to push their brands out there and do the best they can.
Another reason pharma should be interested in Voice Search is that it could be used as a voice assistant. It is more proactive and can help in facilitating interactions that could improve healthcare and health outcomes.
It can be used as a voice coach to help patients monitor their health, and it can also be used for interventions, to prevent patients from forgetting medications and appointments.
How can Pharmaceutical Marketers Use Voice Search?
There are many ways to use technology and implement it. Some of these are:
- They need to re-strategize and move from keyword-based search to a long tail based strategy.
- If you have a website, make sure your FAQ page contains actual questions from your audience and not fabricated ones.
- Create podcasts and posts based on the questions asked by your audience
- Create an Amazon Alexa skill and/or Google action.
