Search Intent
Search intent is what a person actually wants when they type a query: to learn, to compare, to find a specific site, or to buy.
In detail
Intent decides the format. An informational query wants an explanation; a commercial one wants comparison and proof; a transactional one wants a clear path to act.
The results page is the evidence. If it is full of guides, a product page will not win the position.
Example
"seo vs sea" wants a balanced comparison, not a sales page for one of them.
Why it matters
Mismatched intent is the most common reason a well-written page never ranks.
Common mistakes
- Forcing a commercial page onto an informational query.
- Answering a comparison query with a one-sided pitch.
Related questions
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Related terms
- Keyword Research
Keyword research is the process of finding the searches your audience makes and deciding which ones a page should target.
- SERP
A SERP (search engine results page) is what a search engine returns for a query, including ads, AI answers and result features.
- On-Page SEO
On-page SEO is the work done inside a page: title, meta description, headings, copy, images and internal links.
Related questions
- What is SEO?
SEO (search engine optimisation) is the work of making a website easier for search engines to crawl, understand and trust, so its pages appear for the searches its audience actually makes.
- How can I improve my Google ranking?
Start by removing the reasons a page cannot rank at all: error responses, accidental noindex directives, wrong canonical URLs, pages no internal link points to.