Search intent is the underlying goal behind a query — what is this user trying to do? Get the intent wrong and your page won't rank no matter how technically optimised it is, because Google ranks pages whose intent matches the query.
The four-bucket classification
The classical model breaks intent into four buckets:
- Informational: the user wants an answer. "how long should a meta description be", "what is hreflang". Best page type: long-form guide or article.
- Navigational: the user wants a specific site. "facebook login", "stripe pricing". Hard to rank against the brand they're looking for.
- Commercial investigation: the user is comparing options. "best running shoes 2026", "asana vs trello". Best page type: comparison, listicle, in-depth review.
- Transactional: the user wants to buy. "buy adidas ultraboost", "sign up notion pro". Best page type: product page, pricing page, signup landing.
How to identify intent
The SERP itself is the answer. For any query:
- Open the SERP.
- Look at the top 10 results.
- Ask: what kind of page is winning?
If the top 10 are mostly long-form guides, that's informational intent — don't try to rank a product page there. If the top 10 are mostly product pages, that's transactional — your blog post probably won't rank.
Mixed intent
Many queries have mixed intent. "running shoes" could be informational (how to choose) or transactional (buy). Google often shows a mix in the SERP: a few product pages, a few guides. To rank on a mixed-intent query, you usually need to pick one side and accept you won't win the other.
How AI Overview changes the picture
AI Overview now eats many informational queries. The user gets the answer in the SERP, doesn't click through. To survive:
- Move up the funnel slightly: write commercial-investigation content where the user still needs to compare options after the AI Overview gives them a baseline definition.
- Focus on queries where the answer is too long or nuanced for an Overview to handle.
- Build content that gets cited in the Overview — see AI Overview.
Search intent isn't optional. It's the layer of analysis underneath every other on-page decision.