I recently took a free course called Power Searching With Google. I was surprised to find out that searching on google was such an art and could be used so much more effectively than I was using it. Here are the best 5 things I learned during the course:
1. When doing a google search, you can filter the results you get to really zero in on what you are looking for by using the color paintchips in the lower left corner of the interface. Color carries a context! For visually similar results, click on an image and then click on “similar”.
2. The “Art” of keywords – Focus on your question “What are you trying to find?” Synonyms for the word that you are searching are helpful. Be descriptive and stay on topic in your search because every word you enter in the search box matters…even the word order matters!
3. “Ctrl F” – Once on a page with a lots of information (for example, a page where information is ranked), using the “Ctrl F” keys will provide you with a search box within that document to specify the exact information that you are looking for and it highlights it for you – AMAZING!
4. Use of the minus (-) sign in your search: The minus sign can be used to help you narrow in on your topic by taking a word away in your search…. it “erases” a term from the results that you get. The example that was used in the course was this one: “salsa -dancing” – this would be a way to find salsa recipes but take any references to salsa dancing out of your search. Very helpful!
5. The use of “OR” in your search – Using the capital letters OR between 2 related words in your search and putting quotation marks around your phrases (more than one word) helps you refine your search so that those words are in the page that you are looking for.
These are great ways to speed up your search and really focus on the kind of results that you get in your search!