Search intent is the purpose behind a Google search — why the user is searching that term: to learn, to compare, to buy or to navigate to a specific site.
Search intent (or user intent) describes the real reason someone performs a search. There are 4 main types: (1) Informational — wants to understand something ("what is SEO"); (2) Navigational — looking for a specific site ("Rank-Ro login"); (3) Commercial/Investigational — comparing options before a decision ("best SEO tool"); (4) Transactional — ready to buy or act ("buy SEO subscription", "book a dentist"). Guess the intent wrong and you will not rank no matter how many backlinks you have.
Google analyzes the top 10 results for each term and determines the dominant intent. If your page does not match the dominant intent, the algorithm will automatically deprioritize it. It is probably the most underrated SEO factor.
Source: Semrush — Search Intent GuideKeyword research is the process of identifying the words and phrases your target audience searches for on Google, so you can create content that answers exactly those searches.
Long-tail keywords are longer, specific search phrases (3+ words) that have lower volume but clearer intent and less competition than short, generic terms.
The SERP is the results page Google displays after a search, which includes organic results, paid ads, featured snippets, the Local Pack and other special formats.
On-page SEO covers all the optimizations made directly on your site's pages — titles, headings, content, meta descriptions and URL structure.
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