What does that mean, though? You’d think, if it really was the biggest deal to Google, that you’d hear that phrase mentioned a little more often, right?
Not necessarily.
Google are notoriously tight-lipped about the advice that they give to SEO experts and website owners in terms of “how to get found.”
Their policy is that Expertise, Authority and Trustworthiness (EAT: read more right here!) are the key determining factors in what makes a website worth viewing. Once it has worked out the ones that are worth your time, the next step is to work out what you want to see.
That’s where search intent comes in.
Four Branches
SEO giant Semrush breaks search intent down into four major categories in their Keyword Planner tool:
- Informational
- Navigational
- Commercial
- Transactional
Informational
These searches are, as the name suggests, looking for information. Now, when you make a business website with DotGO, we don’t design it to fulfil this intent as a priority – we want people calling and buying from you (which we’ll come on to just now).
It is, however, worth ensuring that any new content you create for your website does provide information that is useful to your customers.
A blog (just like the one you’re reading now) is a fantastic place for this kind of info and, with DotGO, it's super easy to set one up. When people are looking for information and data, they’ll be searching in ways such as:
- Painting tips
- Calories in bread
- How to write a CV
Navigational
When someone knows who they’re looking for, they make navigational searches. This kind of search will involve the name of the business the searcher is hunting down. To make the most of these kinds of searches, that’s where the marketing legwork comes in!
- Post on social media
- Advertise in the paper
- Use public forums
You know the score – the better you market your business outside of your website, the more navigational searches you’ll get. Then, when the searches are made, your beautiful, sleek website is ready and waiting to greet your new customers.
Commercial
Commercial searches are the ones that are made “pre-purchase.” The searcher is definitely looking to buy something but they’re not at the stage where they’ve decided to push the button just yet. This kind of search is similar to an Informational search but, in this case, they’re specifically about a kind of product or service:
- Apple vs Samsung phone
- Buy one get one free pizza
- Pet shampoo reviews
If you have an E-Commerce shop website with DotGO, this is where your product descriptions are so important. What kinds of questions do your customers ask you about your products? Chances are, they’ll be Googling them too, so make sure your site gives great answers!
Transactional
As a business owner, these will be your absolute favourite kinds of search, as they’re the ones with the strongest intent to buy. We come to them last because they’re the last kind of search people tend to make before making a purchase. You’ve got great products and professional services for sale on your site so, when updating content, consider targeting phrases like:
- “Buy B12 vitamins”
- “Netflix subscription”
- “Furniture for sale”
What You Need to Do
Think hard about what your customers would be looking for when searching for your service and then base the content on your website around those phrases. At DotGO, we do the legwork for you, finding key phrases that match the search intent of your customers and optimising your content accordingly.
The more relevant your content is to what your customers are looking for, the more likely Google is to boost you up the search rankings!
If you’re looking for more guidance on what kinds of phrases to focus on, we’ve got a great blog post about it right here.
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