User intent (or search intent) is the classification of what a user wants to find when typing into a search engine, and it is fundamental to search engine optimization (SEO) and conversion rate optimization. Marketers use keyword research to tailor content to these queries, while Google often satisfies clear intents directly with featured snippets and knowledge panels, a trend that led to less than half of all searches resulting in a click by 2019. Intent is generally divided into types such as informational (e.g., "Who is Maradona?"), navigational (e.g., "Facebook login"), transactional (e.g., "Amazon coupons"), commercial (e.g., "top headphones"), and local (e.g., "restaurants near me"). Many queries feature mixed intent—like "Best iPhone repair shop near me," which combines transactional and local aims—showing that simple classifications often fail to capture actual user behavior. Search engines also interpret intent contextually, as seen when searching "Spanish games" yields language-learning resources rather than actual games, illustrating the deep nuance search engines strive to decode.