Being among the first results of search engines is the desire of many entrepreneurs, and in times of digital marketing, this is one of the most efficient — and cheapest — methods to promote a business.
But, in the end, how can you achieve the best Google positions? There are different factors that influence the ranking of the largest search engine in the world, and they are all included in what we call (Search Engine Optimization).
However, in this article, we want to take you beyond good optimization practices. Today we will talk about user behavior in search engines and how understanding their search intent can be the real secret to the success of your online business.
Are you ready? So, let’s go!
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Understanding SEO for search types
Before we begin, let us clarify what this concept means — we assure you that it will be of great help to contextualize the main topic of our post.
SEO, or in Spanish, Search Engine Optimization, is a set of techniques applied to websites and blogs with the aim of achieving good positions in search engines organically, that is, without the need to invest money in campaigns and ads.
SEO practices seek to demonstrate to the Google algorithm that the site or blog has what it takes to be among the first results, all this to bring traffic and visibility to the web page.
One of the most important concepts of SEO refers to the : the term that a user uses to carry out an investigation on the internet. Based on the keyword, Google selects the results that best match the user’s search intent.
In this way, we can affirm that everything begins with the first movement of a person finding out the solution to their problem, doubt or need.
What are the types of search in Google?
Since they emerged, they have not stopped trying to understand more and more (and better) how and why users carry out their research on the web.
Today we know that when searching for a term in a search engine, the human psyche has the desire to satisfy a specific need.
The search for the solution to your need can manifest itself in different ways, and it is up to digital marketing professionals to analyze and understand the meaning of each investigation to provide the user with the best possible response.
It was through this analysis that 3 types of internet searches have been identified. Below we will explain each of them.
1. Navigational search
In this type of search, the user knows exactly what page they want to find after carrying out their research.
It usually happens when the person misremembers the domain of the page, or simply stops typing it in the address bar altogether.
For example, if a user searches for “ Blog”, his intention is quite clear: he already knows where he wants to go and it will be difficult for him to click on another result.
2. Transactional Search
As its name implies, here the user has the objective of making a transaction, be it making a purchase, registering for a service, subscribing to a blog or any other type of online action that results in some type of conversion.
For example, if you search for the keyword “sneakers”, the level of specification indicates that your intent is to purchase a product. Based on this analysis, companies can optimize their pages so that this user finds them.
3. Informational search
The user’s objective in this search is to find information, whether it is a general issue, news or specific data.
His intention is still not very clear, since he does not know in which link he will find the answer to what he is looking for.
For this reason, the user, in general, tends to visit more than one result until, finally, managing to satisfy his need.
Searching for the keyword “” is a good example of this category of terms.
Analyzing the types of searches in Google
By being clear about the main search intentions of people on the web, it becomes much easier to develop actions to successfully reach the public and win their click.
This is because understanding what the user intends provides fundamental information for the .
To help you in the task, we have brought some insights that you can explore in your positioning strategy.
1. Navigational search: promote your brand!
Have you already heard about branding? It is basically techniques to improve the positioning of a brand in the market. Currently, branding and SEO walk together.
Navigational search is directly related to the brand. If you have a strong brand on the internet, Google manages to segment and specify the search much more effectively when a user searches for your company.
The more content you generate, the more chances you have to make your brand relevant. Being present on social networks, exchanging content with other web pages to get mentions of your company, using resources such as Google My Business and having the domain of your site with the name of your brand are some ways to consolidate your presence in search engines.
Keep in mind that navigational search also has high conversion potential. After all, the user is determined to get to your website, which may mean that their search is geared towards some type of transaction.
Thus, the keywords of this type of search are focused on the consideration/decision stage — when the user already knows that you will be the provider of the solution he needs.
2. Transactional search: get one step away from conversion
This type of research has a lot of value for companies, especially for ecommerces. Its commercial potential offers opportunities for those who search through organic searches on the internet.
But not only direct purchases can take advantage of this data. In the case of models such as content portals, there are other conversions such as following the brand on or subscribing to a newsletter.
All the actions that bring the user closer to the conversion decision are very important and, for this reason, they must be worked very carefully in an SEO strategy.
It is worth noting that the difficulty in positioning with transactional keywords is usually a little greater, since they are highly competitive by other companies in the same segment.
Here it is essential to do a thorough analysis of transaction terms relevant to your brand, looking for example at their search volume and the competing companies that are currently ranking for them.
In the customer’s journey, the terms of this search enter the decision stage — the user is determined to perform the transaction action.
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3. Informational search: delivers everything the user needs
The informational search is not only the most common in the mechanisms, but it is the one that opens the most doors to attract traffic to your website or blog. This research should be carried out, mainly, in a top-of-the-funnel strategy, that is, in the stage of attracting potential clients.
With it you can make the first contact between your brand and the user, position yourself as a reliable source of information, obtain new links from other websites, attract leads and much more.
If you want to achieve a good result in Google, it will be essential that you provide really relevant content, that corresponds to the needs of people, solving their doubts and problems. The idea is that you educate the public with your content so that, when they are ready to convert, they do so with your brand.
Keywords here are part of the learning and discovery stage — the user’s first step toward recognizing a problem or opportunity.
Search types reflect user wishes
Understanding the types of user searches is extremely important so that you can develop an efficient SEO strategy. It is useless to know the techniques if you do not understand that behind the Google algorithm there are people with doubts, problems and needs, and that each search carried out by them says a lot about the actions you should take, right?
Remember that each category of research corresponds to a stage of the customer’s journey and it is essential that your business is present in each of them, adopting the most appropriate search segmentation for your company.
For your Google positioning strategy to work, you must know the profile of your audience and invest in a deep analysis of keywords, to finally achieve the first results, as your brand deserves.
I hope that the article has been useful to you and if you have questions, use the comments space and leave us your contribution, it will be a pleasure to answer you!