THE SCIENCE BEHIND INTENT
A further generalization can be made, and intentions can be split
into how specific the searcher is and how exhaustive the searcher
is.
Specific users have a narrow search intent and don’t deviate from
this, whereas an exhaustive user may have a wider scope around a
specific topic or topics.
The search engines are also making strides in understanding both
search intent. Google’s Hummingbird and Yandex’s Korolyov and
Vega are just two examples of these.
In 2006, a study conducted by the University of Hong
Kong found that at a primary level, search intent can be
segmented into two search goals.A user is specifically looking to find information relating to
the keyword(s) they have used.
A user is looking for more general information about a
topic.HOW PEOPLE SEARCH: UNDERSTANDING USER INTENT