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How to rank for Siri voice search? Everyone was telling lie!

Here’s a straightforward hint: just rank your webpage in the top three Google search results, and Siri will feature your webpage in its answers.

After reading many articles on how to rank for Siri voice search, I found all of them were inaccurate. They all discussed methods for optimizing for search engine ranking but not for Siri.

I know this because I’ve done experiments and analyzed how Siri retrieves results. Here’s what I discovered and how you can rank for Siri voice search.

Why Traditional SEO Methods Don’t Apply to Siri Voice Search

I red over 10 articles, and they all provided SEO methods that help rank for search engine SERP results. These included using conversational writing styles, questioning subheadings, schema markup, and frequently asked questions (FAQs). While these methods are excellent for Google, they don’t directly apply to Siri suggestions or answers.

Siri is not integrated into any search engine. It’s an intelligent assistant that retrieves results from search engines. If you use Siri on an iPhone, you’ll notice it only provides three results related to your query, displayed on the right side of your screen.

How to Rank for Siri Voice Search

When experimenting with Siri, I found it only provides three web pages, and these come from the top three results in the search engine results page (SERP). If your webpage is among the top three, Siri will feature it. If it’s below the third position, even if it’s fourth, you’ll lose the spot in Siri’s suggestions.

Experiments I Conducted

Experiment 1: Siri Retrieves Results from the Top Three

In one of my articles about the Difference between search engine and AI answer engine, my page fluctuated between the fourth and fifth positions. While my page was in these positions, it was not featured by Siri. The results Siri provided were always the top three results on Google.

To change this, I updated my article with more content and improved its quality. A few hours later, my webpage moved up to the second position. When I asked Siri the same question again, my webpage was now included in Siri’s suggestions because it ranked in the top three organic results.

Screenshot displaying 3 results At the right side of the screen by Siri voice search, my webpage is also included. The 2nd one is mine

Similarly, my other article, which was about Supported languages for Google AdSense, was also ranking in the top 3 results on Google. So, when I interacted with Siri and said, “Hey Siri, what are the supported languages for Google AdSense monetisation approval? Siri again provided me with the top three results. Because my webpage was ranking in the third position, it was also included in Siri’s answer.

Screenshot displaying results at the right side of the screen by Siri,  my webpage is in the third place Recommended bye Siri answer

This proved that to rank for Siri voice search, your webpage must be in the top three Google results. Otherwise, Siri will not display your page when providing answers.

Example: Suppose your webpage on On-page SEO tools ranks fourth. Siri won’t feature it. If you update the content, optimize your SEO, and it moves to the second position, or between top 3, Siri will now suggest it in response to voice searches.

Experiment 2: Local Business Ranking for Siri Voice Search

For local searches like “restaurants near me” or “digital marketing companies near me,” Siri operates differently. It recommends businesses based on proximity to your location, not their ranking in search results. Siri will suggest the nearest business first and ask if you want to move on to the next option if it’s not suitable.

Therefore, for local business searches, the key is nearest business are recommended first for users specific location. Ensure your business is optimized for local searches and is listed in local directories. Proximity to the searcher is crucial for Siri’s recommendations.

Example: If you own a local café, Siri will recommend your café to users nearby, even if another café farther away ranks higher on Google.

Summary of Experiments and Analysis

I asked Siri over 70 questions on various informational topics and received consistent results. The results Siri provided were always the top three Google organic results. For local businesses, I analyzed more than 50 and found Siri suggested the nearest businesses, not necessarily the top-ranking ones.

A word from Shahnoorblogger

Now it’s your turn! Tell me, how was this experiment, and do you have any suggestions, I love to read them. Share in the comments!

Frequently asked questions

Does using FAQs works with siri voice search?

FAQs don’t directly influence Siri, but they’re still valuable. They can help your webpage rank higher in Google search results, and Siri pulls information from the top three results. So, indirectly, FAQs can help you get featured in Siri voice responses.

Does conversational writing style matter for Siri optimisation?

No, conversational writing style doesn’t directly affect Siri. Because your article is going to be published on Google, and indexed from Google Search Console, which is then crawled by Google, but not by Siri crawler because there isn’t any.
However, your writing style no matter what it is, impacts user engagement.

How can I verify my webpage is featured on Siri responses?

Here’s a simple way to check:
Ask Siri a question: Interact with Siri and ask a question using your target keyword related to your webpage’s content.
Look for the top three results: If Siri provides three related results, and your webpage is among them, then you’re featured!
But, if you’re not featured this means you’re not ranking on top 3 results on Google.

How other articles are providing inaccurate information about siri optimisation?

Based on my experiments and and analysis, most articles miss the mark by focusing on SEO methods that do not directly apply to Siri. They mention using conversational writing styles, schema markup, and FAQs, which help with Google ranking. However, they don’t explain that the critical factor for Siri is being in the top three Google results.

Why should I care for Siri voice search optimisation?

Voice search is rapidly growing in popularity, and Siri is a major player in this space. In fact, over 45% of voice assistant users prefer Apple Siri according to voice search statistics. Optimizing for Siri voice search allows you to tap into this growing trend and reach potential customers who prefer using voice assistants to find information online.


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