A Complete Guide to Keyword Match Types in Google Ads

Keyword Match Types in Google Ads help control which Google searches may trigger your ad. So, you can use a broad match to show your ad to a wide audience, or you can use an exact match to show to specific groups of patients.

Consider starting with a loose fit. You can then add negative match keywords to exclude Google searches unrelated to your clinic (optional).

Understanding keyword match types is critical to a successful AdWords campaign. Match types give dental clinic owners the ability to control how relevant a search term needs to be to match their keyword and activate their ad.

There are three different Keyword Match Types in Google Ads:

1. Broad Match

2. Exact Match

3. Phrase Match

Each type has its own advantages and disadvantages, and it is essential to understand the difference between them and when you should use a particular type.

To create specific match types, use different symbols (for example, the “keyword” sign for Phrase Match Type). Using these symbols tells AdWords what match type you’re using and how it should relate to searches.

Let’s begin:

3 Keyword Match Types in Google Ads

There are three types of match types: [exact match], “phrase match”, and broad match.

[Exact match] is the most limited opportunity for ads to be displayed, and Broad Match is the most likely to be displayed.

This chapter provides specific examples, advantages, and disadvantages for each of the three match types. It’s the basic idea of listing ads, so let’s understand it.

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1. Exact Match

The Exact Match is a setting in which an ad is displayed when the set keyword and search keyword exactly match or match a similar pattern.

For example, if the setting keyword is [men’s underwear], ads will be displayed when the following keywords are used.

• underwear for men
• male underwear
• men underwear

On the other hand, ads will not be displayed if different words or phrases are included or words with different meanings are searched as shown below.

• shorts for men
• underwear for women

Merit

The advantage of the Exact Match is that your ads can only be shown to users who search for the keywords you set.

Users searching for that information themselves are more likely to click on your ad or convert. Exact match is a setting that allows you to pinpoint and appeal to users who searched for the intended keyword.

Since the opportunity to display advertisements is also limited, it is possible to prevent wasteful spending.

For example, if you set the keyword [men’s underwear] as an exact match, your ad will show people looking for men’s underwear, but people looking for women’s underwear or men’s outerwear, does not show ads.
Only people searching for ‘men’s underwear’ will see and click on your ad.

Demerit

On the other hand, it is also a disadvantage that it limits the opportunity to display advertisements. This is because you will miss users searching for keywords that advertisers do not expect.

People who search for [men’s underwear] may also search for ‘boxer shorts.’ However, if you set [men’s underwear] as an exact match, your ads won’t show when you search for ‘boxer shorts’.

There are a wide variety of search keywords used by users, and there are many cases where users search with unexpected keywords. If you set keywords with only exact matches, you may get fewer prospective customers or it may be difficult to acquire targets, so use them with caution.

2. Phrase Match

Phrase match is a setting in which an ad is displayed when a user searches for a keyword that includes the set keyword.

If the set keyword is included in the search keywords and the search intent is similar to the same keyword, the ad will be displayed.

If “men’s underwear” is set as a keyword, ads will be displayed for the following keywords.

• Recommended underwear for men
• underwear for men to buy
• underwear for men
• underwear for men
• Men’s underwear

On the other hand, ads will not be displayed if the search intent is different, as shown below.

• outerwear for men
• buy women’s underwear
• underwear thief male

Merit

Phrase match has the advantage of being able to display advertisements to search users while narrowing down the search range to some extent. Even if the word order is different or the search keyword contains different keywords, the ad will be displayed if the search intent is the same.

If you can reach a larger number of searchers than an exact match by giving your ads some exposure, you may end up winning more users.

Demerit

On the other hand, Phrase Match also has the condition of “keywords containing the same phrase”, so the disadvantage is that the chances of displaying ads will decrease. Although there are more search users who can display ads than exact matches, basically ads can only be displayed to users who search for set keywords.

Acquisition of potential users who search for keywords other than the set keyword is difficult even with phrase matching.

3. Broad Match

Broad match is a setting that displays ads not only for the set keyword but also for related keywords. It does not consider the order of keywords or words between keywords.

For example, in the case of ‘men’s underwear’, ads will be displayed even if the following keywords are searched.

