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Search intent: the four types and how to write for them

Simon Tern

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Simon Tern

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Someone searches for “coffee machine”. Do they want to learn how they work? Compare models? Buy one today? Google guesses, and usually guesses right. That is why a good article about coffee does not rank for the keyword “buy coffee machine”, however nice it is.

This is called search intent, and it is the most common explanation when a page does not rank even though everything “looks right”.

The four types

1. Informational. The person wants to know something. Examples: “what is core web vitals”, “how does a heat pump work”. Right content: guides, explanations, lists.

2. Navigational. The person wants to reach a particular site. Examples: “facebook login”, “tern agency”. Right content: a clear homepage and a good brand page. Do not try to win on other people’s names here.

3. Commercial investigation. The person will buy soon but is comparing. Examples: “best projector”, “seo agency or consultant”. Right content: comparisons, tests, price guides, reviews.

4. Transactional. The person wants to do something now. Examples: “buy running shoes”, “hire SEO consultant”. Right content: product pages, service pages, a clear button.

How to find out which intent a keyword has

Google it. Look at the first page:

  • Only blogs and guides? Informational intent.
  • Shops and product cards? Transactional.
  • Top lists and comparisons? Commercial investigation.
  • Maps and local businesses? Local intent, see local SEO.

What Google shows is the answer. You do not have to like it.

The “People also ask” box and related searches show which follow-up questions belong to the word. Keyword tools can give a guess at intent, but always look at real results too.

When Google itself is unsure

Sometimes the first page mixes everything: guides, shops and comparisons. Then the keyword has several intents. Do this:

  • Follow the format that takes the most spots.
  • Or split into two pages, one for learning and one for buying, and link between them.
  • Do not try to squeeze everything onto one page. It is rarely the best at anything.

When you have hundreds of keywords

Make a spreadsheet with the columns keyword, intent, page type, existing page and action. Keywords that give the same first-page results often belong together and can share a page. Then you avoid writing five articles that compete against each other, known as keyword cannibalization.

Five common mistakes

  • Wrong page type. A product page for a keyword where everyone else has guides. The page does not rank, and it does not help how many times you write the keyword.
  • Everything on one page. If you try to be guide, shop and comparison at once, you become none of them.
  • Writing for the keyword, not the person. Ask instead: what does this person want done when they leave the page?
  • Mixing up intent and audience. The same person can search to learn today and buy next week. The intent sits in the search, not in the person.
  • Never looking again. Intent can change. Check whether the results page looks different about every six months.

How to write for the intent

  1. Pick one main keyword per page.
  2. Decide the intent before you write.
  3. Start with the answer or the offer the person came for.
  4. Put the next step at the bottom: read more, compare, buy, book.
  5. Link between pages. Informational pages can lead on to service pages, for example the SEO service.

How to see that it works

Measure by page type, not all pages the same way:

  • Guides: clicks, CTR and whether the visitor goes on to another page.
  • Comparisons: clicks on to a service or product.
  • Service and product pages: enquiries and purchases.

More plain factual questions are now answered directly in AI answers, so informational pages may get fewer clicks than before. Commercial and transactional searches are often less affected. Read more in AI Overviews and SEO.

A small test

Read your page and ask: if someone landed here from Google, would they know straight away that they are in the right place? If the answer is “yes, after a bit of scrolling”, rewrite the opening.

Want help pairing keywords and pages? Get in touch.

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