What is a negative keyword?
A regular keyword says which searches you want to show up for. A negative keyword says the opposite: if the search contains this word, the ad is not shown. If you add "jobs" as a negative keyword, for example, your ad won't show for searches like "plumber jobs austin".
How do I find my own negative keywords?
The best source is the search terms report in your Google Ads account. It shows what people actually typed before they clicked your ad. Go through the list and mark the searches you could never get a customer from.
The same groups repeat in almost every industry:
- Job searches: jobs, hiring, salary, internship, apprenticeship
- Do it yourself: diy, how to, tutorial, video, youtube
- Free and cheap: free, used, craigslist, cheap (with care, someone looking for cheap is sometimes a good customer)
- Competitor names: competitor searches are often expensive and convert poorly
- Services you don't offer: for example a plumber who doesn't do commercial work blocks the words commercial and industrial
- Areas you don't serve: other city names, if the ad would otherwise show there
Try it: select the searches you would add as negative keywords, then press Check.
Match types for negative keywords
| Type | Notation | Blocks |
|---|---|---|
| Broad | jobs | Searches where the word appears anywhere |
| Phrase | "faucet repair diy" | Searches where the words are in exactly this order |
| Exact | [plumber] | Only exactly this search |
Unlike regular keywords, negative keywords don't expand to synonyms or plurals. Blocking "job" does not block "jobs", so add the main variants separately.
Use lists, not single words
In Google Ads you can create shared negative keyword lists and attach the same list to all campaigns. Lists such as "Competitors", "Jobs", "Services we don't offer" and "Other cities" keep the account tidy, and a new campaign gets all the protections at once.
Be careful not to block good searches
An over-eager negative list can also block valuable searches. For example "cheap" can exclude customers who end up buying. That is why negatives should be based on real data from the search terms report, not guesses, and the lists reviewed regularly.
How often should negatives be updated?
With a new campaign, check search terms weekly for the first month. After that, every two weeks or monthly is enough for most businesses.