Optimizing for User Intent
– Creating content that satisfies user queries increases search engine ranking.
– Keyword research helps determine user intent.
– Google can display SERP features for queries with clear intent.
– Google’s understanding of user intent affects click-through rates.
– Less than half of Google searches result in clicks as of 2019.
Types of User Intent
– User intent can be classified into categories.
– The three broad categories are informational, transactional, and navigational.
– Mobile search has led to the emergence of other categories like local and commercial intent.
– Mixed search intent can occur when multiple intents are present in a query.
– User intent types do not provide a complete picture of user behavior.
Related Concepts
– Keyword research is related to optimizing for user intent.
– Intent marketing focuses on understanding and targeting user intent.
– Search engine result page (SERP) is where user intent is displayed.
– The principle of least astonishment considers user intent in design.
– Mobile marketing is influenced by user intent.
References
– Jansen, Jim. ‘Understanding Sponsored Search: Core Elements of Keyword Advertising.’
– Ledford, Jerri L. ‘Search engine optimization bible, 2nd ed.’
– Broder, Andrei. ‘A Taxonomy of Web Search.’
– Texo Design. ‘The Rise of Mobile Search: From 2012 to 2015.’
– KhudaBukhsh, Ashiqur et al. ‘Building Effective Query Classifiers: A Case Study in Self-harm Intent Detection.’
User intent, otherwise known as query intent or search intent, is the identification and categorization of what a user online intended or wanted to find when they typed their search terms into an online web search engine for the purpose of search engine optimisation or conversion rate optimisation. Examples of user intent are fact-checking, comparison shopping or navigating to other websites.
