In 2009, Bill Gates gave a speech at a private dinner where he famously said “the future of search is verbs.” Gates wasn’t talking about the words people type into search boxes, he was instead talking about why people search. Before we can understand why search is important, we need to take a step back and understand why people search. Why People Search In the early days, people searched to find a list of documents that contained the words they typed in. That’s no longer the case. Today’s searchers search to solve problems, to accomplish tasks, and to “do” something. They might be searching to book a flight, buy something, learn the latest Taylor Swift lyrics, or browse cat photos – but these are all actions. Or, as Gates referred to them, verbs. When a user starts a search, they’re really starting a journey. Marketers love to talk about something called “the consumer journey.” It’s just a fancy way of referencing a user’s path from the inception of their task to the completion – and
Learn all about the different types of search intent, how intent relates to the content you produce, and how search engines understand intent. Dan Taylor / January 14, 2018 / 12 min read 2.1K SHARES 42K READS In Google’s earlier days, the search engine relied heavily on text data and backlinks in order to establish rankings through periodic refreshes (known as the Google Dance). Since those days, Google search has become a sophisticated product with a plethora of algorithms designed to promote content and results that meet a user’s needs. To a certain extent, a lot of SEO is a numbers game. We focus on: Rankings. Search volumes. Organic traffic levels. Onsite conversions. That’s because these metrics are what we are typically judged by as SEO professionals . Clients want to rank higher and see their organic traffic increasing and, by association, leads and sales will also improve. When we choose target keywords, there is the tendency and appeal to go after those with the highe