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Search intent

What is search intent?

Search intent is the goal behind a query — informational, navigational, commercial, or transactional. Matching intent is a prerequisite for ranking.

Why it matters

The current top ten results are the best available evidence of intent. If they are all comparison lists, a product page will not rank there.

Intent can be mixed: some queries deserve a short answer up top and a deeper explanation below.

Related terms

  • Content brief

    A content brief is a working document that defines a planned article's target query, search intent, audience, structure,

  • SERP

    SERP stands for search engine results page — the full page of results, ads, snippets, and panels returned for a query.

  • Featured snippet

    A featured snippet is a short extract shown above the standard results that directly answers a query, pulled from a page

Cite this definition

Guest Post Website. “Search intent.” Guest Posting & SEO Glossary. https://guestpostwebsite.com/glossary/search-intent