Siri Search Optimization for Local Businesses http://tier10lab.com/2012/06/25/siri-search-optimization-for-local-business/ June 25, 2012  By Molly Troha

With the success of the iPhone 4s and our ever-increasing dependence on smartphones, companies need to know how to optimize Siri search. As a virtual assistant, Siri allows the user to send texts and emails, set up calendar appointments, check the weather, search for local businesses, and more. Siri chooses which app, site, tool or service that's best fitted to the requested task. So what can businesses do to be sure they're on Siri's radar?

First, make sure your business is listed on all local listing sites such as Google Local+, Foursquare, Facebook Places, TripAdvisor and most importantly, Yelp. It's been found that Siri draws most of its local search results from Yelp and the more reviews a business has, the more Siri will favor it.

 

After listing and/or claiming your business on the local listing sites, follow the steps below to be sure your business is optimized for Siri.

• Be sure each of your listings are updated, accurate, fully filled out, and consistent. The more information you provide, the better Siri will be able to categorize your business.

• Create rich snippets by using a service like Schema.org. This allows you to use specific markup language that helps search engines identify specific information about your business. In these snippets, you can include your address, phone number, hours of operation, and more.

• Encourage customers to leave reviews, especially on Yelp. As said before, Siri uses a ranking system that relies heavily on review-counts for a business.

• Have a mobile mobile-optimized site. If Siri directs a user to your site, you want to be prepared.

• Think differently about your keywords. When using Siri for search, the queries end up being longer and more specific because the users are using natural speech. Use this to your advantage by optimizing long-tail keywords and highly targeted search queries.

Heeding the advice above and being aware of your mobile market will not only help with Siri search, but search engine optimization as well. You'll also be prepared for Q3, when the next version of the iPhone is expected to be released.

[Infographic Source: Dream Systems Media]

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