Hello. As a follow up to my basic search tutorial, I want to introduce you to Alibaba.com's advanced search options. If you are having problems with general search results, using Alibaba.com's advanced search options may the answer.

To open the advanced search options, click on the Advanced Search hyperlink on the right-hand side of the search bar.

Advanced search allows you to choose from a number of options including:

1. Category
2. Region
3. Information type

The category option allows you to specifiy the category in which you want to search. To search using the category option simply:

1. Type your keyword(s) into the search input box.
2. Choose which category you would like to search from the choices in the drop down selection menu.
3. Click on the Search button to submit your search.

Don't forget to carefully choose your keyword(s) so you can receive the best results possible. If you do not specify a category, your search will include all categories.

The Refine by Region options offer two ways in which to define your search.

Choosing the region(s) that you want to search is easy. All you have to do is:

1. Use your mouse to scroll through the list of regions in the selection menu and click on your desired choice to highlight it. Highlighted choices have a blue background.
2. Click on the button labelled Add to move your selection to the list box on the right-hand box.
3. Repeat step 1 and 2 until you have selected all of the regions that you want to search. (You can select All Countries and Territories if you wish to search the entire world.)

If you want to remove a region from your search (the box on the right-hand side) simply:

1. Click on the region that you wish to remove to select it.
2. Click on the button labelled Remove.
3. If you do not wish to refine your search any further, you can submit your search by clicking on the button labelled Search at the bottom of the page.

On the right hand side of the Refine by Region area you can choose how Alibaba.com's search engine will treat the keyword(s) that you entered into the search input box:

1. Exact phrase match: If you choose this option, search results must match keywords exactly, e.g., if you are searching for "bottle washing machine," only results that have the words "bottle" and "washing" and "machine" next to each other and in that specific order will be included within search results. Exact phrase matches are the default value in advanced searches.
2. Matches on all words (AND): Choosing this option will give you search results that contain all keywords but in any order.
3. Matches on any words (OR): When used with more than one keyword, selecting this option will give you results that match one or another of the keywords.

If you do not wish to refine your search any further, click on the button labelled Search at the bottom of the page.

Regional and category options aren't the only ways to narrow your search. There may be times when you want your advanced search to include only one of the following information types:

• Selling Leads
• Buying Leads
• Products
• Companies

To refine your search by selling leads:

1. Select the selling lead type using the drop down selection menu labeled Lead type.
2. Select the time period using the drop down selection menu labeled Time period.

If you want to refine your search by buying leads, click the button labeled Buying Leads and choose a time period from the drop down selection menu labeled Time period.

To refine your search so that it only includes products supplied by Gold Suppliers, click the radio button labeled Products and click on the check box to select it.

To refine your search by Companies, click the radio button labeled Companies and choose one of the business type options from the Business type drop down selection menu. You can limit your company search to only include Gold Suppliers by clicking on the available check box.

To submit your search, click on the button labeled Search at the bottom of the page.

Buying leads: Invitations to sellers to contact buyers with product and price offerings.
Selling leads: Invitations to buyers to contact sellers with product and price requirements.

I hope that you have found this tutorial helpful and I am very interested to hear your comments. If you would like to make a comment about this tutorial or request for a future tutorial, please feel free to send me a message using the feedback box below.

Milton