Look at one position at a time
When you stare at all four letters together, it is easy to keep seeing the same few words. Freeze three positions and vary the remaining one. Then move to the next position. This gives your search a simple order and makes overlooked neighbors easier to spot.
You do not need to type every possibility into the game. Make a short list of plausible words, then check whether each candidate is accepted before building on it.
Let go of matching the target immediately
A tempting rule is to change only letters that bring the word closer to POOP. That can trap you. Some useful transitions leave the number of matching positions unchanged, and others may temporarily reduce it.
In the historical ladder WAYS — BAYS — BOYS — BOOS — BOOP — POOP, the first change does not add a target match. It works because BAYS leads into another useful neighborhood of words. Think about what a move makes possible next.
Try thinking backward
Instead of only asking what can follow your current word, ask which accepted words could immediately precede POOP. Those words differ from the target in just one position. Then consider words that could lead into those neighbors.
A legal one-letter connection works in both directions. Backward thinking can reveal a destination for your forward search, even when you still need several moves to join the two sides. Confirm vocabulary rather than assuming every plausible ending is allowed.
Keep a tiny record of rejected branches
Write down the words you have already explored and why you stopped. You might mark one as rejected by the game, another as a valid word with no useful next step, and a third as worth revisiting. These are different kinds of dead end.
Avoid repeatedly cycling through the same pair of words. A loop uses moves without getting you to a new position, so it cannot improve the length of your final route.
Reveal the smallest hint that helps
A move-count hint tells you whether your current route is already competitive. A first-letter-position hint narrows the search without naming the word. Revealing the next word is stronger, but still leaves the rest of the ladder to you.
If you eventually reveal the full answer, inspect the transition where your search diverged. Was there an unfamiliar accepted word, an unexpected vowel change, or a detour you ruled out too early? That specific observation is useful on your next puzzle.