• underwear for men
• trunks men
• boys’ pants
• Gunze buy boxer shorts

On the other hand, ads will not be displayed for the following keywords.

• women panties
• male outerwear
• men’s jacket

In the case of Google Ads, Broad Match also considers the searcher’s recent searches in order to display ads that are highly relevant to the searcher.

It also considers the content of your landing page and other keywords in your ad group to determine which searchers see your ad.

Merit

The advantage of a broad match is that it expands the range of search users who can see your ad. Ads will be displayed not only for the word order difference of the set keyword but also for similar keywords, so you can approach prospective customers who cannot be caught by exact match or phrase match.

Also, if you look at the actual search terms, you may find that search terms that were not originally expected are also converting. The ability to make such unexpected discoveries is also a great advantage of partial matching.

Demerit

Broad match, on the other hand, is too broad and can result in your ad appearing to unrelated users. The disadvantage is that if the ad is displayed and clicked by an unrelated user, wasteful spending will occur.

For example, if you set it to ‘men’s underwear’, your ad will also show to users who search for ‘men’s inner shirts’. But if the actual product you want to sell is men’s pants, clicking the ad is useless.

If a keyword outside of your target is being clicked on, you will need to exclude that keyword. Exclusion settings are settings that do not display ads for searches that include the relevant keyword.

However, the disadvantage of partial match is that you have to set the exclusion settings one by one.

Broad match is the least restrictive setting for ad display. Although there are merits, if you neglect the exclusion settings, etc., the cost will be consumed by useless clicks, so you need to be careful.

How to choose the right Keyword Match Type in Google Ads Campaign

By using the 3 types of match types wisely, it is possible to operate listing ads efficiently.

For keywords that can get conversions, exact match eliminates wasted clicks and as a result, you can get more at a lower cost.

If you don’t want to narrow the display range as much as an exact match, but you want to minimize unnecessary clicks, phrase match is a good setting. In addition, if you want to display your ad widely not only for the set keyword but also for similar keywords, we recommend partial match.

1. Exact Match for keywords that lead to Conversions

We recommend using exact matches for keywords that are likely to get conversions.

Exact match ensures that your ads won’t show or be clicked on anything other than the keywords you set, so you can spend all your ad dollars on the keywords that are most likely to convert. As a result, there are no wasted clicks, so the acquisition cost is often low.

“Keywords that are likely to get conversions” refer to keywords for which there is a clear need for appealing products, such as nomination searches for products and services and searches for brand names. If you are often searched by the name of a product or brand, if you publish the exact name of the product or brand, you will be able to attract more potential customers to the site by displaying it at the top of the search results.

2. Phrase Match if the Broad Match is too broad and the Exact Match is too narrow

Phrase match is a great setting if you want your ads to appear less narrowly than exact match, but not as broad as broad match.

It is a match type that is easy for advertisers to use because it is a method that allows you to obtain ad display opportunities with various search keywords while narrowing down the target.

Previously, when the same word order was considered a phrase match, if “men’s underwear” was set, “underwear men sale” could not show ads. Currently, even if the word order is reversed, if the search intent is the same, it will be displayed, so the advertisement will be displayed even in “underwear for men sale”.

3. Broad Match when you want to pick up needs other than what you expect

With partial match, ads are displayed even for related keywords, so you can pick up keywords other than what you expect with search terms. In many cases, the set keywords can only catch part of the search needs, and when looking at the search terms, there are many cases where conversions are made with unexpected keywords.

Of course, there are many search keywords that are clearly irrelevant, so it is necessary to set exclusions as appropriate.

However, setting unset keywords that lead to conversions as exact match or phrase match, and broadening the range of set keywords is also a key to skillful use of broad match.

Match Type change

Listing advertising is a fairly old method in Internet advertising, but it is still evolving day by day. Regarding match types, recently, the broad match refinement has been abolished and the accuracy of the broad match in Google Ads has been improved.

Many operators used partial match refinement because it was easy to use, but it was abolished when the function became able to handle phrase matching. The improvement of partial match accuracy is also for responding to increasingly diverse search terms.

