Search The Web Like A Pro
The World Wide Web can be a great source of information for your small business. You can find data about your market, your competitors and your customers. The challenge is knowing where and how to look for it.
The first step to mastering online research is to understand how to take full advantage of Web search tools. Many people find these tools frustrating, because they either don't land pertinent sites, or they give so many hits that the results are unmanageable. This can be remedied if you first learn how these engines work, and how you can use their powerful search features to zero in on the information you need.
Everyone has a different favorite search site, and you will probably find that you use one or two more than the rest. Still, it pays to be familiar with all of them. The leading search sites include:
Click on the tips below to learn more about how you can use Internet search tools to their fullest:
- Know the different search sites
- Understand Boolean commands
- Read search engine help screens
- Look for ways to limit your searches
- Make your searches as specific as possible
- If your search produces no results...
- Use more than one search site
- Try meta-search engines
- Use your bookmarks
Know the different search sites
Web search sites fall into
two basic types -- directories
and search engines Directories:
These organize Web sites by
subject. Users can choose a
subject of interest and then
browse the list of resources in
the category, narrowing their
search by the descriptors or
subcategories provided by the
directory. Directories are very
good for finding general
information, since you can look
at organized lists of sites in
the same category. Yahoo! is a
prime example of a search
directory.
Search Engines: These are very
large databases of information
related to Web sites that allow
you to search for pages that
contain keywords you designate.
The leading search engines
attempt to catalog every page on
the Web using "spiders" or
"bots" which go out onto the Web
and bring back information about
the various pages. Due to their
vast size, search engines are
not useful for general queries,
which can result in thousands
(or even hundreds of thousands)
of hits. However, most contain
sophisticated search tools,
which, if handled properly, can
let you find specific
information quickly and easily.
Examples of search engines
include AltaVista, Excite,
Google, Hotbot, and Lycos.
If you want to take full advantage of a search engine's power, you need to understand and use the advanced search features many have available. Most of these are based on Boolean commands (also called operators) which are special symbols or words that let you refine and control your searches. The following is a list of the most common commands:
Match Any
Searches for pages containing
any of your search words, not
all of them; it is often the
default setting for many search
engines.
Boolean Command: OR (dogs OR
cats)
Example: dogs OR cats will bring
up all pages that contain the
word "dogs" and all pages that
contain the word "cats".
Match All
This search yields pages that
contain all your search words.
Boolean Command: AND (dogs AND
cats)
Boolean Symbol: + (+dogs +cats)
Example: dogs AND cats will
bring up pages that contain both
the words "dogs" and "cats".
Exclude
The search engine will exclude
documents that contain certain
words.
Boolean Command: AND NOT (hudson
AND NOT river) or NOT (hudson
NOT river)
Boolean Symbol: - (hudson
-river)
Example: hudson NOT river calls
up pages that contain the word "hudson"
and do not have the word
"river". You would use this kind
of search if you were interested
in getting information about the
old Hudson automobile but didn't
want to have to scroll through
pages about the Hudson River.
Phrase Searches
Allows you to look for a
specific phrase or series or
words. Also use this for finding
a proper name.
Boolean Command: "" ("credit
card")
Example: "credit card" calls up
documents with that term, but
not documents that might have to
do with an author getting credit
for developing a greeting card.
Proximity
The search calls up documents
that contain keywords that are
close to each other. Some let
you specify how close they will
be.
Boolean Command: NEAR (small
NEAR business) or NEAR/# to
specify how close in words the
phrases must be (small NEAR/10
business means that small must
be within 10 words of business).
Boolean Symbol: [ ] ([small
business])
Example: small NEAR business
would call up articles that
contain phrases referring to
"small and medium-sized
business" which would not show
up in a phrase search.
Wildcards
Allows you to search for plurals
or variations of a word. It's
very useful if you don't know an
exact spelling.
Boolean Symbol: * (fund*)
Example: fund* would find pages
that contain the words "fund"
"funds" and "funding."
Read search engine help and how-to screens
Unfortunately, every search engine actually operates differently from every other one, so it's critical to understand each one's unique rules. Even the various directories use different schematics and index vocabulary. Take a few minutes up front to glance through the help screens to learn some of these guidelines; it will save you hours in the end. Some things to keep in mind are:
- What are the default search settings?
- What Boolean commands or symbols does it use?
- Does it support multiple word or phrase searches?
- How does the engine index pages? by entire document? URL? first paragraph? title?
- Does the engine index every page of a site, or just top-level pages?
- Are searches case sensitive?
Look for ways to limit your searches
Some search engines allow you to limit your search by fields, such as the title of a document, a URL, and hyperlinks. This is especially useful if you're looking for a specific home page. For example, if you were looking for the home page of the National Restaurant Association, you could limit your search to the title of the document, making it more likely that you'll turn up the association's home page in a limited return.
Similarly, some sites allow you to search by types of media, such as sounds or images. This way, you don't have to use words like "image" or "picture" in your search to come up with the correct results.
[Back to top]Make your searches as specific as possible
The more terms you use, the
more limited your search will
be, and the greater the chance
you may have of finding relevant
documents. Essentially, you have
to think like the page you're
seeking. What terms would show
up on that page? Try and come up
with a complete list; then, if
you find you're search does not
yield enough results, begin
paring back your keywords.
Commonly used words make poor
search keywords; in fact, many
search engines don't even look
for common articles and
prepositions like "of" and
"the". Try to focus on words and
terms that are unique to and
highlight the difference in the
information you are seeking.
For example, if you're looking for information about small business insurance, don't just go searching for "insurance" since that would yield an unmanageable number of results. Instead, narrow it by looking for as many relevant terms as you can come up with: insurance AND "small business" AND liability AND professional AND product AND "business owner's policy" AND BOP.
[Back to top]If your search produces no results...
Occasionally, you might find that a search yields zero hits, or that none of the results you get are relevant. This can be frustrating, especially if you know that the information you are seeking is out there, somewhere. If this happens, do some quick troubleshooting:
- Re-read the search tool's help file to make sure you're using the right rules.
- Check your spelling.
- Check to make sure you're using the right Boolean operators and syntax.
- Try a less specific query.
- Use synonyms or variations of a word.
- Go to another search engine and try the search again.
Various search engines have
their own search techniques. The
more you use them, the more
familiar you'll become with
their various strengths and
weaknesses. You can then choose
the right search site depending
on the type of information you
are seeking.
For example, for a
straightforward search that
might result in a high volume of
matches, begin your search with
the most limited site -- either
an industry-specific index or a
directory like Yahoo!. Then you
can expand your search to use
one of the engines like
AltaVista as you know more
specifics about what you're
searching for.
Unlike regular search engines, meta-search engines do not have their own databases of information. Instead, they search using other engines. For example, MetaCrawler searches the databases of AltaVista, Excite, Lycos, WebCrawler and Yahoo, all at the same time. By using multiple databases, you will receive more comprehensive search results. This can save you time; on the other hand, they are often quite slow in posting the results.
Only use meta-search engines for simple searches of one or two words or phrases. They will yield confusing and often faulty results if you use Boolean commands like AND, OR or NOT, or if you put a specific phrase in quotes ("word word") because not all search engines handle these commands the same way.
Meta-search engines include: [Back to top]If you find a site and you're likely to use it again, bookmark it. Even the most disorganized bookmark file can be more convenient than a search engine for accessing a useful resource
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