One page, wrong intent: fixing a 9% CTR gap on a 4,200-vol query

One page, wrong intent: fixing a 9% CTR gap on a 4,200-vol query

A client ranked position 4 for a 4,200-vol query but pulled a click-through rate (CTR = clicks ÷ impressions) of only 1.8%, far below the curve.

— Expected CTR at position 4: ▇▇▇▇▇ ~9.4%
— Actual CTR: ▇ 1.8%
— SERP intent read: 70% commercial, 30% informational
— Our page intent: 100% informational guide

We pulled the top 10 results and the layout screamed buy-intent: 6 product carousels, 2 comparison tables. The guide was answering a question nobody on that SERP was asking.

We swapped the intro for a comparison table and a shortlist. CTR climbed to 7.1% over six weeks at the same position.

So what: ranking is half the job; matching the click-through curve to intent is the other half.

Benchmark of the week: an intent-matched page earns 4x the CTR of a mismatched one at equal rank.