Broad Match Keywords in Google Ads: How to Test and Optimize for Better Results, by Hamid Pasha

If you're an advertiser using Google Ads, you may have noticed that Google is pushing for the use of broad match keywords in campaigns. While many advertisers may be hesitant to use this match type, there are strategies for incorporating broad keywords into your campaigns.

In this video, I'll discuss the best practices for testing broad keywords against exact and phrase keywords. According to Google, broad keywords use all available signals, both action time and query level matching, as well as a combination of signals to ensure keyword relevancy to a query with smart bidding.

On the other hand, exact and phrase match keywords only consider some signals because they adhere to semantic product definitions.

If you're interested in testing the performance of broad keywords against phrase and exact keywords, an A/B test can help you compare their performance in a fair way. Here are the steps to create an A/B test:

1. Go to the Experiment section of your Google Ads account.

2. Create a new experiment and select Custom Experiment.

3. Choose your existing exact and phrase campaign as the base campaign.

4. Change the match type of all phrase and exact keywords to broad in the trial campaign.

5. Select two metrics as conversions and cost per conversion for the experiment goal.

6. Select increase for conversions and decrease for cost per conversion.

7. Split the traffic 50/50 between the trial campaign and the base campaign.

8. Keep the experimental split option as default cookie-based.

9. Set the duration of the campaign for six weeks.

10. Keep the experiment sync option on.

11. After the first two weeks, let the experiment run for at least four weeks or until it has reached statistical significance.

12. Analyze the results, excluding the first two weeks, and consider conversion delays for result evaluations.

It's important to note that because broad match types capture more search terms, many of which may be less related or unrelated to your campaigns, you should constantly check search terms and add any unrelated search query as negative keywords. Here are four tips for using negative keywords:

1. Choose your negative keywords carefully for queries that you don't want to match to.

2. Ensure you don't use too many negative keywords as your ads might reach fewer customers.

3. Regularly check your negative keyword targeting to avoid restricting performance.

4. Remember that negative keyword targeting works differently, so ensure you pick suitable match types for your keywords.

Have you had success using broad match keywords in your campaigns? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments section below.