Skip to content

Search intent and keyword choice

Why the same topic needs different pages for different searches, and how to choose keywords you can win.

Lesson
2/7
Reading time
7 min
Sections
3
Through the course
29%

Intent is what the searcher wants to achieve. Results pages show what the engine believes that is, so the quickest research tool is the results page itself.

Four common intents

  • Informational: learning something ("how to fix a dripping tap"). Guides and answers win.
  • Navigational: reaching a known site or brand ("serpfull login").
  • Commercial: comparing options ("best accounting software for freelancers"). Comparisons and reviews win.
  • Transactional: ready to act ("emergency plumber leeds"). Service and product pages win.

Check your understanding

"best accounting software for freelancers" is mainly which intent?

Choosing keywords

  • Start with terms where you already rank on page one or two: small gains there are worth the most.
  • Prefer specific, longer phrases with clear intent over broad single words.
  • Check who ranks now. If every result is a national brand, a local business may do better with a location-specific term.
  • Map one primary intent to one page, so pages don't compete with each other.

Step by step

  1. 1Search the term yourselfLook at the page types that rank: guides, product pages, comparisons or local listings.
  2. 2Check where you standPrefer terms where you already appear on page one or two.
  3. 3Map one intent to one pagePick the single page that best matches and strengthen it, rather than creating a competing page.

Lesson 2 of 7

Search intent and keyword choice