I like to try to nail two vowels and 3 common letters for the first guess, but maybe getting 3 vowels is better.
The first two guesses typically are for finding letters, and then I worry about placement.
If I have only 1 or 2 guesses left, I may use this Scrabble word finder for help.
The game got me last week, where I had 4 letter and chased the last one, and guessed poorly.