Use Google search more efficiently with these search engine tips. Share other tips you have used.
1. Use quotation marks to search for the exact phrase “co-op board rejection”
2. Use the pipe (|) for an either/or search (or use the word “or”): fsbo|by owner.
3. Use two periods (..) to find information within a number range, including years: worst housing markets 1980..2006.
4. Exclude search terms with a minus sign (-): worst housing markets 1980..2006 -best. (since the prior search usually includes best and worst, use the minus sign if you only want the bad news)
5. Find similar terms with the tilde (~): ~cheap homes. You get auctions, foreclosures, etc.
6. Use the wildcard star (*) if you don’t know the missing word: a man’s home is his *.
7. Get a list of definitions with “define:” define:foreclosure.
8. Use Google as a calculator (good for figuring a commission): 435,547×6%.
9. To search a particular site use “site:”. Useful if a website or blog doesn’t have a search box: site:blog.sellsiusrealestate.com zillow. (Dang, that’s a lot of posts. We must have a crush on Zillow.)
10. Type in the area code to find out the city: 646.
11. Bonus: Search wikipedia instead of Google.
Sources and Further Reading:
20 Search tips for more efficient Google Searches (Dumb Little Man)
Google search syntax dissected (Sudar Muthu)
Using search operators (Google Guide)
Human Search: Do You ChaCha (Sellsius)
Oblique searching strategies (David Seah)
Technorati Tags: Google search, Search tips
