Search Intent

Search intent is the purpose behind a search: the need a user wants met when they type their query. Google's whole business is matching that intent as closely as possible, so the pages that match it win, not the pages with the most words or the most links. Search intent is one of the central concepts in modern SEO.

Four types cover almost every query:

• Informational: the user wants to know something. "How to clean running shoes".
• Navigational: the user wants to reach a specific place. "Zalando returns".
• Commercial investigation: the user is comparing options before a purchase. "Best running shoes 2026".
• Transactional: the user is ready to act. "Buy running shoes size 42".

Google's reading of a keyword can be seen in the SERP itself. When guides rank, Google treats the query as informational; when category pages rank, it expects a shop. A product page therefore never wins an informational keyword, however good it is, because the page type misses the intent. How intent drives the prioritization of keywords belongs to the guide on keyword research.

In AI search the intent is stated even more plainly. A prompt spells the whole need out with context and constraints, so nothing needs decoding. It rewards the same work as classic search: content that answers a concrete need rather than content that contains the right words.