Google Ads stands out for its potential to deliver targeted campaigns that yield a high return on investment (ROI). While we know the importance of keywords for successful ad campaigns, the key to reaching this potential lies not just in the keywords you target but also in the ones you exclude.
This is where we highlight the power of negative keywords – a crucial aspect of outstanding Google Ads campaigns.
Once you understand the importance of negative keywords, dive into what negative keywords are, how to use them effectively, and why they are essential for your advertising strategy.
What Are Negative Keywords?
Negative keywords are terms that prevent your ads from appearing in search results that are not relevant to your business. Essentially, they act as a filter, ensuring that your ads only show to users who are searching for what you offer. This targeted approach helps maximize your ad spend by reducing wasted clicks and focusing on the most relevant audience.
For instance, Imagine you run a plumbing company. You wouldn’t want your ads to appear for someone searching for “roof repairs.” By adding “roof repairs” as a negative keyword, you prevent your ad from showing to these users, ensuring your budget is spent on customers who are actually interested in your expert plumbing services.
Benefits of Using Negative Keywords
Using negative keywords offers numerous benefits that can notably improve the performance of your Google Ads campaigns.
Some of the many benefits of using negative keywords are:
Improve Ad Group Relevance
Negative keywords filter out irrelevant searches and ensure that each ad group speaks directly to a specific set of keywords. This relevance increases the possibility that users who see your ad will find it appealing and click on it.
Increase Conversion Rate
When your ads appear for the right searches, the chances of those clicks converting into sales or leads go up. Negative keywords help in targeting the most relevant audience and boost your conversion rate.
Improve Click Through Rate (CTR)
A higher CTR is an assurance that your ad is relevant and engaging to the audience seeing it. Negative keywords maintain a high CTR by excluding irrelevant searches. This in turn, positively impacts your Google Ads Quality Score.
Attract Relevant Users
Negative keywords ensure that your ads are shown only to users who are more likely to be interested in your products or services. This approach helps you drive relevant and high-quality traffic to your site.
Save Money
Every click on your ad costs money. Negative keywords help reduce wasted spend by filtering out clicks from users who are not likely to convert, allowing you to allocate your budget more effectively.
Enhance ROAS (Return On Ad Spend)
Negative keywords improve your ROAS by focusing your ad spend on the most relevant searches. You can then derive more value from your advertising budget by attracting the right audience and driving more conversions.
How to Identify Negative Keywords
Identifying the right negative keywords is an important step in optimizing your Google Ads campaigns.
Here are some ways to find negative keywords:
Initial Keyword Research
You can start by conducting thorough keyword research to understand how your target audience searches for your products and services. During this process, you can identify terms that are not relevant to your business.
For instance, If you are offering “dental treatment,” you might want to exclude terms like “DIY teeth whitening kits” or “Dental Kits” from your campaigns.
Manual Searches
Perform manual Google searches for your top keywords to examine what types of results appear. If you find unrelated search results, you can add those terms to your negative keyword list.
For example, searching for an “online tutor” might show job vacancies that you don’t want. Add terms like “jobs” and “free” to your negative keywords to filter them out.
Google Ads Search Terms Report
Google Ads offers a Search Terms Report that shows you the actual search queries triggering your ads. You can review this report regularly to identify irrelevant searches and add them to your negative keyword list.
How to Add Negative Keywords
Adding negative keywords to your campaigns or ad groups can be done individually or in bulk.
To add individual negative keywords, follow these steps:
Step 1: Go to Keywords and Targeting > Keywords, Negative.
Step 2: Click Add a negative keyword.
Step 3: Select the Ad group negative keyword or Campaign negative keyword.
Step 4: Enter the negative keyword and click OK.
Step 2: Click Add a negative keyword.
Step 3: Select the Ad group negative keyword or Campaign negative keyword.
Step 4: Enter the negative keyword and click OK.
To add multiple negative keywords, follow these steps:
Step 1: Go to Keywords and Targeting > Keywords, Negative.
Step 2: Click Make multiple changes.
Step 3: Choose to add either campaign-level or ad group-level negative keywords.
Step 4: Enter your negative keywords and click process.
Step 5: Review and confirm the changes.
Step 2: Click Make multiple changes.
Step 3: Choose to add either campaign-level or ad group-level negative keywords.
Step 4: Enter your negative keywords and click process.
Step 5: Review and confirm the changes.
Understanding the use of negative keywords in Google Ads and implementing them strategically can enhance your advertising game and help your ads reach the most relevant audience while maximizing your budget.
So, by now, we know how negative keywords can improve your ad relevance, increase conversions, boost your CTR, and ultimately achieve a higher ROI. However, managing them might be a tricky territory. This is where InvisiblePPC comes in to support you.
The correct use of negative keywords will give you an edge against competitors and help you make the best of your ad campaigns. In this fantastic scenario, Invisibleppc’s extensive database of negative keywords can ease your struggle to hunt for relevant keywords and offer you a foolproof blueprint to make your way toward fruitful campaigns.
Ready to launch a successful campaign?
