Top Web Search Tactics

Top Web Search Tactics

There’s a lot of information out there, some estimates say one billion searchable pages! Here’s how to best find what you are looking for and avoid the rest.

Search Engine Math:

Nearly all the big search engines support the use of symbols like + and – in search phrases. Here are the symbols to use to get better results:

"+" Insert the plus sign between words in your search string so the search engine only find pages that contain ALL the words, not just some of them.

"-" Insert the minus sign between words in your string to prevent the search engine from returning results that include certain words.

"" Insert quotes AROUND your search string to ensure that the search engine gives you pages that contain your keywords in the exact order you specify.

For a complete article on using symbols, visit: http://www.searchenginewatch.com/facts/math.html

Search terms:

Once you understand how a search engine handles your keywords, you’ll have a better understanding of how to "ask" it for what you want.

Match any – This is the default. The search engine will find pages that contain any or all of the terms.
Match all – See "+" above.
Exclude – See "-" above.
Title Search – This will find pages that contain your keyword in the title of the page only. This is how to do it:
Title:Search for this word
Site Search – Allows you to specify what site to search or not to search. For example:
host:cade.com search for this word
"mars landings" +host:edu

Wildcards (*) – The asterisk allows you to leave part of a word so that when you search, the engine will return pages that include various prefixes and suffixes.
ring* finds ringing and rings
cent* finds center and centre

Here’s a great link that will take you to a Search Engine Features Chart:
http://www.searchenginewatch.com/facts/ataglance.html