Lesson 2.3: Input 3 — Reading the SERP
By the end of this lesson, you'll know how to read a search results page for intent signals, and how to use what competitors are advertising to make faster, more confident keyword decisions.
Before you bid on any keyword, you should look at the search results page for that keyword. This sounds obvious. Most advertisers don't do it.
The SERP is the fastest available answer to the question: who is searching this and what are they trying to do?
Here's what to read:
The ads at the top. What are established advertisers promising? If every ad on the page is pushing a free quote or emergency availability, you're looking at a high-intent, transactional search. If every ad is explaining what the service is or showing educational content, the intent is lower. Copy your competitors are consistently using is a validated signal — they've A/B tested their way to those headlines. You don't have to copy them, but you should understand what's working.
The organic results. What type of content ranks? Long guides and "what is" articles mean Google thinks this query is informational. Local business listings and homepages mean it's transactional and local. Comparison pages and reviews mean the searcher is evaluating options and not yet ready to buy. Each of these intent signals tells you something different about whether and how to bid.
People Also Ask. The questions in the PAA box show you related user concerns and contexts. These are useful for understanding what else is on the buyer's mind, and they often surface negative keyword candidates (questions about DIY, about pricing ranges you don't serve, about alternatives you're not competing with).
Related searches at the bottom. These are Google's own suggestions for related queries. Run a quick check on these — some will be useful keyword additions, others will be useful negatives.
The 5-minute SERP scan. For each T1 keyword candidate, spend five minutes on the results page before adding it to your list. Answer three questions: (1) Is this search transactional or informational? (2) Would I want to advertise to someone who just searched this? (3) What would I need to promise in my ad to compete honestly here? If you can't answer all three with confidence, the keyword isn't ready for your list yet.