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Are you tired of sifting through endless tweets to find that one specific gem? Is looking for your campaign tweet from 2012 exhausting?
With roughly 6,000 tweets going out per second, getting vital information becomes a challenge. While Twitter’s basic search features help you get most of the job done, gathering highly specific information requires more — Twitter’s advanced search.
So, if you’re a marketer trying to analyze their competitor’s account or if you’re trying to identify new customers, you must learn how to advance search on Twitter.
In this guide, we’ll help you navigate Twitter’s advanced search to connect meaningfully and stand out in a storm of tweets.
But first—
What is Twitter’s advanced search?
Twitter’s advanced search lets users refine their search with utmost precision. It lets you filter tweets based on specific criteria such as keywords, hashtags, dates, and users.
Understanding Twitter advanced search features
To get started, you need to know:
How to advance search on Twitter
This feature provides a different user experience based on the device you are using. Once you get a hang of it, you can conduct an advanced search directly via the search bar.
Twitter for Desktop
To get started, look for your key phrase in the search bar on the top right side. Once you hit enter, your screen will look like the screenshot below.
Click on Advanced Search. A screen will pop up where you need to enter the Words fields. You can either enter one or all fields based on your requirements. Ideally, you should enter the “exact phrase” section to get the best results.
Next, you will need to fill in the Accounts fields. Here, you can enter the account name you’re searching for, the account that was mentioned, or the account someone replied to.
Once you’re done with the above steps, set the applicable Filters — replies and links.
In the Engagement fields, enter the replies, likes, and retweets to make your search more precise. In this example, I’ve used comparatively larger numbers to get results from big accounts.
For the Dates, enter the range you’re looking for. The smaller the range, the better the search results.
Hit search. Since our search was somewhat specific, we could narrow it down to 3 tweets. However, you can also filter your results using the 5 tabs under the search bar — Top, Latest, People, Media, and Lists.
Still not happy? Tweak your search again to narrow down the results.
Finally, is this a search request you’ll need to keep coming back to? Click on the 3 dots in the top right corner. Then, click Save Search.
Twitter for Mobile
For starters, the mobile version doesn’t have a dedicated Twitter advanced search feature. However, once you know how to work with the desktop version, you can replicate those steps here. Alternatively, you can use your phone’s browser and mimic the steps shared above.
Nonetheless, to simplify your Twitter search, follow these tips:
Enter your exact phrase in quotation marks to narrow your searchPut either the exact match or keyphrase in the search bar for refined resultsEnter X -Y to get results on X without mentions of YWrite “min_retweets:(number)” or “min_faves:(number)” consolidated resultsLooking for verified users? Try “filter:verified”Need a specific account? Try “from:(account name)”Seeking account mentions? Try “to:(account name)”
Search operators and their significance
Keywords and phrases
A keyword search looks for the entered word or phrase anywhere in the record. Keywords and phrases are the best search operators for specific topics, brands, or events.
Exact match vs. broad match
An exact search shows results directly related to specific keywords or phrases enclosed in quotation marks. It tells the search engine to dig out content with the exact phrase as it’s entered, in the same order.
These are particularly useful for precise information, like a specific definition, quote, or product details.
On the other hand, a broad match retrieves a wide range of results related to the entered terms. Twitter’s algorithm interprets the keywords in various ways and provides results loosely concerning the search terms.
Broad search helps you discover new and unexpected information. It’s ideal for open-ended research or when you don’t know what you need.
Hashtags and mentions
Hashtags and mentions are commonly used as search operators on social media platforms like Twitter and Instagram.
Hashtags group together similar conversations on social media platforms. Once a hashtag is published, users can click on it to see other posts under it. You can also search for the hashtag on the search bar for relevant content.
An @mention contains a username anywhere in the tweet or caption and notifies the mentioned user of the post. Brands often track mentions to monitor online conversations, analyze brand image, collect testimonials, and discover customer needs and grievances.
Filters
Filters are search operators or criteria to refine and narrow search results. They help you specify certain conditions the results must meet to be displayed.
Advanced operators
Advanced search operators refer to special commands to modify searches. These are typically useful for narrowing down searches and digging deeper into results. Some important advanced operators command include:
Cache: This helps users find the most recent cache of a webpage (e.g. cache:hubspot.com)Allintext: This operator command checks whether your search terms show up in the text of that page (e.g. allintext:home decor)Inanchor: This command lets you find webpages with inbound links with a specific anchor text (e.g. inanchor:medicine)
Some other significant advanced operator commands include:
Location: Allinanchor:Allinurl:
Use cases: How to use Twitter’s advanced search
To help you understand its practical application, here are some practical use cases of Twitter advanced search.
Unveiling new and relevant topics
Adding new and relevant topics to your content strategy is vital for consistent engagement. However, tracking trending hashtags isn’t enough to dig into the context.
Here, filtering your results using Twitter’s search operators can pin down the contextual relevance of trending topics.
For instance, you want to track tweets on the latest movie Oppenheimer and how Christopher Nolan filmed the explosion scene without CGI.
