google search tips for creatives
Ok, so you're on a deadline. You've turned the notifications off on your phone, you've mildly threatened loved ones with ever-so-subtle hints of bodily harm at the merest thought of interruptions. You have assumed the comfy position and you drank so much caffeine, you think you could run the Kentucky Derby. And maybe win.
Now it's time to work. And everything is Google-able. But here's my favorite ways to make my workload easier with just a few Google search tricks.
Put these in the google search bar, and press enter, and watch how much time you save:
contact <name> ..... quickly get the contact information from your phone. No scrolling!
sitename: search parameters ..... say you're looking for an article on Refinery29 on rainboots. You'd search like this: refinery29.com: rainboots. Yes! Yay!.
my events ..... a client asks to meet for coffee and Skype, and you need to know if you have a conflict. this quick list of your upcoming calendar lets you know if you're free.
my hotels ..... quickly see your upcoming (and past) hotel reservations.
my flights ..... your upcoming flights, at a glance
"search terms" ..... Google is smart, and tries to guess what you're looking for. But if you want only the exact search term, use quotes. If you're looking for Beyonce's Met Gala 2016 dress, type the entire search term like "Beyonce's Met Gala 2016 dress", and Google should filter out results from previous years.
find my phone ..... yes! Type find my phone (and your Google password, for your security), and Google will geolocate your phone AND either text or call it.
define: WORD ..... Want to know what a word means? I didn't know what a cassowary was, so I typed in define cassowary, and Google told me it was an emu-like flightless bird in New Guinea.
intext: "searchterm" ..... Let's say you're looking for the phrase "that's what she said". Yeah, let's pretend it's 2006. Anyway, but you don't want articles titled That's What She Said. You only want articles which use the phrase in the body, or text of the article. Use intext: "that's what she said" and Google will search the text only.
intitle: "searchterm" ..... Same thing as above, only restricted to titles only.
- ..... The wonderful minus sign. This will save you hours of search time. The minus sign leaves out certain search results. Let's say you want to search vacations in the Caribbean, but you don't want any information about The Bahamas. Your search would look like this: Caribbean Vacation -Bahamas. And you'd get every other island but The Bahamas.
And the grandaddy of them all, Google Reverse Image Search. Upload a photo, and Google will find similar images, as well as what other sites include the images on their pages.
Do you have any Google search tricks?