How to Generate Negative Keywords with Google Keyword Planner

Negative keywords may sound like something you'd want to avoid as a business owner, but they can help direct the right customers to your website by keeping the wrong customers from finding you. Basically, they keep your ads from showing up when people look for businesses and websites that are not at all related to yours. Doing so can help maximize your click-through and conversion rates. Negative keywords can also help you prevent unnecessary spending by ensuring your ads only target your desired customers.

How to generate negative keywords with Google Keyword Planner 

Here's a quick summary of the steps you'll take to generate negative keywords with Google Keyword Planner: 

1. Go to Google Ads and click Campaigns.

2. Choose Insights and reports > Search terms. 

3. Choose the keywords for which you want to see search terms. 

4. Choose your negative keywords and click Add as negative keyword.

5. Add your negative keywords to an ad group or campaign, an existing keyword list, or a new list.

To help you understand the process, let’s review each step a little closer: 

1. Go to Google Ads and click ‘Campaigns.’

Open your Google Ads account page. Begin the process by clicking the Campaigns icon.

2. Choose ‘Insights and reports > Search Terms.’

Once you see the drop-down menu, click on Insights and reports and then click on Search terms. 

3. Choose the keywords you want to see search terms for. 

If you want to see search terms for all keywords, click the Search terms option at the top of the page. If you only want to see search terms for specific keywords, click the boxes next to those keywords. Then, you can click the Search terms option at the top of the page.

4. Choose your negative keywords and click ‘Add as negative keyword.’

Next, select the search terms you want to use by clicking the boxes next to them. Click Add as negative keyword. 

5. Add your negative keywords to an ad group or campaign, to an existing keyword list, or to a new keyword list. 

Once you have your negative keywords, you can add them to an ad group or campaign or a new or existing keyword list. To add them to an ad group or campaign, click Ad group or Campaign and click Save.

To add them to an existing keyword list, click on Negative keyword list, choose the list from the menu, and click Save. You can also click on Add to campaigns to add your negative keywords to all campaigns associated with the search terms you chose if you want.

To add them to a new keyword list, click on Negative keyword list, then click on Save as new list and apply negative keywords, and click on Save.

Troubleshoot negative keywords: Using the right match

When retrieving negative keywords with Google Keyword Planner, ensure you use the correct match type. You can choose from exact, phrase, or broad match. Using the wrong match type can prevent the users you want to reach from seeing your ads.

Exact match is the least restrictive option, and it only prevents you from showing up in search results if someone types in that precise phrase without additional words. Broad match is very restrictive, preventing you from appearing in a search result if someone types your negative keywords in any order. Phrase match falls somewhere in the middle.

As for its restrictiveness, you can choose negative keyword phrases to exclude, but you can add additional words. The user must type them for your results to show up.

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