Regular users of my blog should already be familiar with “Google Suggest”. Those can skip ahead to the section “Wildcard operator in Google Suggest”, for all others here is the quick start. Google Suggest is the name of the Google functionality that is responsible for suggesting possible search queries while you are typing your search query. For example, if you type “What are the most popular”, Google will suggest “What are the most popular sports in Australia”. The suggestions, in turn, are based on the one hand on the user’s own Google search profile and on the other hand on the most frequent search queries currently sent to Google by other users.
For webmasters, SEOs (search engine optimizers) and Internet marketers, however, the Google Suggest feature has a completely different benefit than pure search support. Since the suggestions, as already explained, are derived from the most frequent search queries of other users, among other things, conclusions about the interests and questions of other users can be drawn from the suggestions. So if I enter “What is the best”, Google Suggest completes with “What is the best covid vaccine”, “What is the best anime”, etc.?
I can therefore conclude from this, that users are particularly interested in information about or a comparison of animes. As a clever marketer, I could start here and generate content that answers precisely this question and thus skim off as much traffic as possible from Google. (In practice, it’s not quite that simple, but Google Suggest is still a valuable tool).
Wildcard operator in Google Suggest
So far, however, only sentences/questions could be completed. This works for the above example “What is the best” or for questions like “What are the cheapest”. But if I want to know which music albums the users are particularly interested in, I would have to ask a question like “When does [artist XYZ’s] release her new album”.
However, this was not possible for a long time. Recently, however, it became known that the underscore “_” can be used as a wildcard operator. For the above example, the query with the Google Suggest wildcard would look like this: “When does _ release her new album”.
This “trick” opens up completely new application scenarios and at least I, for one, consider this new insight to be worth its weight in gold. What do you think? Do you use the Google Suggest feature yourself and if so, for what?
This is a really insightful piece on leveraging Google Suggest! The explanation of wildcards is particularly useful for digging deeper into search trends. As an SEO enthusiast, I’ve found that combining wildcards with location-based queries can uncover niche opportunities others might miss. Great breakdown of a powerful yet often overlooked tool.
Great tutorial on leveraging Google Suggest! I’ve always found it fascinating how these small tricks can reveal so much about search trends. As an SEO, I’ve used wildcards to uncover niche queries that pure keyword research often misses. It’s a game-changer for digging deeper into user intent. Thanks for breaking it down so clearly!
“Great breakdown of Google Suggest’s power for SEO! Loved how you highlighted both user-side convenience and marketer potential. The wildcard tip is golden—I’ve used it to uncover hidden long-tail keywords competitors overlook. Solid tutorial for both beginners and pros diving deeper into search trends!”
“Great breakdown of Google Suggest’s potential! I’ve used it for basic searches but never considered its deeper SEO value. The wildcard tip is especially clever—definitely trying this for keyword research. Thanks for sharing such a practical perspective!”
This is a really useful breakdown of Google Suggest! I’ve used it for basic searches but never considered its potential for SEO and keyword research. The wildcard tip is especially clever—definitely going to test this out for niche trends. Thanks for sharing such actionable insights!
Great insights on leveraging Google Suggest for SEO! I’ve always found wildcards to be an underrated tool for uncovering hidden search trends. As an entrepreneur, I love how this technique can reveal untapped audience needs—perfect for refining content or product strategies. Thanks for breaking it down in such a practical way!
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