As affiliates, we should all know how important keywords are. Proper research of the right keywords with the right competition, worth, and ranking and make a huge difference in your campaigns, SEO optimization, targeting, and general marketing efforts. But what if instead of trying to include things with your keywords, you try to exclude some? Well, that's what negative keywords are for!
With negative keywords, you can prevent or flag certain words or phrases from appearing in your searches, and ad campaigns, and help you focus on the keywords that matter to your audience. Some of you might be wondering why we would need negative keywords, but the reason is simple.
If you know who your ideal audience is, then you know who isn't. The point of negative keywords is to divert attention from users that we know are not interested, and target the right people only. Thus saving us money, and time, and giving us better data all in all!
What Kind Of Negative Keywords Are There?
Negative keywords can be classified into multiple groups, and understanding each of them and what the point of them is is key to understanding negative KWs and utilizing them effectively in your work.
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Broad Match
This is the default match type for negative keywords. If you add a negative broad match keyword to your campaign, your ad won’t show for searches that include all your negative keyword terms, in any order, and possibly along with other terms. However, your ad might still appear for searches that contain some of your negative keyword terms.
It's useful for broadly filtering out unrelated topics without being overly restrictive, which helps in maintaining a balance between reach and relevance.
Example
Imagine you are one of the marketing experts behind Adobe and you want to advertise a new version of the Creative Cloud. Since that software suite is catered to industry professionals and experts, it is expected that it is a paid software solution.
This means that you could add “free software” to the broad negative keyword match as you don't want your ad to show on searches for people who are looking for a free solution to their problem, rather than the best solution for their problem.
Of course, if you can, you could add a demo version or trial version of your tool, and then you could target those negative keywords as regular ones, and get both shares of the audience!
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Negative Phrase Match
When you use a negative phrase match keyword, your ad won’t show for searches that include the exact phrase of your negative keyword, in the same order, even if the search includes additional words before or after the phrase.
This match type offers more control than a negative broad match, allowing you to eliminate a series of words from triggering your ads. It's particularly useful when you want to exclude specific phrases that are known to attract irrelevant traffic.
Example
Imagine you are promoting a paid subscription to an online video game.
Using "download free games" as a negative phrase match keyword ensures that your ad won't appear for searches that contain this exact phrase in the same order, even if there are additional words before or after. For instance, your ad won't show "where to download free games" or "best sites to download free games."
However, it could still appear for searches like "free games" or "online gaming subscriptions," as these don't include the exact phrase.
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Negative Exact Match
Negative exact match keywords prevent your ad from showing only when the search query matches the exact negative keyword phrase, without any extra words.
This is the most restrictive form of negative keyword, offering pinpoint control over which searches should not trigger your ads. It's best used when you're certain that specific searches are not relevant to your offerings and won't lead to conversions.
Example
Let’s say you are advertising for a luxury travel agency that specializes in high-end vacations in expensive parts of the world.
By setting "cheap flights" as a negative exact match keyword, your ad will be excluded only from searches that match this phrase exactly, without any additional words.
This means your ad won't show for searches like "cheap flights to Europe" or "find cheap flights online," but could still appear for searches like "luxury travel packages" or "exclusive flight deals," which align more closely with the premium services you offer.
The Benefits of Using Negative Keywords
To sum things up, using negative keywords wisely can save you a lot of money and make your ads more effective. Here's how:
- Cost Efficiency
Every time someone clicks on your ad, it costs you money. If your ad shows up for unrelated searches, people might click on it by mistake, costing you money without any real benefit. Negative keywords prevent this, ensuring you only pay for clicks that have a chance to turn into sales.
- Improved Click-Through Rate (CTR)
Click-through rate is a way of measuring how often people who see your ad end up clicking on it. When your ad shows up for more relevant searches (thanks to negative keywords), more interested people click on it, improving your CTR. This not only brings more potential customers to your site but also tells ad platforms like Google that your ad is helpful, possibly leading to better ad placements.
- Enhanced Relevance and Quality Score
Ad platforms like Google Ads give every ad a Quality Score. Ads that are more relevant to what people are searching for get a higher score. High-scoring ads often cost less and get better placement. Using negative keywords to keep your ads focused on the right audience can improve your Quality Score.
Using Negative Keywords Effectively
If you decide to use negative keywords, then it's important to know exactly how to find the right ones and implement them effectively in your campaigns!
1. Analyze Search Terms Reports
- Utilize Platform Tools: Most advertising platforms, such as Google Ads, provide detailed reports on the search terms that triggered your ads. Analyze these reports regularly to identify irrelevant or low-converting search queries.
- Identify Patterns: Look for recurring themes or terms that consistently trigger your ads but don't lead to desired outcomes. These are potential candidates for negative keywords.
- Focus on Irrelevant Queries: Pay particular attention to searches that are unrelated to your offerings or attract users seeking freebies, discounts, or information rather than making a purchase.
2. Conduct Keyword Research
- Use Keyword Tools: Leverage keyword research tools like Google Keyword Planner, SEMrush, or Ahrefs to identify potential negative keywords. Look for terms with high search volume that are unrelated to your offerings.
- Competitor Analysis: Analyze your competitors' ads and websites to identify keywords they target. Exclude terms that don't align with your products/services to avoid competing in irrelevant searches.
3. Understand Audience Intent
- Put Yourself in Their Shoes: Think about the mindset of your target audience when searching online. What terms would they use to find your products or services? What terms would they use if they were looking for something else?
- Consider Buyer Journey: Understand where your audience is in their buyer journey. Exclude terms related to research or informational queries if your goal is to drive sales or conversions.
4. Use Match Types Strategically
- Broad Match: Start with broad match negative keywords to cast a wide net and identify irrelevant searches. Gradually refine your list by adding more specific match types (phrase match, exact match) as you gather data and insights.
- Phrase Match: Use phrase match negative keywords to exclude specific phrases or variations that consistently appear in irrelevant searches while allowing for some flexibility in word order.
- Exact Match: Reserve exact match negative keywords for terms that consistently trigger your ads but are completely unrelated to your offerings. This provides the highest level of precision in filtering out unwanted traffic.
5. Regularly Review and Update
- Monitor Performance: Continuously monitor the performance of your ad campaigns and adjust your negative keyword list accordingly. Regularly review search terms reports to identify new irrelevant queries.
- Stay Updated: Keep abreast of changes in your industry, audience behavior, and search trends. Update your negative keyword list to reflect evolving consumer preferences and market dynamics.
7. Test and Iterate
- A/B Testing: Conduct A/B tests to evaluate the impact of adding or removing negative keywords on your campaign performance. Compare metrics such as click-through rate, conversion rate, and return on ad spend to measure effectiveness.
- Iterative Optimization: Treat negative keyword management as an iterative process. Continuously test new negative keywords, adjust match types, and refine your strategy based on performance insights.
Conclusion
Mastering how to use negative keywords is a great way to improve the effectiveness of your ad campaigns, especially for affiliate marketing. By identifying the right negative keywords and phrases and implementing them properly you can ensure that you will have some savings in ad spend with better results and better performance overall!
It's important to regularly review your KWs and adjust them based on the feedback you get. If you get your negative keywords set up incorrectly, you might hinder your performance too much, so do regular testing to ensure you are on top of things!
Have you used negative keywords? What was your experience with them? Share it with us in the comments below!
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