Search Intent

After reading this article you will learn:

• What is search intent? How does it differ from keywords?
• Why is understanding search intent so important for SEO?
• What are the 4 main types of search intent?
• How to optimize your web page for specific search intent?

Let’s dive in!

What is Search Intent?

Search intent (also known as user intent or keyword intent) is the reason behind typing specific keywords into the search field.

It’s the answer to: Why did someone search for ‘keyword’?

Let’s look at a more tangible example.

Search Intent Example

Let’s assume you typed “best website builder” into the search field on Google.

Just from this information alone, we know that you are not seeking a specific website builder. 

You don’t have a specific web page in mind either.

You want to research different website builders and evaluate options before choosing the right tool for the job.

This means that the “best website builder” keyword has commercial search intent, which is:

“Compare different website builders based on a variety of factors, like price, learning curve, ease of use, etc.”

That’s search intent - understanding that you don’t optimize your pages for keywords, you optimize them for specific search intent.

Why is Search Intent Important for SEO?

Search intent is crucial for SEO (Search Engine Optimization) because it focuses on understanding what people want when they type something into a search engine.

Search engines like Google are in the business of “satisfying that search intent for users”.

In other words, search engines need to provide the most relevant, and helpful results that will match intended user goals.

So if you want to rank #1 in Google, you need to understand search intent well.

Understanding search intent helps you create content that matches user needs.

In summary, aligning your content with search intent is key in SEO. It ensures that your site meets the needs of your audience, improves engagement, lowers bounce rates, and helps in reaching the right audience. 

Questions for Uncovering Search Intent

Let’s look at some questions that will help you uncover search intent:

1. What is the user hoping to find? 

2. What is the user’s end goal?

If these are hard to answer, ask more specific questions such as:

• Do users want to learn?
• Do users want to compare options?
• Do users want to take a specific action?
• Do users need to go to a specific page, they have been on before?

Types of Search Intent

Search intent can be classified into four main categories:

• Informational
• Commercial
• Transactional
• Navigational

These “4 main types of search intent” of classification are a bit of an oversimplification, but understanding this is a great starting point for your Webflow SEO strategy.

If you manage to understand these four intent types, you will start noticing other subtypes as you analyze search results more closely.

Informational Search Intent

It always starts with a problem.

The user is problem-aware and seeks understanding of how they can solve it. The user seeks information.

That’s informational search intent.

Typical keywords used in informational searches are:

• How, why, what, when, where, who, tutorial

Informational search examples:

• How to build a website
• What is a navbar
• How to cook an omelet
• Where was JFK born
• How old is Ryan Reynolds
• How to fix a flat tire

User goal:

• Get specific answers

Content types:

• Tutorials
• How-to posts
• Step-by-step guides
• FAQs and blog posts
• Other (video, podcast, infographic, etc.)

The problem: The user doesn’t know something and wants to learn more about it.

That’s informational search intent.

Commercial Search Intent

After informational search intent, users go from being only problem-aware to solution-aware.

During their informational research, users will learn new things, such as the steps they can take to solve their problems.

In other words, users will learn about things they can do, buy, or use to solve their problems.

Now that users know what they need, they want to know what they can choose from.

Users want to compare solutions against each other. So they investigate options and choose the right solution for their problem.

That’s commercial search intent.

Typical keywords used in commercial searches are:

• Best, review, compare, vs, alternatives, {service} or {product} name

Commercial search examples:

• Cheapest website builders
• WordPress vs Webflow
• Best inner tubes for city bikes
• Choosing between a vegan or vegetarian diet
• Best outdoor plants for cold climates
• Free Figma alternatives for web designers

User goal:

• Compare different options

Content types:

• Listicles
• Comparison tables
• Compare articles (X vs. Y)
• Review articles
• Pros and cons posts
• Etc.

The problem: The user knows what they need to do. Now, it’s time to compare different options and make a decision. So the question they have is: What is the best solution for my problem?

That’s commercial search intent.

Transactional Search Intent

After users compare options, choose a brand or a product, and are confident in their decision, it’s time to take action.

The user wants to do something. They made their decision based on research they did, now it’s time to act.

That’s transactional search intent.

Typical keywords used in transactional searches are:

• Buy, online, download, register, sign up, start, create, quote, sale, order, etc.

Transactional search examples:

• Webflow pricing
• Figma sign up
• Buy stonecrop seeds
• Nike Jordans sale

User goal:

• Perform a specific action (do something online)

Content types:

• Landing pages
• Feature or service pages
• Login and account creation pages
• Pricing cards
• Product categories or product pages
• Onboarding content
• Etc.

The problem: The user knows exactly what action they plan to take, they need to find the page that allows them to do it.

That’s transactional search intent.

Navigational Search Intent

Navigational searches happen only if users are brand or product-aware. 

This means in some sense, navigational search intent web pages are intended for “converted customers” or “active users”.

In other words, navigational user intent helps returning visitors find the information or page they are looking for.

That’s navigational search intent.

Typical keywords used in navigational searches are:

• Login, help, {brand} name, {brand} {question}, etc.

