What is Keyword Intent?

Keyword intent refers to the purpose of the search query. You can use intent to predict what the end-user will do when they search for certain keywords.

What is the importance of Keyword Intent?

Online businesses need to understand keyword intent. It is the most important concept in keyword research. You can tailor your online store to best match the intentions of end-users by understanding what they are likely to type in specific keywords. You can increase conversion rates by analyzing keyword intent.

What are the four types of keyword intent?

High Intent Keywords

High-intent keywords signify that the end user is ready and willing to act. They might be willing to make a purchase, subscribe, join an online community, or take advantage of an offer.

These keywords are often used to market commercial keywords. They may be modified with words such as buy, deals, or free shipping. These keywords are often converted quickly.

Information Keywords

Information keywords signify that your end-user is still in the research phase. This indicates that they are open to reading user guides, reviews, and product pages to learn more about the product. Although these users may not be ready to receive a sales pitch directly, their queries could indicate that they are open to sharing personal information in exchange for valuable content or a discount code.

Information keywords often pair with modifiers like how to, benefits, the best way, or why you are needed.

Transactional Keywords 

A user may be classified as a transactional keyword if they are somewhere between information and commercial. They have likely done extensive research and are searching for content that will help them make a purchase.

These keywords often pair well with modifiers such as top 10, reviews, best product, or comparison.

Navigational Keywords

These keywords are used to indicate that a user knows exactly where they want to go. These keywords can include brand names and platforms. The end-user will be looking for a website that is first on their search results page.

How to identify Keyword Intent

Although you can probably determine intent using common sense, you can use tools to identify how search engines are identifying keyword intent and delivering sites that meet that need.

SEMRush

SEMRush is the fastest and most efficient way to get to know the intent of a keyword. They also identify the keywords’ intent based on their algorithms. Although I have never been able to verify this, it gives me an idea of where to start. You can also perform a manual search engine ranking analysis to get deeper insights.

Google SERP Analysis

The following features on Google’s search engine (SERP) will indicate how Google perceives intent.

• “Quick-Answer Result Box” – A brief snippet of a website displayed at the top search page.

• “People also ask”

• Results from Google Shopping

• Local Search Results for Navigational Queries

To begin to understand search intent for a particular keyword, type in the keyword and take note of the top SERP results. You will see if shopping results are displayed, informational “What-is” articles appear, and whether the brand is one people frequently search for.

Create a Keyword Map to Analyze

Once you have analyzed your main keywords, start to identify long-tail keywords that could be used in conjunction with your primary keyword. These additional qualifiers can help you better understand the intent of your keyword.

If you sell baby bassinets, for example, you can add qualifiers to your main keyword to create long-tail keywords.

• Best baby bassinet (Search volume: 1,300).
• Portable baby bassinet (Search Volume: 1000)
• How long can a baby be in a bassinet? (Search Volume: 590).
• Baby swing bassinet (Search Volume 390)

You can modify the search intent by adding qualifiers to your primary keywords. You can find more information about how to optimize your keyword intent by reviewing the intent of each keyword.

How to Optimize for Keyword Intent

Once you have taken the time to review the SERP results for both your primary and long-tail keywords it is time for you to optimize your web pages so that they display accurately for your target keywords.

Informational Keywords

High-quality blog posts with detailed information about a product or its benefits often include informational keywords. These blog posts often answer questions that are frequently found in the “People Also Ask” section of SERPs. Google will be more likely to display the right content on SERP pages if you optimize your blog posts with primary keywords in heading tags and title tags.

Keywords

Broad commercial keywords drive users to product category pages rather than blogs or product pages. It is important to update category pages with commercial keywords.

Navigational Keywords

Brand names are often associated with navigational keywords. It is essential to include keywords in your meta descriptions and title tags so that you can optimize for brand navigational keywords.

Transactional Keywords

End users are often directed to product pages that can be converted by using transactional keywords. It is essential to include the transactional keyword in the title, meta description, H1 tag, and web page. This will allow you to optimize these pages. A clear product description should include the main and long-tail keywords that are associated with the highlighted transactional keyword.

Summary

Website optimization is still dominated by search intent. You will be better equipped to provide the best web experience for your users by understanding their keyword intent.

You want to rank high in search results for your primary keywords over time. Make it your goal to provide your users with exactly what they need. This effort will be rewarded by search engines.

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