Search Intent Optimization: Optimize Your Content For User’s Search Query

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Search Intent Optimization
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If you can master your content optimization towards search intent, you will see consistent search engine rankings.

In this article, let’s explore some strategic search intent optimization ideas to streamline your content for the user search keyword intent.

It’s all about a better understanding of the user’s need and perfect keyword research and optimization.

You believe it or not, Google processes 1.2 trillion searches over a year. Most interestingly, the search queries are having only around three words on average. With that, Google can interpret what its users are looking for.

Being a content marketer, it’s our peculiar task to present the most relevant content to those search queries.

Indeed, it becomes obvious to optimize the content towards search intent for SEO benefits too.

What is Search Intent or Keyword Intent?

The motive or reason or the intention behind the search queries by online users refer to the term ‘search intent’ or ‘keyword intent.’

Why Is User Search Intent Important for SEO?

Why realizing the user search intent is more imperative for SEO? Studies prove that around 59% of the overall website traffic originates from organic search.

Most of the metrics like bounce rate, CTR, etc., notify whether the users are happy with your content or not. Hence, provoke yourself to strategize your content marketing for the utmost SEO benefits.

Search intent optimization is all about providing appropriate content what the searchers need.

Marcus Miller says, “Understanding the user intent behind your target keyword can simplify your entire SEO process.”

Basic Understanding about Search Terms

Majorly, there are three categories of search terms out there for easy understanding.

  • Navigational Query
  • Transactional Query
  • Informational Query
Types of Search Intent
Types of Search Intent – SOURCE: Moz.com

Fine, let’s have a brief look at each term right below.

Informational Search Query

The information is the ultimate end. The users feed informational queries to know something about the specific topic. It’s like ‘how Hershey’s kisses are made.’

In any industry, informational queries will have the highest search volume. Because people don’t have any buying intent; still, be searching for information to know.

Informational Query

The key opportunity is to build brand awareness, credibility, and website traffic. The users won’t be ready to buy what you are promoting. Still, you can grow your marketing list.

Navigational Search Query

To log in to your Google Analytics account, obviously, you will search for ‘Google Analytics’ in the Google search box or address bar. You intend to land directly on a site or a specific page on a site. This is a navigational search query.

Navigational Query

Mostly, navigational search terms are performed for branded keywords like Hershey’s, Canon, etc.

Transactional Query

When people want to do something like buying or signing up for a newsletter, transactional queries come to the rescue. Probably, it includes words like best, cheap, fastest, discount, coupon, versus (vs.), etc. For instant, ‘best couple watches under 3000’ or ‘best beach resort in Florida’, etc.

Transactionl Query

Basically, these keywords are highly commercial and somehow hard-hitting.

Multiple Intention Search Query

There are search terms with multiple intentions. For now, consider the search query ‘damaged furniture.’ Here the user intent may be

  • Buying a piece of new furniture or
  • Looking for furniture repairing services or
  • Searching for information to know how to repair furniture of own
  • Hunting for freight agency to transit the damaged furniture

Multiple Search Intent

In such cases, search engines will produce results based on ranking signals and historical data that match the most common intent.

Armed with this information, we understand that search engines are smarter to interpret user’s search query knowing the intent behind them. And hence displays relevant results.

How to Optimize Your Content towards Search Intent?

Knowing the background of the various search intent, the funnel gets narrower to optimize your content towards it.

#1 Evaluate Target Keywords for Search Intent

When it’s about content optimization, it starts with keyword research. Your target keywords are the key that decides whether your content matches the search intent. While researching for the target keywords, you must keep these things in mind –

  • The keyword search volume
  • How competitive it is
  • What kind of users or search query it serves

For more clarification, let’s have a brief with an example. Taking 3 different keywords like –

  • ‘Zira discount.’
  • ‘Skyscraper Technique for Link Building’
  • ‘Nike Shoes’
Search Volume Competition Query Type Search Intent
Zira Discount Might be Low Moderate Transactional Zira buying intent
Skyscraper Technique for Link Building High May be high Informational To know ‘how to use Skyscraper technique for link building.’
Nike Shoes Huge Less or even zero (if it’s your popular brand) Navigational To land on Google Disavow tool for link disavowing

With that, the content that targets each of the above keywords must have a unique optimization strategy.

Further, take the Power of LSI Keywords: Simply targeting a specific keyword won’t help you broadly in this competitive arsenal. Research for the most relevant and potential LSI keywords & enrich your content performance against multiple keywords.

#2 The same strategy won’t work

However, the same content optimization strategy never works for a different type of search intent query.

The key to optimizing content for transactional search intent is to have the content on the specific desired outcome, i.e., buying. In this case, you don’t need much supportive information as the user already knows about it.

Understanding buyers’ journey, know that the certain user in the lower end of the funnel. Concentrate on using appropriate trigger words in the title & meta tags, comparison charts, eye-catchy CTA’s, hot deals (if any) to finish it off with a sale.

The content for an informational query must be like answering the ‘how to’ or ‘what is.’ The key to optimizing here is, using more questions (related to the topic) in the subheadings, titles, and descriptions will do.

Like this,

Question Type Content

Present a paragraph content answer the question, soon after the question in sub-heading. And more details in the further paragraphs. If it is a guide or tutorial, list out the steps or instructions under a subheading.

For the navigational type of search queries, make sure you have individual landing pages for your products, services, or other offerings. In eCommerce sites, have your product category or menu large on the home page (though you have it in the navigation menu). By which, you are bringing your remarkable products and categories to be easily indexed by search engines.

#3 Decide upon the Result Type

Earlier, Google ranks your web pages by the number of links you have. But, now, Google ranks a page in different visual forms. It includes the featured snippets; people also ask, knowledge graph, etc. This is to help its users to find the information faster from any of these areas.

iQuanti says that Google’s Answer Box results ensure around 32.3% conversion. So, choose your result type before optimizing your content.

Most of the answer box results are from the tables or lists. Include tables (wherever necessary) and present data in lists type. To display in the ‘people also ask’ areas, include more questions in your subheadings. It is nothing but having your content conversational or interactive.

#4 Embed Surveys in Your Webpage

Sometimes, it might be quite hard to understand the intent behind certain search query terms. Perhaps, different users will have different intent behind the same search terms. As we saw above, ‘damaged furniture.’ In such cases, ask your users about it. Display a pop-up survey with questions where the answers might help you know the user intent better. This can help you greatly.

Is your Content Optimized for Search Intent?

It’s now the best time to check whether your content is optimized for users to search for intent. Don’t worry; you can also optimize your existing pages to match the keyword intent.

Incorporate the search intent with keyword research while planning for new content. Make sure to have these search intent optimization ideas alongside.

Write for your audience. Google loves it. And, remember this before creating any content. Repurpose your old content with comprehensive keyword research, now combining the user search intent psychology.

Daniel

Daniel is the founder of Competico digital agency. For over 15 years he has helped hundreds of digital businesses to win the digital race through SEO, Marketing Strategy, Competitive Intelligence and Affiliate Marketing.

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