Here, you can type “Oppenheimer” in the search bar. Then use the advanced search’s exact phrase section to get trending tweets with topic-specific details.
Generating leads for your business
Consistent lead generation is essential to sustain your business. It maintains a scaling revenue stream and contributes to the company’s growth.
Twitter is a goldmine for customer acquisition. And with the advanced search feature, you can leverage this reach to the fullest. It displays Twitter users matching your criteria and lets you find the most qualified leads.
For example, you run a bookstore in Houston and want to target local readers.
For this, you can use geotargeting commands on Twitter for advanced searches like the above screenshot. It shows you local book-loving Twitter users. Then, you may nurture these leads.
Customer engagement strategies
Platforms like Twitter are perfect for identifying and engaging your target audience. You can respond to positive tweets mentioning your brand or product. Companies can also track customer grievances via Twitter to resolve them.
However, not everyone talking about your brand will tag you. For more diligent monitoring, save a Twitter advanced query about your brand name, product name, common misspellings, and website.
For example, Starbucks wants to interact with its happy customers on Twitter. To narrow the search, they can type “best experience” and @starbucks in the advanced search filters.
The search results will track the tweets and let Starbucks engage satisfied customers.
Riding the wave of trends
Brands participate in social media trends to increase reach and stay relevant. However, don’t jump on every trend. Identify those that suit your brand image and are popular with your audience.
Here, Twitter’s advanced search options can help you find popular trends in your niche. You can search Tweets in specific geographies, dates, or a specific sentiment (like in the screenshot above).
Analyzing competitor strategies
To stay ahead of the curve, know your competitor’s strengths and weaknesses. How? Through competitor analysis. It lets you enhance your business strategies and avoid mistakes, giving you a competitive edge.
Set up an advanced search to find Tweets mentioning your biggest competitors. Then examine the results to understand what people love or hate about your contemporaries.
For example, Wendy’s can monitor Taco Bell via Twitter’s advanced search. For that, they must type @tacobell in the accounts section.
The results will show mentions of reviews, new offers, and customer complaints. Use these insights to fill in strategic gaps and outdo the competitors.
Attracting competitors’ customers
Twitter advanced search is also valuable for identifying dissatisfied customers of your competitors and tailoring offers to woo them.
For that, you can simply type the competitor name in the “Accounts” field and dissatisfaction phrases in the “Words” field.
For example, rival brands can search for “disappointed”, “worst”, and “bad”, etc., followed by mentioning their biggest competitor — Canon, in this case.
The results will show unhappy customers. Analyze their grievances to see how to offer potential customers a better experience. Contact them with relevant offers and communicate how your services are better suited for their specific problems with your competitors.
Conducting in-depth market research
By running social monitoring and sentiment analysis through the Twitter advanced search, you can delve deep into customer needs and market changes. You can identify frequently reported issues and solve them quickly. Simply monitoring your niche-related conversations can gather insights into customer expectations and preferences.
Moreover, by using engagement parameters, you can identify thought leaders and popular influencers in your industry.
As influential Twitter handles get more likes and retweets, filter search results to narrow down tweets with higher engagement. Performing this type of advanced search helps you pinpoint users who can impact peoples’ opinions in your industry.
Let’s say you are a beauty brand conducting market research for your new lipstick range. Type:
“Lipstick” in the Words sectionThen the required likes and retweets in the Engagement section to find users with significant reach.
Crafting a creative content strategy
Twitter is a hub for trending conversations. Advanced search dives deep in there to see what your customers resonate with and spark new content ideas.
Search for a specific topic on advanced search and adjust engagement numbers to find tweets with higher reach.
For example, Twitter’s advanced search may show that your target audience is talking about organic coffee. Then, you can Tweet about it to engage your audience.
Advanced search tools and automation
While Twitter’s advanced search is a nifty way of strategizing engagement, it may fall short of your scale. You need automation and advanced search tools to ensure accuracy.
You can explore third-party tools with enhanced search capabilities by skimming through testimonial tweets. Look for platforms with automated social listening and analytics for a streamlined process.
Save your searches and enable notifications to never miss a mention or update on Twitter.
Opt for Keyhole’s Twitter analytics and reporting to automate searches and get updates on mentions, influencers, and trending topics.
Conclusion
Targeted campaigns are pivotal to making a business successful.
Twitter’s advanced search helps here by uncovering valuable customer insights, trending conversations, competitor strategy, content ideas, and more.
But manually running an advanced search every time can be overwhelming. To simplify the process, switch to social media automation tools like Keyhole.
We offer:
Social listening Quick trend assessmentsInfluencer tracking Historical data
You get timely updates on trending tweets, regular reports on engagement, and deep insights into customer preferences.
To rebuild your Twitter presence, sign up for your free trial today!
More importantly, don’t forget to innovate and adapt with advanced search to build a creative, on-brand, and engaging Twitter presence.
The post Twitter Advanced Search: A Comprehensive Guide for 2023 appeared first on Keyhole.
