What is a Transactional Query?

A transactional query is a search query used by visitors looking to purchase a product but have not yet decided where to get it.

Transactional queries typically include the product’s name and keywords like buy, purchase, order, book, used, cheap, or discount. For example, ‘cheap laptops’ and ‘buy running shoes.’

Search engines typically return product results pages in response to transactional queries. For example, this is Google’s search results page for the transactional query, ‘buy yoga mats.’

Transactional query example

Transactional keywords may also be very specific. For example, a transactional query like ‘buy Nike Air Force 1’ indicates the visitor wants to buy the Nike Air Force 1 sneakers.

Sample of a transactional query

Transactional queries are one of the four types of search queries. The others are:

Transactional queries are a great source of business for bloggers, businesses, and affiliates as they connect them to an audience ready to buy. However, they also have a high keyword difficulty, which makes them hard to rank for.

Importance of Transactional Queries

Transactional keywords are crucial in digital marketing and SEO because they explicitly indicate a user’s intent to purchase an item.

Considering sales is the end goal of most businesses, bloggers, and affiliates, this makes transactional queries highly desired as they are likelier to lead to a sale than other types of queries. This is why businesses are often willing to pay more for content that ranks for transactional keywords.

However, it also makes transactional keywords hard to rank for. Some keywords may even be impossible to rank for, especially for small bloggers and businesses who may find themselves competing with large e-commerce sites like Amazon and eBay.

Difference Between Transactional and Commercial Queries

Visitors who use transactional and commercial keywords intend to purchase a product. However, visitors who use transactional queries are closer to buying those who use commercial keywords.

Commercial queries are considered the midway between informational and transactional queries because they are used by visitors who have gone beyond seeking general information but are not yet ready to purchase.

Visitors who use commercial queries are typically in the research phase, seeking more specific information and comparing the available options before making a purchase decision. However, they are not yet committed to the purchase.

Commercial keywords often include terms like best, review, or compare. For example, ‘best yoga mats,’ ‘top electric bike reviews,’ and ‘compare smartphone plans.’

How to Identify Transactional Queries

You will identify transactional keywords by looking for modifiers that indicate the visitor is ready to purchase. Some of those modifiers include:

Tilaa nyt: Buy running shoes
Get: Get online courses
Order: Order organic coffee
Purchase: Purchase fitness tracker
Discount: Laptop discount
Deals: Deals on headphones
Now: Buy tickets now
Cheap: Cheap hotel bookings

If your brand or business name is famous, you may look out for transactional keywords that contain your brand name. Once done, you should optimize the content with the required keywords and internal links to ensure it continues to rank.

In the case of unbranded transactional queries, you should look out for keywords within your niche. For example, ‘buy wedding cake’ if you run a cake business.

In all, while optimizing for transactional keywords, particularly those within your niche, you should remember that the hakutarkoitus matters.

So, search Google for the keyword and see the type of content that pops up. If your competitors are already ranking for such keywords, you should optimize yours for them, too.