Search intent, explained
Search intent is the reason someone types a query. Two searches with similar words can want very different things: "estate planning" may come from a student or a family; "estate planning attorney for business owners" comes from someone close to hiring. Search engines work hard to infer intent, and they reward the pages that satisfy it most directly.
Intent is usually grouped into four types. Informational searches want to learn something. Commercial searches compare options before a decision. Transactional searches are ready to act, book or buy. Navigational searches look for a specific brand or page. Local intent, such as "near me" or a town name, overlaps all four and brings in the local pack.
The practical test is to look at what already ranks. If the first page is full of guides, a sales page will struggle; if it is full of firm pages and the map, a long article will too. Keyword research for premium businesses is mostly intent research: finding the specific, high-value searches clients make, and giving each one a single page built to answer it. AI assistants read intent the same way, from the question asked.