When you do a search and are not satisfied with the results, what’s your next step?
8 out of 21 respondents said they try their searches on another engine when they don’t find what they want. But only 2 said that’s the only thing they do. Most people said they reformulate their query first, and then as a last resort go to another engine.
Here’s some examples:
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*Alter the wording then use a different engine.
*Put different or varying words in search field (I rarely use a different search engine).
* Fine-tuning the query. I usually don’t go to another search engine until I’ve exhausted a number of possible key search words.
One respondent explained how, after unsuccessfully issuing a search on a search engine, they go directly to expert sites and look around for links to the sought-after information.
Another person said if he doesn’t find what he wants using a search engine that he’ll use a professional database (imagine that!).
It’s good that people reformulate their queries. But I’m curious to know what strategies people use other than quoting the search terms, or if they just keep hacking away hoping to find the magic keyword combination.
As to the people who don’t use other engines, or only use them as a last resort, that’s troubling. If I go to a video store and they don’t have a DVD I’m looking for, I don’t stop my search and assume it doesn’t exist. I’ll go to another store to find it. Or a book in a bookstore, or a shirt in a clothing store, etc. The same holds true for search engines.
