Thanks for coming back to the third and last issue in the ‘How to find stuff on the internet' series (sigh). This week, we're delving into how to maximise internet efficiency when using big brand websites to search and research.
Now, let's get down to business. In this issue, we’ll be guiding you on how to make the most out of mainstream websites, which on first impression may seem like an unlikely source of information for your research. Think Buzzfeed and Goodreads…
Buzzfeed
You may be more acquainted with this website when you’re mindlessly scrolling and come across a ‘Which one are you?’ quiz but some helpful information can be squeezed from this pop-culture-led brand. If you want to find memes and tweets around a particular topic, it doesn’t always require a ton of digging around on social platforms. Just google imaginary Buzzfeed headers to find some of the best bits of the internet, that are often curated from numerous sources including Twitter and Reddit.
Amazon
Finding experts and new releases for books on the internet doesn’t have to be via people’s blogs and articles. If you look in business books for new releases, you’ll find a tonne of interesting people who could be worth interviewing for whatever project or research you're currently working on.
Goodreads
While some people wouldn’t mind reading a ton of books to find the perfect quote, for others, it is far too time-consuming. Goodreads is an efficient and quick way to pull the best and most quotable elements of many books. Just Google search ‘Goodreads leadership quotes’ or something similar to find interesting quotes around the topic you’re researching.
Pew Research Center
If there is one source which should always be on your list when researching, it is Pew Research Center. Known for its detailed, accurate and astounding catalogue of data, Pew Research is a vital must-have on your list of go-to research sites. Pew is to data (in the US, at least) what Goodreads is to quotes. In the UK and Europe, the closest equivalent would probably be YouGov.
In the words of Nicholas Sparks ‘This is not a goodbye, my darling, this is thank you’. Thanks for sticking around for these last three issues of 'How to find stuff on the internet', we hope you leave feeling like a stronger and wiser Googler.
While this may be the last post in this series, we have a lot more coming up in the future so sit tight and stay tuned!
