A Guide to Web Guide: Our Hybrid Search Future

These 10 fan-out types are loosely organized as a journey. What is the searcher trying to achieve, and what are the steps they might take along that journey toward an eventual action? Let’s dive into each one and look at some examples.

As we move toward this hybrid world, it can help to move away from traditional search queries and towards questions (or, in LLM lingo, “prompts”). So, all of the following examples are based on the question: “What are the best wireless mice for gamers?”

1. Semantic fan-out

In an AI/LLM world, there are many ways to say roughly the same thing. Semantic fan-outs are queries or prompts with different words, but similar meaning. For example:

• “Which gaming mice perform best for players?”
• “What are good cordless mice for gamers?”

2. Entity fan-out

Entity fan-outs expand on an entity — a person, place, thing, or brand. For example:

• “Are HyperX mice good for FPS players?”
• “Is Pulsar a solid pick for gamers?”

3. Follow-up fan-out

Follow-up is probably self-explanatory — what is the searcher likely to ask next? The next two fan-out types are variations on follow-ups, but some general examples are:

• “How long do wireless gaming mice last?”
• “Are wireless mice good for competitive play?”

4. Attribute fan-out

An attribute fan-out is a follow-up focusing on a specific feature or attribute, such as:

• “How important is battery life in gaming mice?”
• “How much DPI matters for gaming mice?”

5. Anticipate fan-out

What about the follow-up after the follow-up? Anticipate fan-outs look two or more steps ahead, sometimes even at post-transactional questions. For example:

• “What sensitivity settings help new gamers?”
• “What accessories help wireless mouse users?”

6. Factual fan-out

The next three fan-out types dive into the informational intent space. Factual fan-outs focus on just that: facts, data, and specifics. For example:

• “What polling rates do pros often choose?”
• “How often do gamers replace wireless mice?”

7. Tutorial fan-out

Tutorial fan-outs dive deeper into a topic, such as how-to guides. The three informational fan-outs are strong candidates for content marketing. Examples include:

• “How to extend battery life on gaming mice”
• “How to set up a new gaming mouse?”

8. Perspective fan-out

Perspective fan-outs focus on human perspectives and opinions, including discussions and forums, which Google leans on heavily. Some examples are:

• “What mice do streamers often recommend?”
• “Why do some gamers swear by wrist rests?”

9. Comparison fan-out

The last two fan-out types move down the funnel toward an action or transaction. Comparison fan-outs compare two or more items or concepts. For example:

• “Which lasts longer: optical or laser mice?
• “Are premium mice really better than budget mice?”

10. Transact fan-out

Finally, Transact fan-outs move into a clear commercial or transactional space. The searcher is ready to take an action, such as a purchase. Examples include:

• “When do gaming mice usually go on sale?”
• “Where to buy mousepads for wireless mice?”

Note that these 10 fan-out types aren’t exhaustive or mutually-exclusive. Our goal is to provide a framework to understand why and how fan-out happens, and illustrate how mapping fan-outs can help marketers better understand the searcher’s journey.

Putting all 10 together

Let’s revisit our earlier visual map and plug in some of the examples we’ve covered:

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