Action Directory Pages Rolled Out for Google Assistant to Help Publishers Optimize for SEO Voice Search
In recent months, Google has made a number of search-related improvements to Google Assistant (its own version of Amazon’s Alexa or Apple’s Siri). Google Assistant allows users to engage in two-way conversations and help them find information across various internal platforms such as search, news, and maps.
Google recently sent a number of notifications to qualified publishers with verified properties in Search Console detailing improved ways to optimize discovery of their content in Google Assistant. Specifically, they have made it easier for users to find content within the Google Assistant's browsable Actions Directory. The update encouraged publishers to claim their directory pages and include specific content to optimize for “Actions” specific to their content and website, all while using the Actions on Google feature.
Who is eligible?
So far, the update has been sent to Podcast, Recipe, and News publishers who have invested in structured data markup or AMP (Accelerated Mobile Pages). To see if your site is eligible, you can check for an auto-generated directory page by searching in the explore section of Google Assistant.
What content can I include in my directory page?
Each qualified publisher is given their own auto-generated directory page, which is found in Google Assistant’s Actions Directory. Publishers can claim their page and create content specific to their site for the following fields:
- Short Description
- Full Description
- Banner Image
- Logo
- Developer Name
- Category
What should marketers do?
1. Check your Google Search Console account to see if you have received a message about you Actions Directory Page. You can also reference the Actions Directory to see if your site is relevant to eligible categories.
2. If your website is approved in Google Search Console, marketers should start populating information on their directory page as soon as possible to take advantage of ways to improve discoverability.
3. Start or continue to invest in structured data markup for your site, as this universal language is crawled by Google and helps improve SEO visibility overall. Specifically, be sure to include mark-up for relevant voice search categories to improve voice search discoverability.
Examples of structured data include:
- Company Name
- Sitelink search box
- Ratings
- Reviews
- Videos
Remember, there is also schema markup and structured data specific to certain industries. For example, recipe publishers can include cooking time and calories.
If you’d like to learn more about optimizing your website for SEO Voice Search, contact Rise today.