Latest / Franchise Conversations with Fexingo: Buying, Running, and Scaling Franchise Businesses / How Franchisees Win with Voice Search Optimization
Transcript
- Lucas: So, Luna, I was in the drive-thru line this morning and the car in front of me had an 'Alexa, find me a coffee shop' sticker on the bumper. And I thought, that's literally how a growing chunk of customers are finding businesses now. Luna: You mean voice search went from a novelty to a real traffic driver? Because I feel like we've been hearing about it for years, but is it actually moving the needle for franchisees? Lucas: It is, and the numbers are starting to show it. Comscore has projected that by 2026, over half of all searches will be voice-based. And we're sitting in August 2026 right now, so that projection is basically reality. But the key thing is voice search is not just typed search with your mouth. It's a different beast. Luna: Different how? I mean, I say 'Alexa, find a pizza place near me' and I get a list. That's pretty much the same as typing it. Lucas: Right, but you're using a complete sentence. When you type, you might put in 'pizza near me'. But voice queries tend to be longer, more natural, more conversational. 'What's the best pizza place open right now within five miles?' And that changes the keywords you need to target. Luna: So the old-school SEO playbook of stuffing a website with 'pizza' and 'delivery' isn't enough. You have to think in full questions. Lucas: Exactly. And that's where I saw a really sharp example last month. A multi-unit pizza franchise I know — they run about 15 locations across three states — they decided to test voice search optimization. They rewrote their Google Business profiles for each unit to include natural language descriptions like 'family-friendly pizza place with gluten-free options and outdoor seating'. Luna: So less about cramming keywords and more about sounding like how a person would describe the place to a friend. Lucas: Precisely. And they also added an FAQ page to their website posing questions like 'Do you deliver?', 'What are your hours on Sunday?', 'Is there a kids' menu?' — the kind of thing a voice assistant might read back as an answer. Luna: Did it actually move anything? Because that sounds like a lot of work for maybe a small change. Lucas: They told me their 'near me' traffic from voice assistants went up about 23 percent over three months. And more importantly, the calls they got from those searches were higher intent — people asking specific questions, not just 'where are you'. Luna: Twenty-three percent is not nothing. But what about the places that don't even show up in voice results? How do you make sure your franchise is even in the running? Lucas: That's the million-dollar question, and it comes down to a few things. First, your business listings need to be consistent across every directory — Google, Yelp, Bing, Apple Maps. If your name, address, and phone number vary even slightly, voice assistants get confused and skip you. Luna: So the same old citation consistency advice, but now it's even more critical because the assistant is making a choice for the user. Lucas: Right. And second, you need to think about speed. Voice assistants love fast-loading websites. If your mobile site takes more than three seconds to load, you're losing out. Google has said page speed is a ranking factor, and for voice it's even more important because the assistant wants to give an instant answer. Luna: Makes sense. So if I'm a franchisee, where do I even start? Do I need to hire an agency or can I do this myself? Lucas: You can absolutely start yourself. Begin with your Google Business Profile. Make sure every field is filled out completely — categories, services, attributes like 'outdoor seating' or 'free wifi'. Then write a long, natural description that includes the phrases people actually say when they speak. Luna: So 'best burger joint with a kids play area' instead of just 'burger restaurant'. Lucas: Exactly. And then add a FAQ schema to your website. That's a type of structured data that helps search engines understand your content. You can do it with a plugin or even manually if you're technical. It tells Google, 'these are the questions people ask and here are the answers'. Luna: And that FAQ page we mentioned — that's what feeds the schema, right? Lucas: Yes. And the questions should come from real customer queries. You can use a tool like AnswerThePublic or just mine your own customer service emails and chat logs for common questions. Luna: That's a great tip. I'm also thinking about the content side. If someone asks 'what's the best Italian restaurant in town', you want to be in that answer. So maybe franchisees should start creating content that answers those broader questions, not just their own specifics. Lucas: That's a smart angle. And it ties into something bigger: voice search could actually influence where you choose to open your next location. Because if you're not in the voice assistant's answer for 'best pizza near me', you might as well not exist for that customer segment. Luna: So when you're doing site selection, you might look at the density of smart speaker usage in a neighborhood, or how many competing businesses are already optimizing for voice. Lucas: Exactly. It's a new data point in the unit economics discussion. We've talked before about foot traffic and demographics, but voice search readiness is becoming part of the competitive landscape. If your competitor is already answering questions and you're not, they're getting the customer. Luna: That's a really good point. And it's the kind of thing that could give a single-unit franchisee an edge over a big national chain, because you can be more nimble with your content and your local targeting. Lucas: Absolutely. A small franchisee can rewrite their profile and add FAQ pages in a weekend. A corporate chain has to go through legal and brand guidelines, so they're slower. That's your advantage. Luna: So if today's conversation helps you see a few actions you can take for your own franchise, that's really the point of these shows. And the reason we can keep having these conversations without ads is listener support. If you got something useful out of this, you can buy me a coffee at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It's a simple way to keep the lights on. Lucas: Yeah, every little bit genuinely helps us keep digging into the topics that matter to franchisees. And honestly, it's the people who listen who point us toward the real-world examples, like that pizza franchise we mentioned. So thanks for being part of that. Luna: Alright, and back to voice search for a second. We talked about FAQ pages and Google Business Profile, but what about the actual audio branding? Like, if someone asks about your business, should you have a voice response that matches your brand? Lucas: That's a fascinating frontier. Some brands are creating custom Alexa skills or actions for Google Assistant, but that's a bigger investment. For most franchisees, the practical step is to make sure the information voice assistants pull is accurate and appealing. That's your voice, even if it's not a literal recording. Luna: So it's about being the clear, easy answer. And maybe also tracking what questions people ask your business, to keep your FAQ fresh. Lucas: Right. Voice search is not a one-and-done. It's an ongoing process of listening to how customers phrase things, updating your content, and checking your analytics. But the franchisees who start now are going to be way ahead by this time next year. Luna: And if you're a multi-unit owner, you can standardize this across your locations, but you also need to allow for local variations. Different neighborhoods may have different questions. Lucas: That's a great point. You might have a universal FAQ template, but each unit should add location-specific questions like 'Do you have parking in the back?' or 'Are you near the metro station?' Luna: It's like making your digital storefront as welcoming as your physical one. And it's not that hard to do, if you're willing to put in a few hours. Lucas: Exactly. And it's one of those rare things in business where the early movers get a real edge, but it's still early enough that most of your competitors haven't caught on. So if you're listening and you run a franchise, this is your chance to be the one voice assistants recommend. Luna: I'm already thinking about how I'd start. Maybe I'll test it on a single location and see what happens. Thanks for the insights, Lucas. Lucas: Always a pleasure. And if our listeners try it out, we'd love to hear how it goes. You can reach us through the Fexingo network.