Ada Parker Online users use search engines for a variety of searches. It is commonly accepted that there are three different types of search queries:
- Navigational search queries
- Informational search queries
- Transactional search queries
Let’s explore these three search query categories in more detail and discuss how you can tailor your website’s content to each of them.
Table of Contents
What is a Navigational Search Query?
A navigational query is a search query entered with the intent of finding a particular website or webpage. For example, a user might enter “youtube” into Instead of typing the URL into the navigation bar of a browser or using a bookmark, use the search bar on Google to find the YouTube website. In fact, “facebook” and “youtube” are the top two searches on Both of these navigational inquiries are directed at Google.
Related Reading: Google Ad Examples
How Should You Target Navigational Search Queries?
The truth is that unless you happen to be the owner of the website that someone is looking for, you don’t have a great chance of succeeding in targeting a navigational query. If you’re not the site the user has in mind, you’re not relevant to their needs. True navigational queries have very clear intent. Google, which classifies this type of query as a “go query” according to some reports, has even taken the step of reducing the total number of results on the first page to 7 for navigational brand queries, leading to a 5.5% reduction in overall organic first-page listings. However, some queries that appear to be navigational in nature might not be. For example, someone who googles “facebook” might actually be looking for news or information about the company.
Tip: Make sure the navigational query for your brand belongs to you. When someone searches for your company name or brand, your site should ideally show up in both the top sponsored result and the top organic result. As Brad Geddes has pointed out, “in many cases, it is worth buying keywords even if you rank organically for them,” because your total profits will end up higher. Branded search terms often promote clicks and sales.
What is An Informational Search Query?
Wikipedia defines informational search queries as “Questions with a wide scope (like, colorado or trucks) for which there may be thousands of relevant results.” It is obvious from the name that when someone uses a search engine like Google or another to conduct an informational search, they are seeking out information. They most likely aren’t conducting a navigational search for a specific website or looking to transact business. They simply wish to find out the solution to a problem or learn a skill.
How Should You Target Informational Search Queries?
It’s challenging to profit from informational searches. Google is promoting the Knowledge Graph to answer these kinds of queries because it is aware of this. The best way to target informational searches is to create high-quality SEO content that genuinely answers the query’s questions and offers relevant information. Despite its flaws, Wikipedia is generally good at providing basic, trustworthy information on a wide range of topics, which is why (along with their incredibly strong link profile) they appear on the first page of search results for about half of all queries.
But for many informational searches, Wikipedia is far from satisfactory. You step in to help with that. Here are some of the ways you could target informational queries to drive traffic and leads to your site through organic search:
- Write a blog post full of tips that would be useful for your prospective customers – if you’re a For instance, as a PR consultant, you might blog about how to write a press release.
- Create a how-to video that is relevant to your business (like this home improvement dude who made a video on how to build a tree house).
- Write a detailed, step-by-step guide that elucidates a process relevant to your business (for example, take Excellent SEO primer from SEOmoz.
- Design an infographic that illustrates a concept (like our infographic on how the Using Google Ads auction.
Informational content can be approached in a variety of ways. Get creative. The goal is to position yourself as a trustworthy, authoritative source of information, not to try to cram your products down the searcher’s throat. You should now work on increasing brand recognition. A searcher is more likely to think favorably of you in the future if they require the kind of services you offer if you can successfully respond to their query.
What is a Transactional Search Query?
Transactional search queries are a type of search query that users conduct when looking to complete a transaction, such as a purchase. Some of these search queries include phrases like “buy,” “purchase,” and “order.” It’s known as the “Do” search query because searchers are looking to do something, like buy a product.
Vertical searches are a subset of transactional search queries, and they represent people looking to make a transaction in a specific industry. Searches for nearby businesses, restaurants, lodging, hotels, flights, etc. are among them. Allegations of antitrust violations have been made in response to Google’s recent decisions to directly target vertical searches.
How Should You Target Transactional Search Queries?
In this case, we advise a two-pronged strategy. There is no reason not to target transactional queries with organic content, like optimized product pages and local You should think about using PPC to target these search terms in addition to SEO strategies. Here’s why:
- These exact queries are the ones that are most likely to produce a positive return on investment in paid search. A sponsored ad is just as likely to provide the results people are looking for as an organic result if they are trying to find a specific kind of product to purchase.
- The SERP for commercial/transactional queries has a significant amount of space taken up by sponsored results. Consider PPC if you want your transactional keywords to appear above the fold.
- Google has many features available for sponsored ads and product listings. A picture of your product, for instance, could be included. Your options are more constrained and less in your control in organic results.
- For queries with a high degree of commercial intent, we found in one study that people click on paid results more frequently than organic results by a 2:1 margin. This is probably due to the fact that sponsored results occupy a sizable portion of the above-the-fold space on these kinds of searches, the new ad formats are so alluringly clickable, and many search engine users are unable to distinguish between ads and non-ads.
Implications for Website Owners
Due to the variety of query types, website owners must make their content as accessible as possible in order for users to find it. This calls for careful content planning that prioritizes the needs of the user. A quality website should provide content that supports the objectives of the website (such as generating sales or providing information), considers the target audience, and is tailored to the user’s stage in the purchasing process. A company should ideally create content that is suitable for any kind of requirement.
- You should produce informative content, like blog posts, e-books, videos, or tutorials, for informational searches. High-quality, user-focused content can go viral online and rank highly in search results.
- Gaining comparable results with transactional searches, however, is much more dependent on effective search engine optimization and Google’s evaluation process. Here, optimizing your online store or website well both on and off-page is a crucial first step in laying the groundwork for a good ranking.
- The simplest preparation for navigational searches is having a well-known brand with a compelling identity. After all, users cannot find a company’s website unless they are aware of it. Companies can boost their authority and increase their visibility with effective marketing, particularly good content marketing. Additionally, website owners ought to provide Google with structured data for its Knowledge Graph and choose sitelinks that let users go straight to subpages. The Google Search Console can be used to set up either of these features.
Due to the fact that they must be displayed for every type of search request, these factors make it more and more difficult for website owners to direct users to their site. Who actually appears in the SERPs listings is frequently determined by the somewhat arbitrary ranking factors used by Google and others.
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Final Words
People look for different kinds of keywords for various reasons; transactional keywords might help someone get ready to buy, whereas informational keywords might help them with their queries. By optimizing your content, you can be sure that people will find you quickly when they search for certain terms.
Do you have any inquiries about these different types of search queries and what they entail for search marketers? Comment and let us know!
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