Using Keyword Matching Options

An important component of keyword generation on Google AdWords is selecting the correct matching option for each keyword. You can use keyword matching options to improve your PPC efforts by making sure that your text ads show when you want them to show based on various keyword matching options.

There are three main options: broad, phrase, and exact match. Each matching type limits or increases the likelihood that your ad is triggered for a given keyword. Broad match is the default setting for every keyword. All your keywords will display on broad match unless you specify otherwise by adding “quotes” around the keyword for phrase match or [brackets] around the keyword for exact match.

The syntax for phrase match is “example” and the syntax for exact match is [example]. Broad match keywords trigger your ad when an exact keyword or a similar one is typed into a search engine. Broad match displays ads for keyword misspellings, plurals, and common synonyms. Broad match also triggers your ad no matter the order in which multiple keywords are entered into the search engine.

The broad keyword “buy books online” triggers an ad even when “buy online books” is searched. Phrase match keywords trigger your ad when a keyword phrase is entered into a search engine in the same exact sequence. However, a user entering additional words before or after the query will not prevent the ad from triggering. The keyword phrase “books online” triggers an ad if the user searches for “buy books online” but not if the user searches for “buy online books.”

The third and most precise match type is called exact match. Exact match keywords trigger ads only when the search-engine user’s query exactly matches the keyword you have chosen. Unlike the phrase match, if a user enters anything before or after the chosen keyword, your ad is not triggered. The exact keyword “books online” shows only when users enter “books online” exactly as their search query. If a user searches for “buy books online,” the ad is not shown.

You should test which match types work best with each specific keyword. Some keywords perform better using broad match keyword, and some perform better as an exact match keyword. Do not be afraid to create a keyword with all three match types: After a week or two, delete the two that do not perform as well as the third.

There is a fourth type of keyword that you can add to your account that is not really a keyword at all. Negative match keywords do not trigger ads; rather, they prevent your ads from showing when a certain term is part of the search query. One of the most common negative keywords used is “free.” If you sell a product like books, you most likely do not want your ad to appear when a user searches for “free books online” or “free books.” Using the negative keyword “free” prevents your ad from showing when “free books online” or “free books” is entered into a search engine.

Negative keywords can also be used with phrase and exact type keywords to prevent ads from showing for more specific terms. Google calls this embedded match and it is a more advanced form of keyword matching. If an advertiser sells Harry Potter books but does not want to show for the term “Harry Potter,” it can be added as an embedded match. If an advertiser does this, the ads trigger for the term “Harry Potter books” but not the term “Harry Potter.”

Set Bidding Strategies

Setting bid strategies enables you to maximize your exposure on PPC search engines such as Google and Yahoo. For example, when you set a maximum bid in the AdWords platform, you are telling Google how much you are willing to pay for a click on a specific keyword.

You are not setting the amount you automatically pay for each click. Based on what other advertisers are bidding for the same keyword, you may be charged less for each click; the only guarantee is that you will never be charged more than the limit you set. Your maximum bid is the main factor in determining how high your ad will be shown in the sponsored search results. If you bid higher than other advertisers for the same term, your ad will most likely appear in the top three positions. If you bid too low, you may not even show on the first page of results, or sometimes your ad will not appear at all. If your max bid is too low for your keyword to be shown at all, the keyword is considered inactive for search.

Note that just because you are willing to pay more than other advertisers for a particular keyword does not guarantee you will rank in the top few positions for that keyword. Instead, Google takes into consideration other factors, such as the quality and relevancy of your ad text compared to the keyword, as well as the quality and relevance of your landing page. Bids are something you must monitor on a daily basis. Your competitors will try to edge your ads out of positioning on a regular basis and you need to be aware of what is happening on the results pages in order to maintain your desired position. In addition, you will want to experiment often by bidding differently based on match type, geographic location, and other factors to maximize your return-on-investment.

When determining your bidding strategy, ask yourself the following question: How much is this keyword worth to my overall campaign? If you expect a keyword to drive a lot of sales, you want that particular keyword to have a large budget and to be positioned where it will be shown to most users. A high maximum bid with a position strategy of one to three would be a good idea for such a keyword. On the other hand, if you have a keyword that you suspect may perform poorly but you still want it to appear on Google, you want to set a low max bid. This way, the ad shows lower in the results but still has a chance of being clicked. This could result in an occasional low-cost conversion that you may not have otherwise gotten if you chose not to run the keyword at all.

It takes time to figure out what works for your particular product. Do not be impatient with your bidding strategies. Once you optimize your keyword bids, your account will perform to its full potential, but you will have to actively manage the account to maintain your success.

Run PPC Reports

The Google AdWords Report Center is a powerful feature of your AdWords account that enables you to create fully customized reports. The Report Center allows you to run reports on the account, campaign, ad group, and keyword levels. Important data about the performance of your Google AdWords account is available to you through the Reporting Center. The Google AdWords Report Center allows you to pinpoint what is and is not working within your AdWords account. You can run reports on a daily basis at the keyword level to maximize your return-oninvestment at a very granular level, and also run detailed historical reports to discover what keywords have performed well in the past.

An account-level report can show you if your account is performing as well as it did last month, and is an effective way to track the progress of your online marketing efforts. In addition to detailed numeric-based reporting, the Google AdWords Report Center allows you to view graphs and charts for a visual representation of your account’s overall performance.

Google AdWords allows you to easily export a report in Microsoft Excel. You can use Google’s export function to save a copy of the report on your PC, e-mail it to a colleague, and customize the report with your logo. If you are producing a report for a client, you can export it and customize it based on your client’s unique needs. Moreover, you can have Google e-mail various reports to anyone you want at any time of the day automatically via report scheduling.

You should spend some time in the Report Center experimenting with different options and features. You may not be aware how helpful a report may be until you run it and see the data it provides.

Report scheduling is a great way to stay up-to-date with your account. The AdWords Report Center allows you to schedule automatic reports that are delivered to any e-mail addresses you designate. You can schedule these reports to run daily, every Monday, or on the first of every month. You can also set the report format of your choice. You can also have the report sent to multiple e-mail addresses.

Note that the Report Center delivers the files in a compressed, ZIP format. The report must be less than 2MB in order for the report to be sent to an e-mail address. If the file is larger than 2MB, you are notified that you must view the report through the Report Center. You always have the option to download the report directly from the Report Center to your computer if the report is too big to send via e-mail.

You can cancel an automated report any time by going into the Report Center and deleting the report. You can also make any changes to the report if you decide later to include or exclude any information.