how can search marketers take advantage of siriIn April of 2010, tech giant Apple purchased Siri, an application that doubles as a personal assistant for mobile users. We are finally getting a chance to see what the app can really do now that it has been implemented in the recently launched iPhone 4s. The interactive quality of this exciting new feature will likely make it a big hit with consumers, but could it also be a useful tool for search marketers? It is starting to look like the answer to that questions is “yes”.

Siri’s Search Potential

If you haven’t heard by now, Siri is an app that aids the smartphone user with whatever they need help with by processing voice commands. It is powered by technology owned by Nuance, the leader in the voice recognition software industry. The application serves up a conversation-friendly interface that allows the user to complete a given task by physically touching the screen as less as possible. With Siri, you can complete tasks that range from pulling up directions to finding out what’s showing at the movie theater over the weekend.

Seeing how it works, it is very possible that mobile phone owners would use Siri to discover the content they want instead of using traditional search tools such as Google and Bing. This could very well happen considering how search for mobile devices, particularly the iPhone, isn’t as efficient as it is in the desktop environment. The Google app is known for crashing quite often on the iPhone and also experiences other performance issues due to bugs. While Google has its own voice-powered search feature, it is no where near as user-friendly and efficient as what Apple has going on with Siri.

Seizing the Moment

The growing popularity of mobile phones has helped make local search a potential gold mine for businesses, and when it comes to using Siri as a marketing tool, effectively capitalizing on local is the key. There are a variety of sources that feed the app the information it passes along to the user. Among them are results from local search products such as BooRah, CityGrid, Localeze, and Yahoo. The actual source all depends on what the user is requesting, but the most interesting of the bunch is popular review service Yelp.

According to reports, Apple is exclusively using Yelp to provide data to those using the Siri app to find information on local restaurants. Yelp may also be used to deliver info for other requests. For the search marketer with a local focus, this news should viewed as an incentive to take advantage of Yelp by creating a profile, optimizing it, and connecting with their audience through the platform. When your business shows up in the local search results, the positive reviews and ratings will go a long way in driving traffic to your front doorstep.

SEO Strategy for Siri

Is it time to create a Siri SEO strategy? It is a bit early at the moment, but you may want to consider it as this mobile app starts to pick up steam and appeal to more users.