Most advertisers focus on targeting the right keywords when running Google Ads campaigns. But what’s equally important—and often overlooked—is telling Google what not to target.
This is where negative keywords come in.
Ignoring negative keywords or neglecting to use them appropriately greatly hinders enhancing relevance or reducing wasted spend. This tactic can either save or cost your campaign a lot of money.
In this vast ocean of information, we will define negative keywords, understand their relevance, and how a Google Ads agency or any other advertising agency employs them to meet organizational goals.
What Are Negative Keywords?
Negative keywords are the keywords you opt for Google not to use when advertising your products. If a person searches for something that contains a negative keyword set up by the user, the advertisement will not display.
Example:
If you’re selling luxury watches and add “cheap” as a negative keyword, your ads won’t appear for searches like “cheap watches” or “cheap Rolex alternatives.”
This approach will help you get the users with the required buying power & intention to pay for your watches.
Why Negative Keywords Are Crucial
Let’s explore why every smart Google Ads expert relies heavily on negative keywords.
1. They Reduce Wasted Ad Spend
Irrelevant clicks = wasted budget.
Without negative keywords, your ads might show up for broad or unrelated searches. For example, if you’re a wedding photographer, you don’t want clicks from someone searching for “free stock wedding photos.”
By filtering out unqualified traffic, negative keywords help you spend less and get more from every dollar.
2. They Improve Click-Through Rate (CTR)
When your ads are shown only to relevant users, your CTR increases. A higher CTR tells Google your ads are relevant, which can lead to:
- Lower cost per click (CPC)
- Better ad rankings
- Improved Quality Score
Any Google Ads agency aiming for high performance uses negative keywords to boost CTR and reduce cost.
3. They Boost Conversion Rates
When you eliminate unqualified clicks, you’re left with higher-intent traffic. These are people more likely to:
- Fill out a lead form
- Make a purchase
- Call your business
- Take any other desired action
By strategically using negative keywords, a Google Ads consultant can drive more leads or sales without increasing your budget.
4. They Enhance Campaign Relevance
Relevance is everything in Google Ads. Google rewards advertisers who deliver relevant experiences to users. Using negative keywords helps your ads align with user intent, making your campaigns more precise and effective.
The more relevant your campaigns are, the better your performance, and the more you’ll save over time.
How can you identify negative keywords?
Not sure what terms to exclude? Between industry analysis, previous accounts, and competitor research, a Google Ads professional is able to find all pertinent terms and easily exclude any suggestive or unrelated negative keywords.
#1 Search Terms Report (Works Best)
In Google Ads, the search terms report provides a list of actual queries that triggered your ads to show. With the right tools or even manually, you can scan through the relevant ones and eliminate the negatives.
#2 Keyword Research Tools
With services such as the Google Keyword Planner, SEMrush, and Ahrefs, suggestive positive keywords can be easily captured.
#2 Customer Intent Analysis
A skilled advertising agency should spend ample time analyzing your buyer personas and figuring out the direct gaps between the brand’s product catalog, pricing, and market.
#4 Competitor Insights
Observing what your rivals are doing is a strategy that is both good and helpful. If your competitors are targeting awfully broad terms, go ahead and proactively add those as negatives to avoid unnecessary competition.
Common Negative Keywords Examples
Here are some examples of keywords businesses often exclude:
E-commerce
- free
- wholesale
- DIY
- used
Service Businesses
- jobs
- careers
- how to
- reviews
Luxury Products
- cheap
- budget
- discount
- low cost
B2B Services
- resume
- internship
- entry level
- course
When to Hire a Google Ads Consultant or an Agency
You might want to hire a consultant or advertising agency if you notice the following while managing Google Ads in-house:
- Elevated costs per click with minimal conversions
- Non-target leads or inquiries.
- Subpar click-through rates
- Fast depletion of the budget
A consultant or ad agency will fix your keyword targeting and optimize everything related to your account—copy, bidding strategy, and conversion tracking.
Ad consultants do not run ads for the sake of it; they build cost-efficient, high-performing campaigns.
Final Thoughts: Stop Propagating Loss. Implement the Use of Negative Keywords
Negative keywords are one of the most straightforward yet powerful tools in accounts controlled by Google Ads. They grant you greater control, budget savings, and sharpen your targeting, helping you achieve better results with minimal resources.
If you’ve been running ads and don’t have a negative keyword strategy, stop; chances are you’re spending way more than needed and delivering far less value.