Searching with voice command has become very popular. Just about every smartphone has this feature through Google Now, Siri, Cortana or another voice command program.
What about WordPress? Can you add voice search to your WordPress website? The answer is YES! You can add it by using the default WordPress search tool and the right plugin. Here’s how it’s done.
Using the Voice Search Plugin for WordPress
The Voice Search Plugin will allow you to give users an easier way to search with voice command. After the plugin has been activates, you can easily add the default search widget provided with WordPress to use the new feature.
You don’t have to adjust any settings, configurations or do anything special to use the plugin. It works right out of the box and will add the microphone icon to the WordPress search box.
If the search widget has already been added to your sidebar, the plugin will automatically add the voice command feature. After the plugin is activated, just visit your website to confirm the icon has been added.
When a user clicks on the microphone, they will see text saying “Start Talking” and they can tell your site what to search for.
The plugin works by using the web speech API, which takes voice input. IT has not been added to all browsers, but it will work in both Chrome and Safari. Firefox has announced they will be adding web speech soon, as well.
The plugin will modify the code of your website to include the right JavaScript. If you are using a search plugin, such as SearchWP or Google Search for WordPress, the plugin won’t work for you. It may not work with other custom search plugins, either.
Now you can add voice search to your WordPress website quickly and easily. Just activate the plugin and you will be all set.
