Search Engine Results Pages are what you see when you send a query through Google.com. Those “SERPs” can be very hard to figure out and ultimately get to work in your favor.
Breaking down how search intent influences results pages is the first step to understanding how your content will rank.
Ranking Your Local Business on Google Search Engine Results
Building your website and getting it to show up on Google is complicated. The traffic you get from Google is basically free and that is why ranking your business website on the 1st page is so important.
When Google comes a long and makes a few changes, that can bump you to the 2nd page (or where the mob hides the bodies, since nobody looks there). Keep your business ranking well by learning what Google wants to see from your site.
It is more than content. More than a couple of perfectly placed keywords, or even a couple of well versed image ALT tags. Google knows what the user wants and if your site does not offer that, you will not rank well at all.
Google Search Intent
What is search intent? If you take a minute to THINK about why you are using Google to search the internet, that is basically your answer.
Did you search because you wanted to buy something? Maybe you were looking for directions to a business nearby? Or maybe you just wanted to learn more about the ruby throated hummingbird you see in your yard.
All of those would be considered your SEARCH INTENT. Google takes all of that into consideration in a matter of seconds before showing you results to your query.
The hard part is figuring out where your business can use the search intent of your customer to be sure your website is there when they need it most.
How Google Works Against You
When you create content that is based around the “do”, or the transactional keyword, keep in mind that Google might categorize it as “informational”.
This is based on the content itself. So keep it transactional if you are trying to sell a product on an ecommerce website for example.
How do you figure out search intent for your business website? Do searches based on the keywords you’d like to rank for. If product pages, for example, are ranking, then the intent on that keyword is transactional.
If you see knowledge based articles ranking than you might be dealing with an informational type keyword.
Figure Out Google Search Intent
Can your website rank for search intent? Absolutely. Many websites create content to educate the customer on a product or service. Of course, this is largely dependent on your industry.
If we break down search intent, we find 3 words. Do. Know. Go. It really does not matter what is in the beef of your content as long as it fits with one of those 3 words.
If you can keep those 3 words in mind while creating content, you will figure out the search intent and rank for your keywords based on it.
Things To Keep In Mind
- Keep Do, Know, Go in mind when creating content
- Do keyword research to find how Google sees the intent
- Research competitor websites to see where/if they rank
- Audit your search engine results at least once per month
- You can rank for search intent