Search intent analysis asks what someone is trying to finish. Similar words can describe learning a concept, comparing options or finding a supplier. A page aimed at the wrong task can be unhelpful even if it includes the searched phrase.
Use current result-page evidence and the owner already on your site, rather than a label inferred from wording alone. The English intent worksheet records the evidence and decision.
Write the reader's task first
“Understand what a ledger is”, “choose accounting software” and “sign up for an account” are different tasks. Write your initial interpretation in a sentence before inspecting results so you can compare it with what you observe.
Words such as “how”, “example”, “compare”, “cost” or “quote” provide hints. They are not proof. Cost queries can involve evaluation as well as an immediate purchase; real result pages can mix tasks.
Inspect the intended language and market
Record the query, language, intended country, date and relevant search settings. A private window can reduce some history effects but does not guarantee geography or an identical result for everyone.
Inspect a consistent sample, such as ten ordinary results. Record article, comparison, service, shop, forum and video types separately. Also note advertisements, question panels, maps, images and AI features where they appear. Treat them as contextual observations rather than automatic intent labels.
Count the types. A clear majority supports a dominant task; a close split should remain mixed. Use generative search measurement when evaluating AI answers separately.
Three useful tasks, not an exhaustive taxonomy
| Task | Typical page evidence |
|---|---|
| Explanation | Definitions, practical guides and examples |
| Comparison | Criteria, trade-offs and alternatives |
| Enquiry or purchase | A service, product, quote, price or signup route |
These are working categories. A comparison may appropriately lead to an enquiry without requiring a second near-identical page. Record the primary task and supporting task rather than forcing a mixed result into one label.
Find the existing owner
Check which page already completes the task. Variants of “choose accounting software” can belong on one comparison page. Similar vocabulary does not justify merging a definition and a supplier enquiry if they genuinely answer different questions.
Some topics do not belong on your site. A widely covered general concept outside your offer may be better served by a relevant existing source than another thin article.
Make a page decision
Improve an existing page when it already owns the task. Create a page when the task fits your actual offer, is distinct and lacks an owner. Make nothing when it is irrelevant or you have no useful contribution. For mixed intent, serve the principal task and address the supporting question proportionately.
Keep unresolved cases marked for review before building. Keyword volume can support prioritisation, but it does not establish purchase intent or a visitor outcome.
Fictional example: accounting software
Imagine six queries with invented result observations: “what is a ledger” mainly shows explanations; “accounting software comparison” mainly shows comparisons; “accounting software signup” shows signup and pricing routes. A broad software query has a mixed comparison and purchase result.
An imaginary supplier might improve its comparison and signup owners, decline a general ledger article and investigate one missing mixed-task page. These are illustrative decisions, not live search findings, ranking predictions or measured conversions.
Save enough evidence to revisit the decision
Record query, observed page types and counts, reader task, date, existing owner, overlap decision, unknowns, next action and decision owner. Review when the results or business offering materially change; the previous decision is a snapshot.
Next, assign one owner in your keyword cluster map. For help with the research and review, see SEO services. Completing the worksheet does not itself commission a service.