Search psychology: build for the person, not the keyword
The search
What's in my tap water, and do I need to do anything about it?
They're worried, not shopping yet.
What I built
On CheckMyTap, the menu puts Check Your Water and Learn ahead of Solutions, and a city page recommends a softener only when that city's water calls for one.
Phoenix, with very hard water, says a softener is worth considering. Seattle, with soft water, says one isn't needed. Read on the live site, October 11, 2026.
The CheckMyTap story, including what didn't holdSomeone who is worried about their water decides better, and trusts the page more, when the page answers the worry first. Selling a filter to a city that doesn't need one would earn a click and lose the reader.
The test I put every page through
“This page helps someone who searched [X] decide [Y].” If you can’t finish that sentence, the page needs work.
Different intent types need different page structures, different depth, and different next steps.
Where the reader is decides the shape of the page
I wrote this guide to page shape in February 2026: one row per kind of search, with the page each one needs. The last column is where that shape shows up in my own work, from the site list read October 2026.
| The reader is | What to build | Where it shows up in my work |
|---|---|---|
| Learning | Comprehensive guides, explanations, how-tos. No sales pitch. Soft CTA at bottom only. | For people mid-task who need a number: WireRef, GageRef, RatingPlate. |
| Comparing | 5-7 options with pros, cons, pricing. Evaluation criteria. Decision framework. Multiple CTAs. | For people deciding what to buy or use: CheckMyTap, Car Fact Sheet, Hear Homer, SaltCellCheck. |
| Navigating | Login form, download button, or portal above fold. No marketing. Get them to destination in 3 seconds. | This site's homepage, for people who searched my name. |
| Buying | Pricing, features, benefits above fold. Multiple CTAs. Social proof. Direct path to purchase. | No example in this portfolio. |
The middle column is quoted from 4 Types of Search Intent: Match Your Pages to How Users Actually Search (February 2026), now the search intent page.
When the question arrives before the answer
Fans wanted a release date for Dungeon Crawler Carl Book 9 before one existed. A made-up date would have been easy to publish and wrong, so the page said what was confirmed, what wasn't, and when I last checked.
From Jul 11 to Oct 8, 2026, that page drew 43% of The Crawler's Cookbook's Google clicks. Source: Google Search Console daily and page export. The full story, including the correction
- 1The question, as fans asked it
- 2The honest answer: not announced
- 3When I last checked
More work, sorted by who it was for
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A Dungeon Crawler Carl fan waiting on Book 9
The Crawler's Cookbook A page built for a question that had no answer yet, with its dated result and the correction that followed.
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An Oregon Ducks fan
The Quack Report A whole site built around one kind of fan, and why I build it.
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A welder mid-task with gloves on
GageRef A reference built for someone who needs one number and nothing else.
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Customers in industries that search nothing alike
My full-time job, by industry The first move on each account, picked by how that industry's customers search.
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Fans, people mid-task, people deciding
Every site, grouped by who it's for My own sites sorted by the person each one serves, not by topic.
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A marketer or student looking up a definition
Search intent My guide to the four kinds of search intent and the page each one needs.
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Every reader of this site
The checks behind every site Every page here has to name its reader and next step, and the build fails when one doesn't.
The thinking behind all three skills: how I think.
One kind of fan got a whole site.
A whole site built around one kind of fan