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GOOGLE ADWORDS TIP #6
Google AdWords Marketing: Exact Match Bidding
Include both broad and exact matches for a primary keyword phrase in your ad group.
A primary keyword phrase is a short (usually 1 or 2 keywords) phrase that
has a high search volume.
Consider this example of the top 10 keyword search counts
(data from inventory.overture.com)
for the "womens clothing" phrase:
411711 womens clothing
109985 womens clothing shop
17566 plus size womens clothing
12572 womens sports clothing
9042 womens clothing catalog
5992 womens clothing store
5908 tall womens clothing
3906 sexy womens clothing
2945 wholesale womens clothing
2385 womens petite clothing
The keyword phrase "womens clothing" is the primary phrase.
Note that if you add up the searches performed for secondary phrases 2-10,
combined they don't even equal half the search volume of the primary phrase.
Set a higher bid for the exact match on the primary keyword phrase.
The exact match gives you greater control over the primary keyword phrase
while the broad match draws additional traffic from secondary keyword phrases.
Why is this important?
- The exact phrase is often more valuable than broader phrases.
- The exact phrase is often more expensive than broader phrases.
- You can control the position of the ad for the exact search.
Let's look at an example to address these points in detail.
We'll use a fictitious ad group with a default bid of 10 cents,
populated with these keywords for a company selling clothing for women:
womens clothing
womens clothing shop
womens clothing store
womens clothing catalog
Bidding on the broad phrase "womens clothing" will cause the ad
to be seen for broad phrases such as:
wholesale womens clothing
discount womens clothing
tall womens clothing
womens clothing online
If the store has a limited selection of "tall womens clothing" then
that phrase is less valuable than the "womens clothing" exact phrase.
It would be desirable to pay less for the broader phrases.
Note that there will likely be some broader phrases that could
be more valuable than the high volume primary phrase, particularly
for niche retailers. Those keyword phrases should also be
included as both exact and broad matches in the ad group.
Since there are hundreds of broad phrases that could trigger this ad,
an ideal way to separate the bids is to bid higher for the exact phrase.
The ad group could be updated to include this set of keywords:
womens clothing
[womens clothing] ** 0.50
womens clothing shop
womens clothing store
womens clothing catalog
Now, the company's ad will show for both a "tall womens clothing"
and a "womens clothing" search, but the company will only pay up to 10 cents
for a click on the former and up to 50 cents for a click on the latter.
If the company doesn't sell "wholesale womens clothing" then "-wholesale"
should be added as a negative keyword.
Other companies will also have figured out that the exact phrase "womens clothing"
is more valuable than many of the longer, broader phrases.
As evidenced by the high search volume on the "womens clothing" keyword phrase,
many shoppers will start their searching with that particular phrase.
The company selling womens clothing will want to be visible in those search results.
A higher bid will be necessary to maintain the ad's position for this keyword phrase.
That's another reason to bid separately on important exact phrases.
The person managing the Google advertising account will see this sort of information
(this is a fictional example)
when logging in to the Google AdWords system and viewing the ad group:
Keyword |
Status |
Current Bid |
Clicks |
Impr. |
CTR |
Avg. CPC |
Cost |
Avg. Pos |
womens clothing |
Active |
$0.10 |
123 |
4,321 |
2.8% |
$0.08 |
$9.84 |
10.2 |
[womens clothing] |
Active |
$0.50 |
42 |
1,234 |
3.4% |
$0.47 |
$19.74 |
3.4 |
womens clothing shop |
Active |
$0.10 |
11 |
280 |
3.9% |
$0.10 |
$1.10 |
8.7 |
womens clothing store |
Active |
$0.10 |
7 |
111 |
6.3% |
$0.07 |
$0.49 |
6.8 |
womens clothing catalog |
Active |
$0.10 |
3 |
98 |
3.1% |
$0.05 |
$0.15 |
4.0 |
A quick glance at the screen shows them that the ad has an average position
of 3.4 for the "womens clothing" exact phrase. If they're not happy with
the position, they can increase the bid.
For phrases like "womens clothing store" they would have to perform a
search on Google to see where the ad stands since that keyword phrase
isn't isolated via an exact match.
If they changed the bid on the broad match, they'd be changing the ad's
position for "chicos womens clothing store" and "womens clothing store in canada"
and a huge range of possible broad searches which might not be advantageous.
A more realistic ad group keyword list would look something like this:
womens clothing
[womens clothing] ** 0.50
womens clothing shop
[womens clothing shop] ** 0.30
womens clothing store
[womens clothing store] ** 0.30
womens clothing catalog
[womens clothing catalog] ** 0.40
-wholesale
If the impressions are much higher for broad match versus exact match
for a particular keyword phrase,
use web analytics
to see which actual search phrases are being clicked.
Then, analyze those keyword phrases to see which phrases are valuable
either by tracking the conversions or by guessing what might convert well.
The same tactic can be used for keyword phrases deemed less valuable.
Set a lower bid for these as exact match.
Over time, your ad group's keyword list will grow longer
as you separate bids for exact and broad match.
Your ad group will become more effective and more profitable.
Plus, you'll be able to see at a glance how your important keywords are performing.
If you found this tip useful,
read more Google AdWords tips.
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