When clients first come to me about SEO, they often do that thing—carefully phrased emails, filled with questions that seem technical but are laced with emotion: “Why isn’t my site showing up when I search my business?” or “How long does SEO take to kick in?” or “We’ve been blogging—isn’t that enough?” Behind these words is usually frustration layered beneath good intent. They care. They’re trying. But the results aren’t showing up. That’s when I start talking about something most business owners haven’t even heard of: search intent. And understanding it shifts everything.
Search intent—or user intent—is the reason behind a search query. Google wants to give users results that actually match not just the words they type, but what they meant by them. That means, even if your business has the right keywords, you may not be showing up because your content doesn’t serve the right purpose for that search.
Sounds abstract? Let’s unpack it, in a way that's digestible whether you're a hair salon owner in Franklin or a SaaS start-up founder in Nashville. Because understanding search intent isn't just academic—it directly impacts traffic, conversions, and trust.
Every time someone types something into Google, they are doing it for a reason. Technically, we can group those reasons into four categories: informational, navigational, transactional, and commercial investigation. These terms might sound dry, but they’re at the heart of how we build strategy around content and SEO.
People searching with informational intent want to learn something. They might Google “how to design a modern website” or “what is local SEO.”
Case in point: I worked with a private mental health clinic that offers both therapy and group support sessions. Their blog used to be filled with fluffy topics that didn’t rank. When we shifted to deep-dive, educational content based on the most-searched questions—such as “how to support a partner with anxiety”—they saw a 4x increase in organic traffic within six months.
This is when users are trying to get somewhere specific online. If someone types “Zach Sean Web Design” or “Webflow login,” their intent is to go to a known website or platform.
If your brand name isn’t showing up immediately when people search for it, that’s a red flag. I helped a restaurant in Franklin, TN troubleshoot why users searching their name kept landing on Yelp instead of their site. The problem? Their title tag didn’t include their business name clearly. Small SEO changes fixed the issue—and traffic shifted from third-party platforms to their homepage almost instantly.
This user is ready to take an action—buy a product, book a service, or sign up for something. Common phrases might be “best CRM software for small business” or “buy designer sunglasses.”
If you're a Webflow developer like me, these users are your high-converting traffic. But here's the catch: they need clear calls to action, stellar user experience, and visible trust signals. One time I helped an eCommerce brand that specialized in eco-friendly DIY kits. Their “buy now” pages were buried behind explainer content. A redesign focusing on ease-of-click for transactional traffic led to a 29% increase in sales over one quarter.
This is the research-before-buying phase. Users aren’t quite ready to pull the trigger—they’re comparing options. Think “best web design platform,” “Webflow vs Squarespace,” or “affordable SEO services Nashville.”
These keywords are golden. The intent is there, but they want to be convinced. That’s why comparison content or case studies shine here. For example, I once wrote a piece comparing developer experience across Webflow, WordPress, Wix, and Squarespace—titled something like, “Which Platform Works Best for Your Business Type?” That single post brought in consistent leads who had already ruled out other agencies not offering multi-platform capability.
Let’s break down what happens when you optimize for keywords but ignore intent. Here’s a client scenario: a Franklin-based landscaping company asked me why their blog post “Best Lawn Flowers” wasn’t generating sales. The post was ranking. It got clicks. But readers bounced within seconds.
The issue? The search was informational in nature—people wanted ideas, not a pitch. But the page started immediately with a CTA to book services. It didn’t respect the intent stage of the user’s journey. We restructured the page to begin with value: seasonal flower guides, photo galleries of real Tennessee gardens, and finally sprinkled gentle CTAs. User engagement went up. Leads followed as trust was built.
This disconnect happens constantly. We’re trained to write for algorithms, not humans. But Google has evolved. It’s reading human behavior—dwell time, scroll depth, bounce rates—and adapting its rankings accordingly. Content that ignores what the user wants when they land on a page will sink, no matter how “optimized” it looks on paper.
Every industry has its own patterns of search intent. B2B tech looks different than health, looks different than hospitality. And if you're in a service-based business—like many Zach Sean Web Design clients—you need to be fluent in that flow of intent to convert traffic into customers.
Pop open a new incognito tab. Search for a keyword you want to rank for. Then look at the top 5 results. What kind of pages do you see?
Let the current ranking content tell you what users (and Google) expect. That should drive the type of content you create or the angle of existing content you update.
A local coffee roaster came to me frustrated. Their category page for “best organic coffee beans” kept getting beat by blog posts. We axed the category page and repositioned it as a buyer’s guide—same SEO keyword, different intent. They reclaimed first-page results and started seeing newsletter signups from the post itself.
Pro tip: Even within a single product or service, you can create pages that match different intentions. A design agency might have:
This intent mapping stops your traffic from bouncing and starts leading them down a funnel that feels human instead of automated.
One of my go-to strategies is the “Intent Matrix”—listing your core services, then creating one piece of content for each type of intent around those services. It turns scattershot blogging into a strategic asset. Here’s how it plays out for, say, a skincare brand.
Each post or page is optimized not just with keywords but calls to action that align with where the user is mentally.
Don't skip that alignment. It's the difference between content that builds trust and content that gets skimmed and forgotten.
This is where my world of web design collides beautifully with SEO. The way a site is structured, how it feels, even its whitespace—affect how well it serves different search intents. A minimalist homepage might work beautifully for a consulting brand targeting transactional users but could underwhelm someone deep in a research phase.
I recently rebuilt a therapy practice website in Franklin using emotional cues like softer typography and muted colors for their informational blog, while keeping their booking pages clean and confident. Matching the visitor's expectations—psychologically and structurally—to their purpose made an immediate impact on both bounce rate and consultation requests.
Don't panic if you already have dozens of blogs. We treat content like a property—sometimes you’ve got to renovate. Run a free audit using tools like Ahrefs Webmaster Tools or Screaming Frog SEO Spider. But also read your content like a stranger to your brand.
Sometimes, just updating a title, reordering sections, or swapping a button label can shift a page from bounce-zone to conversion engine.
That old marketing cliché—you know the one, "content is king"? Here’s the truth: Content without correct intent alignment is more like a mime on a stage with no audience. Nice performance. Wrong crowd.
The future of SEO doesn’t belong to whoever writes the most. It belongs to those who write what people actually want—when they want it—and delivers it in a way that respects where they are mentally.
When I wear my consultant hat, I remind clients it’s not just about visibility. It’s about resonance. Being found is step one. But being felt, understood, and trusted—that’s what actually moves revenue. And respect for search intent is how we get there.
At Zach Sean Web Design, we don’t see SEO as a checkbox. We see it as a reflection of human behavior, of digital empathy.
Understanding the psychology behind a search helps us show up not just in rankings—but in relevance. The deeper we dig into intent, the better we address pain points, guide decisions, and build connection. It's not just semantics—it's business strategy.
If you’ve ever felt like your content was beautiful but ignored, or your traffic numbers don’t reflect your biz quality—go back to intent. It’s often the missing layer between effort and outcome. Build content that not only shows up, but makes sense, and serves a purpose. That’s SEO that works—for real businesses, real people, and real growth.
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