Google AdsModule 2: Build a Search campaignLesson 4 of 11
Course progress27%
18 min lesson · Updated August 2026
What are keywords, search terms and negative keywords?
A keyword is an advertiser’s targeting instruction, a search term is what the person actually searched, and a negative keyword helps prevent unwanted matches.
What you will learn
By the end, you will understand:
Distinguish keywords from search terms
Use match types as controls rather than promises
Build negative keywords without blocking useful intent
Visual explainer
See the idea clearly.
service near me
AD
✓
Real customer searches pass through keyword matching and eligibility; relevant searches continue to an ad while clearly irrelevant searches are stopped by negative keywords.
The customer writes the search term
The search term, or search query, is the actual wording a person enters. A keyword is the wording and match control an advertiser adds to a Search campaign. They are related but not identical.
Google’s matching systems consider meaning and intent, so a keyword can match searches that are not textually identical. Review the search terms report to learn what actually triggered activity where reporting is available.
Keyword
Advertiser input: emergency plumber, with a chosen match type.
Search term
Customer input: 24 hour pipe leak repair near me.
Match types control how broadly meaning can be interpreted
Type
Form
Idea
Broad match
emergency plumber
May match related searches based on meaning and other signals; offers widest interpretation.
Phrase match
“emergency plumber”
Search should include the meaning of the keyword; can include additional context.
Exact match
[emergency plumber]
Search should have the same meaning or intent; it does not mean character-for-character only.
Match types do not replace review
Even exact match can include close variants and same-intent searches. Broad match can find valuable demand that was not predicted, especially when paired with conversion-focused Smart Bidding, but it can also expose weak measurement and irrelevant intent.
Choose breadth according to data quality, budget, query complexity and the team’s ability to review results. Do not treat a platform recommendation as a command detached from business context.
Negative keywords remove known unwanted meaning
Negative keywords can stop ads from showing for searches containing unwanted terms according to the chosen negative match type. A premium repair company might exclude “free course” or “jobs” if those searches cannot become customers.
Negatives behave differently from positive keywords and do not match every close variation automatically. Add spelling/plural variants where evidence requires them, and check that a shared negative list does not block another campaign’s valid demand.
Search intent matters more than isolated words
The same word can signal research, employment, support or purchase depending on context. “CRM training” and “CRM implementation company” both mention CRM but represent different needs.
Classify terms by whether the business can serve the need now. Then align ad, page and bid strategy. Do not exclude early research automatically if it is part of a valuable journey, but do not pay for it blindly either.
Build from evidence
01
List the services and exclusions
02
Research real customer language
03
Create coherent keyword themes
04
Launch with tested measurement
05
Review search terms and quality
06
Add negatives or new themes
07
Judge downstream lead or order value
Search-term review questions
What did the person appear to want?
Can the business genuinely serve that need?
Did the ad set an accurate expectation?
Did the landing page answer it?
Was the term converted—and was that conversion valuable?
Should it become a negative, a new keyword theme or a content insight?
Is the conclusion based on enough evidence rather than one click?
Real-world example
Example: accounting software
Example
The keyword “accounting software” receives searches for free templates, student courses, jobs and cloud tools. The advertiser serves paid cloud software for retailers. Search-term review can add evidence-based negatives for jobs and courses, while creating a dedicated retail theme and page for valuable product intent.
Try this
Classify ten real searches
Export ten recent search terms. Mark each as relevant now, possibly relevant, irrelevant or unclear. Write the evidence and the action: keep, add a negative, create a new theme, improve the page or wait for more data.
Common questions
Questions beginners ask.
Are keywords the words customers type?
Not exactly. The customer types a search term; the advertiser’s keyword helps determine eligible matching.
Does exact match mean exact spelling only?
No. Exact match can cover searches with the same meaning or intent and close variants.
Is broad match always wasteful?
No. It can discover useful demand, but it depends heavily on goals, bidding, data quality, budget and active review.
Do negative keywords include all synonyms?
No. Negative matching is more literal than positive matching; review variants that genuinely need excluding.
How often should search terms be reviewed?
Review more frequently during launch or major changes, then on a schedule appropriate to spend, volume and risk.
Should every non-converting term become negative?
No. One term may have too little data or support an earlier journey. Judge relevance, cost and downstream evidence.
Why can some search terms be missing?
Google limits reporting for privacy and other thresholds, so reports may not show every individual query.
