Different search strategies work best for different databases; here are several of them:
“Google” searching (works best for databases such as Google, Bing, Duckduckgo, etc.)
Strategy: What would other folks looking for this kind of thing have typed?
Examples:
Full-text searching (works best for databases such as JSTOR, Project Muse, Google Scholar, Google Books, etc.)
Strategy: What words are likely to occur most often in the sources I’m looking for?
Examples:
Index searching (best for databases such as HOLLIS+, Academic Search Premier, MLA Bibliography, etc.)
Strategy: How might an academic institution describe what I’m looking for?
Examples:
(with thanks to Odile Harter for permission to adapt and re-use from the UNABRIDGED: A Master Class in Library Research guide)