10 Great Google Search Tips

Tip# 1: Defined Phrase

Let’s you are looking for content about web development. So, instead of just typing web development into the Google search box, you will likely be better off searching explicitly for the phrase. To do this, simply enclose the search phrase within double quotes.

Example : "web development"

Tip# 2: Exclude Words

Lets say you want to search for content about web development, but you want to exclude any results that contain the term advertising. To do this, simply use the “-” sign in front of the word you want to exclude. .

Example Search: web development –advertising

Tip# 3: Site Specific Search

Often, you want to search a specific website for content that matches a certain phrase. Even if the site doesn’t support a built-in search feature, you can use Google to search the site for your term. Simply use the “site:somesite.com” modifier.

Example: “web development” site:www.mysmallbusiness.com

Tip# 4: Similar Words and Synonyms

Let’s say you are want to include a word in your search, but want to include results that contain similar words or synonyms. To do this, use the “~” in front of the word..

Example: “web development” ~professional

Tip# 5: Specific Document Types

If you’re looking to find results that are of a specific type, you can use the modifier “filetype:”. For example, you might want to find only PowerPoint presentations related to internet marketing.

Example: “web development” filetype:xls

Tip# 6: This OR That

By default, when you do a search, Google will include all the terms specified in the search. If you are looking for any one of one or more terms to match, then you can use the OR operator. (Note: The OR has to be capitalized).

Example: web development OR advertising

Tip# 7: Word Definitions

If you need to quickly look up the definition of a word or phrase, simply use the “define:” command..

Example: define:mnemonic

Tip# 8: Phone Listing

Let’s say someone calls you on your mobile number and you don’t know how it is. If all you have is a phone number, you can look it up on Google using the phonebook feature.

Example: phonebook: +65 87654321

Tip# 9: Stock (Ticker Symbol)

Just enter a valid ticker symbol as your search term and Google will give you the current financials and a quick thumb-nail chart for the stock.

Example: GOOG

Tip# 10: Calculator

The next time you want to do a calculation on the fly, instead of bringing up the Calculator app, you can just type your expression in to Google’s search box.

Example: 1486 + 2680