Search Query Report Confusion

Search Query Report And Keyword Matching Confusion

[ranadeep]

I'm a newbie to Adwords and I'm confused about Search Query Report. I have set two keywords, say [3D Designs], exact match and good 3D designs as broad match. Now when I see the Search Query Report after a week I see a lot of impressions from the Search Query 3D as broad match. How come only 3D is showing my ads when I have not used it anywhere. About broad match isn't it that all the words in the keyphrase should be present in any order? Or is it that any of the words in keyphrase would display my ads?

A little help please.

[JamieBrown]

Broad match keywords are subject to what has been named by the industry as "extended broad match". This essentially means that Google makes assumptions about your broad match keywords and shows them for terms that it feels is relevant.

Google claims this helps advertisers cover their whole universe of terms more easily. Obviously not everyone agrees.

If you are a big user of broad match then its important to look at the Search Query Report regularly and find appropriate negatives.

[edited by: JamieBrown at 8:37 am (utc) on July 29, 2008]

[SanDiego Art]

if you want terms that contain 3D designs, you should use PHRASE match "3D designs" - otherwise you're leaving it too open for Google's interpretation. BROAD match as you have it right now will serve things like "3d vision", "3d goggles", etc. I only use broad match to find new terms and negatives. Like the previous post mentioned, pay close attention to the Search Query report and use that to filter out unwanted terms.

[ranadeep]

Thanks JamieBrown & SanDiego Art. But say I use the phrase 3D widget designs. If I use a broad match, since widget is a highly searched term, my ads would definitely show up for only widgets too. And in this case it is not a negative keyword too. But queries having only widgets is not targeted for me. So can I use a negative keyword defining an exact match? E.g. the keyphrase would still be 3D widget designs, but with a negative keyword -[widget]. Can that stop my ads from showing up when only widget is searched. If I use -widget instead, it would never show up for any phrases or broads that contain the term, right?

[JamieBrown]

Yes - that's correct. If you want to broad match on 3d widget designs, but definitely not show on pure widget searches, put the exact match negative -[widget]. Also be careful of other widget terms - "buy widget", "cheap widget", "2d widgets" - and completely unrelated terms that Google may associate with 3d widget designs.

Like SanDiego Art I use broad match very cautiously with lower bids, and try to put the most effort into many variations of exact and phrase match terms. For this you can use the Search Query Report the other way round, and use it to find terms that people are using to click on your broad match phrases and then add them as exact or phrase match.

Often even phrase match on single terms like "widget" is better than broad match, because its not subject to "extended broad match".

[ranadeep]

Thanks a ton JamieBrown...that was of great help.