Latest trends in Keyword Match Types

Here, we report on the latest trends in match types for listing ads.

1. Abolition of broad match modifier

Google Ads and Yahoo! Ads used to have a match type called broad match refinement, but it was abolished in July 2021. Keywords that were previously trafficked with Broad Match Modification have been replaced with Phrase Match, and new submissions are no longer possible.

Modified broad match works as exact match for keywords with “+”. Previously, Phrase Match was only able to show ads if two or more words didn’t match word order. On the other hand, if it was a narrowed partial match, the ad was displayed even if the word order of the keyword with “+” was changed.

For this reason, it was often used when you wanted to display ads wider than exact match and narrower than broad match.

However, after that, Phrase Match became easier to use because it became possible to display ads even if the word order was reversed, and the Broad Match Modifier that the feature suffers from was abolished.

2. Google Ads Improve Broad Match Accuracy

Google Ads has been improving the accuracy of partial matching since around September 2021, and we recommend that you actively use partial matching. The reason why we are strengthening broad match is to respond to the search terms that appear every day and to increase the chances of displaying advertisements.

On Google, there are billions of searches every day, and 15% of them are searched for terms that have never been seen before. To address this, we are trying to further improve the prediction accuracy of partial matches.

Now, the meaning of search terms, the meaning of keywords, and the relevance of landing pages are also taken into consideration. On the other hand, we are still halfway through improving the precision of partial matching, and even search keywords that are unrelated to the product or service you want to appeal to will be displayed, so settings such as exclusion keywords are essential.

Points for using Keyword Match Pypes

Finally, I will tell you the points to make good use of the match type.

To take advantage of match types, it is important to check the search term report (search query report for Yahoo! Ads). Especially if you use phrase match or broad match, you may discover keywords that lead to new conversions, or waste clicks from untargeted users.

Regularly checking the search terms report will give you hints about adding or excluding set keywords, so it is an essential item for utilizing match types.

In addition, Google Ads recommends Smart Bidding, which recommends partial match submissions, which can be used effectively to obtain conversions. Here, I will explain three points about how to use match types.

1. Leverage the search terms report to check for correct match types

One thing to check when using match types successfully is the search terms report. Match types are for showing ads to the intended target of the advertiser. It is important to check with the search term report whether the target is actually flowing properly.

In addition, in the case of partial matches, unexpected keywords may be used to inflow and convert, and new keywords may be discovered in the search term report. Regularly check the search term report to broaden the range of set keywords.

2. Increase the match rate by setting negative keywords

Negative keywords are an integral part of using match types. Use the search terms report to see what keywords are actually being searched for, and filter out irrelevant keywords.

In the case of broad match and phrase match, traffic with unrelated keywords will inevitably occur. Clicks on such keywords are wasted and should be avoided as much as possible. You should also exclude keywords that are clickable but are slow to convert.

This kind of keyword maintenance is an important task for displaying ads to the target, so be sure to do it regularly.

3. Implement Google Ads Smart Bidding with partial match

Smart Bidding is a feature available in Google Ads that helps you maximize conversions while keeping costs down.

Advertisers are using it now because Google automatically throttles non-converting clicks and tries to get as many conversions as possible.

In order to make the most of this smart bidding, it is recommended to use broad match as the match type. Google finds signals that lead to conversions among search terms that are caught by partial matches. Google recommends using Broad Match together to enhance the effectiveness of Smart Bidding.

On the other hand, setting with partial match also causes inflow with extra search keywords. You have to operate while preventing unnecessary clicks with exclusion settings.

Smart automatic bidding is a function that Google, which collects and analyzes search terms from all over the world on a daily basis, automatically selects users who are suitable for your company and distributes advertisements. Please make good use of it.

Wrap!!!

Effectively use match types to achieve results without waste

In this article, I explained Google Ads keyword match types 2022, the basics and the latest trends, and the points to use well.

Keyword Match Type in Google Ads is an important setting that affects the targeting of listing ads. In order to use it well, it is essential to maintain it while looking at the search term report.

On the other hand, the trend is changing day by day, such as the abolishment of narrowing partial match and the recommendation of partial match. Match types are evolving and are expected to move in the direction of simpler operations.

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