In what scenarios should PHP developers consider using the "LIKE" operator in MySQL queries for search functionality?

When PHP developers need to implement search functionality in MySQL queries, they should consider using the "LIKE" operator when searching for partial matches in a string column. This operator allows developers to search for patterns within a column's values, making it useful for keyword searches or filtering results based on specific criteria. 

$searchTerm = 'keyword';
$query = "SELECT * FROM table_name WHERE column_name LIKE '%$searchTerm%'";
$result = mysqli_query($connection, $query);

if(mysqli_num_rows($result) > 0) {
    while($row = mysqli_fetch_assoc($result)) {
        // Process the results
    }
} else {
    echo "No results found.";
}

Keywords

PHP MySQL LIKE operator search functionality scenarios

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