Thinking in search terms
This post written by Sean Conta, Founder & CXO
The internet is a wonderful thing.
This is not a controversial statement, but really, it is. Yesterday I caught myself thinking in search terms. Let me explain: I like working on cars as you may recall (ok probably not) from a very old post. The other day I was pulling out of the garage and my old Subaru made a funny noise. I knew it was coming from the Anti-lock Brake System control unit (how? that’s another story) so I popped the hood to have a look. The ABS box was whirring away. It sounded like a pump was stuck on. I unplugged the unit’s electrical harness and it stopped.
Fast forward a day or so and I was out walking. I started to think about my ABS problem. I didn’t just start to think about it though, I started to think in search terms. What would be the best terms for an internet search that might get me an answer?
“ABS whir not stop”
“ABS pump on”
“ABS pump runs”
When I got back home I sat down and tried out “95 Subaru ABS pump runs”. I got a few hits, and finally landed on this random page which suggests this may be a known issue. I’ll keep digging.
This is not the first time I’ve thought in search terms, nor will it be the last. Searching the internet is really a skill unto itself. You can’t have too many words, nor too little, and they have to be just the right words. But maybe that’s another blog topic …
February 19th, 2009 at 1:56 pm
I do the same thing and even worse (and yes, I will admit to this), when interesting things happen in my life, I think, “How can I update my Facebook status that best represents what just happened.”