Words or phrases you add so your ads do not show for searches that contain them. They stop spend on searches that will not lead to business.
Example
Meera sells only in her Pune store and on her own site, so she adds 'free', 'wholesale' and 'Surat' as negative keywords. Her ads stop showing to bulk buyers and people looking for free patterns.
How you'll hear it
“Half the spend went on 'wholesale' searches; add it as a negative across the account.”
Don't confuse it with
- Excluded placements: block websites or apps, not search words.
- Match types: decide where your keywords reach; negatives cut out the parts you don't want.
Related terms
Want to use this at work? AI-led PPC Excellence is aFactor's 16-week program for paid ads.
Sources
- About negative keywords, Google Ads Help
- About the search terms report, Google Ads Help