How to Search on Google
Google Search Tips
While most people feel that they can confidently find the information they’re looking for on Google, they’re often doing it in a haphazard way that can waste valuable time. This is why we’ve come up with five tips on how to more efficiently search on Google.
- Exact phrase. Let’s say you are looking for a hair product you got at your salon. You can type hair salon into Google, but your results include hair care, hair products and nail salons along with your hair salon results. By putting the exact phrase you want, “hair products”, in quotes you insure that you get results for that exact phrase.
- Minus that. Let’s say you still want to find a hair salon but you don’t want to go to one that offers massage. In this situation you enter your search term, hair salon and then you subtract what you don’t want. Hair Salon –massage. By adding the minus sign before the word massage you will eliminate hair salons that also advertise massage.
- OR option. Let’s say that you’re looking to treat yourself and you’re not sure whether you want to get your hair done or if you want a massage. In this situation you can use the OR tool. Enter Hair Salon OR Massage into Google and they will give you both options in your results. Note that this only works if the OR is capitalized.
- Phonebook. The phonebook option on Google is a great tool. Let’s say you get a phone call from a number you don’t recognize. Simply Google Phonebook: and the number; i.e. Phonebook: 555-5555. You’ll get the result for that number as long as it appears in the search engines somewhere. And look, it’s your hair salon calling to remind you of your appointment.
- Define this. Let’s say you run across a word that you’re unsure of, something like glyceryl monothioglycolate. If you enter Define: glyceryl monothioglycolate into Google you’ll discover that this is a chemical used in hair waving lotions.
These useful Google tools help you quickly and easily find exactly what you’re looking for, making your search time more productive.
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