Siri commands & Local SERPs

[seoWest]

Hey guys,

This one stumped me. My client used Siri on his iPhone to perform a search query (e.g. "Profession + City") and it returned his two foremost competitors but not him. We have a very strong local presence in organic serps - including pack presence.

So.... not having any experience with iPhone (slap me silly), I am wondering what - if anything - is different about the Siri voice command search and the results it returns? And, how do I create a presence in this area if it is driven by a unique set of ranking factors?

I am all ears

 

[JoshuaMackens]

It may not be Siri, it may be the mobile search. Mobile searches have been known to trigger different SERP's because user intent is normally very different for mobile users.

Desktop users are normally doing research where as mobile users typically are ready to buy something. Google is back on user intent so that might be what you're seeing.

Also, I know this sounds elementary but is your client sure they were using Google and not Bing? You'd be surprised how easy it is for non search professionals to get the two confused.

 

[davejones]

What search engine was he using?

iphone searches with siri started using Bing last year instead of google. I believe it can be changed though.

 

[seoWest]

Hey guys,

Thanks for the input!

I had some time last night to dig into this a little further. It would appear that Siri pulls a good portion (not all) of its core data from Localeze - according to Mike Blumenthal. Additionally, Siri overlays their results with review data from Yelp/Yahoo.

I was actually able to confirm what I believe to be the reason my client saw two local competitors (no others - just those two) in the Siri results - they both have Localeze listings - none of the others in our region do. Interesting, huh? As a matter of fact, one of the two competitors actually ranks poorly when it comes to organic results or pack results, so some "other" factor was clearly boosting his Siri presence.

I am testing the theory by attaining a Localeze listing for my client. We have strong organic and pack results. We also have excellent Yelp/Yahoo reviews. The outcome should be interesting...