Keywords decide which searches can trigger your ads. Choose them well and your budget reaches people ready to buy. Choose badly and you pay for clicks from people who will never become customers. This is the first half of week 8, campaign setup with keywords and ad copy.
Choosing keywords with buying intent
For search ads, focus on phrases that show someone is ready to act:
- Service plus place: "plumber in Tamale", "car hire Wa".
- Action words: buy, order, book, hire, repair, delivery, price.
- Specific products: "solar fridge for shop", "Samsung screen replacement".
Learning phrases, such as "how does a solar panel work", are better served by SEO content than paid clicks. You can find ideas the same way as in SEO: search suggestions, related searches, and customers' own words. Keyword Planner inside Google Ads adds estimates once the account setup, including billing details, is complete.
Match types
Each keyword has a match type that controls how closely a search must match it. Google Ads Help describes three.
- Broad match: the default, written with no symbols, such as car hire Tamale. Ads can show on searches related to the keyword, even ones that do not contain its words. It reaches the most searches. Google recommends using it with Smart Bidding, which uses conversion data to set bids.
- Phrase match: written in quotation marks, such as "car hire Tamale". Ads can show on searches that include the meaning of the keyword. It reaches fewer searches than broad and more than exact.