Glossary
What is search intent?
The goal behind a search query: whether the person wants to learn, find a specific site, compare options or buy.
Definition
Search intent is the goal behind a search query: what the person actually wants to find or do when they type it. Marketers usually group it into four types: informational, navigational, commercial and transactional. Matching a page to its query's intent matters for SEO because search engines try to show results that satisfy that goal.
The four types of search intent
- Informational. The searcher wants to learn something. Example: "what is a sales pipeline." Best served by a clear explanation or guide.
- Navigational. The searcher wants a specific site or page. Example: "hubspot login." Only the brand's own page really fits.
- Commercial. The searcher is comparing options before buying. Example: "best CRM for small agencies" or "tool A vs tool B." Best served by comparisons, reviews and alternatives pages.
- Transactional. The searcher is ready to act. Example: "CRM free trial" or "book a demo." Best served by a product, pricing or signup page.
How to identify search intent
The fastest way is to search the query yourself and look at what already ranks. If the top results are guides, intent is informational. If they're listicles and comparisons, it's commercial. If they're product pages, it's transactional. Also look at the words in the query: "what," "how" and "why" lean informational; "best," "vs" and "review" lean commercial; "price," "buy" and "trial" lean transactional. Some queries mix intents, and the results will show that too.
How Google frames intent
Google's guidelines for its search quality raters describe queries in their own terms: Know queries (looking for information), Do queries (trying to accomplish a goal), Website queries (looking for a specific site or page) and Visit-in-person queries (looking for a local business or category of businesses). The labels differ from the marketing four, but the idea is the same: a result is good when it fits what the searcher wants.
An example
Say you sell scheduling software and want to rank for "appointment reminder software." You write a long guide on why reminders reduce no-shows. It doesn't rank, because the top results are all product comparisons: searchers want to pick a tool, not learn the theory. Rewriting the page as a fair comparison with pricing and features fits the intent. Plan pages this way inside topic clusters.
How Siela AI uses it
Siela's SEO Blog Writer turns a keyword into a researched draft.
Questions
Why does search intent matter for SEO?
Search engines try to rank the pages that best satisfy what searchers want. A well-written page can still fail if it answers a different question than the one behind the query. Matching intent also helps conversions, because visitors find what they came for.
Can a keyword have more than one search intent?
Yes. A query like "CRM" could mean someone wants a definition, a list of tools or a specific product. Search results for mixed queries usually include several page types. You can target the main intent, or create separate pages for each one.
Sources, checked 25 October 2026: Google: Search Quality Rater Guidelines, section 12.7 Understanding User Intent.
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