How Apple Siri Recommends Businesses — and How to Be One

Over 500 million iPhones are in use globally, and millions in India. Every one of them has Siri — and increasingly, Indian iPhone users are asking Siri to find local businesses. "Hey Siri, find a good dentist near me." "Siri, where can I get my car serviced in Pune?" Understanding how Siri makes these recommendations is the first step to being the business it recommends.

Where Siri Gets Its Data

Siri uses multiple data sources to answer local business queries. The primary sources are: Apple Maps, Yelp (international), Google search results, and increasingly, web content with schema markup. For Indian businesses, Google search results and Apple Maps are the two most important channels.

Apple Maps: The Often-Forgotten Platform

Most Indian businesses focus on Google My Business and forget Apple Maps entirely. This is a mistake. Every business that appears in Apple Maps is discoverable through Siri. Claim your free listing at mapsconnect.apple.com — it takes 15 minutes and immediately makes you visible to every Siri user near your location.

How Siri Selects Which Business to Recommend

When multiple businesses match a query, Siri considers: proximity to the user, ratings and reviews, relevance of the business description to the search query, website authority and speed, and structured data signals. A business with a complete Apple Maps listing, strong Google reviews, and a fast website with proper schema markup will consistently be recommended over competitors missing these signals.

Optimise for Conversational Queries

Siri queries are conversational — they're spoken, not typed. "Find me a good biryani restaurant near me open now" not "biryani restaurant Bangalore." Your website content needs to match this conversational style. FAQ content, natural language descriptions of your services, and content that uses the same phrases your customers would speak all help Siri understand what you offer.

Speakable Schema Markup

Google and Apple AI assistants support "speakable" schema markup — content specifically designated as appropriate for voice search responses. Adding speakable schema to your key business information (name, services, location, hours) increases the likelihood of being read aloud by Siri in response to local queries. This is an advanced but highly effective optimisation.

The Review Ecosystem Matters

Siri draws heavily on review signals. Unlike Google where reviews live on Google Business Profile, Siri considers a broader set of review sources. Encourage customers to review your business on Google AND Apple Maps. Even 20 Apple Maps reviews can significantly improve Siri recommendation frequency in your locality.

"Most Indian businesses have never thought about Siri as a customer acquisition channel. That's precisely why it's such a valuable opportunity right now — the competition for Siri recommendations in most Indian cities is near zero."