Navigational search examples:

• Webflow university
• Netflix login
• Facebook support
• Asos returns
• Shopify terms and conditions
• Starbucks near me
• Amazon

User goal:

• Find a specific page with specific information about a specific brand or product.

Note! Users will typically mention a specific website, brand, or product. Otherwise, this can also be an informational query.

Most common content types:

• Knowledge bases
• Help and support pages
• Return, policy, legal pages
• Product or brand-specific tutorials
• Homepages
• Etc.

The problem: The user knows exactly the website/brand they want to visit and exactly the page/information they seek.

That is navigational search intent.

Do You Need Pages For All 4 Search Intents?

It is important to understand that every successful Webflow website will need content (pages) for all four search intents.

It is also important to understand that different website, and content types can rank easier for different search intents.

For instance, purely informational websites usually make money from ads.

Commercial websites usually make money from affiliate marketing.

Transactional websites make money from products or services.

So for example, if you have a software website (transactional), it will be harder for you to rank for informational and commercial queries. But it’s still worth creating those pages if you want to establish topical authority.

Optimizing Webflow Web Pages for Different Search Intents

It is very hard to provide general advice on how to optimize your website for different search intents. 

That’s because of the variables like active competitors and their website qualities. 

This means different industries and different website monetization types will have different challenges.

Nevertheless, here’s a bit of generic advice when it comes to optimizing sites for search intents.

Determine Search Intent

This is where most Webflow sites can fail the easiest. 

Owners would like to rank for specific keywords, but they haven’t analyzed the results for those keywords.

Always start by analyzing existing search results.

Because slight one-word or even one letter variations in keywords/phrases can target a different search intent and lead to drastically different competition.

So start by opening all top results for a given keyword, in different tabs on your browser.

Then ask:

• What do these pages have in common?
• What headings and images do these pages use?
• Do they have videos? Infographics? Tables?
• Is this a blog? Feature or service page? Homepage?
• What content type is this? Listicle? Guide? Sales pitch? Online tool?

You are trying to find out what all the top results have in common and how you can use the same format and content type, but make it ten times better for the user.

Create Page (Content)

Now that you know what users expect to find and what the most helpful content would be, it’s time to make it! 

There are 3 things to keep in mind.

Page Type

Create content in the expected format that users will need. 

But don’t stop there.  Think about other opportunities too, such as page design, accessibility, UI/UX, etc.

Anything that will help you create a better experience than your competition. While still solving the same issue for the user.

To make it easier for yourself, create a custom CMS Collection Template for each page type that shares identical layouts. 

You can create similar pages for different keywords within the same search intent group.

Most likely your content type will be one of the following:

• Article
• Video
• Category page (that leads to relevant services/features/products/offers)
• Product/feature/offer/service page

PRO tip: For best results, in Webflow, your CMS Collections should come in pairs - articles need blog categories, services need service groups, products need product categories, etc. 

To learn more about organizing your pages, check out our Webflow taxonomy guide.

Content Format

After you know your page type, you should know the expected content format. 

It is usually very easy to determine content format by looking at top results ranking for the keywords you researched.

Let’s say you determined that the page type was “article”. 

Well, there’s different article formats:

• How-to guide
• Step-by-step instructions
• Listicle or top 10, top 100
• 1 on 1 comparison for X vs. Y
• Opinion articles
• Review article
• Etc.

For example… 

You want to rank for “best website builder”. That’s commercial search intent as users want to compare different Website builder options. They don’t want to see just one builder.

The best-performing page types will be:

• Articles
• Category pages (that link to individual website builder reviews)

They have one thing in common - they list different website builder options on a single page.

This means that the content format is essentially:

• Listicles i.e.Top 10 Website Builders…
• Category of options (list of cards)

So if you would make an article where you will talk about one “best website builder”, you would never rank for it. It doesn’t match with the user’s intent.

Even though the keyword they type is literally “best website builder”, they mean “Which options do I have when it comes to website builders?”.

Content Angle

We all want our Webflow sites to have the best ROI and we all have different ways of monetizing traffic. But that doesn’t mean that we should “push our offer to users” within every content type.

When determining page types and content formats, it is important to remember what different search intents mean… Users are in different stages of their journey:

• Informational intent —  Users only know about the problem they have. Give them information.
• Commercial intent —  Users know which types of solutions they need, but they don’t know which solutions are available. Show them different solutions. Help them choose the best solution for their problem..

This means that we should not expect the same click-through and conversion rates on different page types or content formats.

Your feature, product or offer page might easily convert 5% or even 50% of visitors (coming from search engines).

Because people came here already wanting to take action.

Your product category page might convert 3%. Your how-to guide might convert 0.01%. 

It’s normal! Users are just vetting their options.

Always think about the angle and tone of voice you need to have to be as helpful as possible. 

Don’t sell if users aren’t ready to buy. 

Don’t start explaining the basics, if users searched for an advanced guide.

Users value their time and you should too, especially if you don’t want them to bounce.

Be helpful and don’t expect that every page you create will have identical benefits for your business.

Recommended Reading

You should read our topical authority guide if you want to understand the SEO value behind having different page types, content formats, and search intent-optimized pages on the same Webflow website.