Surfside PPC Podcast

Negative keywords are the best way to optimize your Google Ads campaigns. In episode 30 I cover how to find negative keyword ideas, how to add them at the account, campaign, and ad group level, and the best practices I use in every account I manage. This is how you stop paying for searches that were never going to convert.

Without negatives you pay for searches that were never going to book. Somebody searching plumber cost wants a quick answer, and a $15 click on that means they read it, leave, and come back later to search plumber near me. You want to be there for the second search. Same with discount searches like tree removal for seniors. If that is not the job you want, put it on a page on your site instead of paying for the click. Same with competitor names.

I pull up my own account to show it. My Performance Max campaign served searches all over the place: ads, my ad center, Skillshop. Performance Max gives you much less control, so there is a better chance you see junk in your search terms report. My search campaign targeting dentists, med spas, plumbers, roofers, and HVAC looks better, but I still get dental marketing company USA when what I want is Google Ads agency for dentists.

Create a negative keyword list at the account level and apply it to every campaign, since there are searches you never want to target anywhere. Keep in mind new campaigns do not pick that list up automatically, so you add it manually each time.

Negative match types work differently than the keywords you target, and they behave exactly how they sound. One word as a broad match negative removes anything containing it, so seniors takes out every search with seniors in it. Two words removes any search containing both. Phrase match, like for beginners, removes marketing for beginners and Google Ads for beginners, but not beginners Google Ads. Exact only removes that one term.

You can also add up to 1,000 negative keywords at the admin level under account settings, which apply across search, shopping, and Performance Max. That is a good place to use AI on your historic data to find what is wasting budget.

The best practices are simple. Write down your do not block words first, things like install, replace, and repair, so you never cut them by accident. Build a starter list before launch with the obvious junk: free, DIY, how to, what is, jobs, salary, Reddit. Then mine your search terms report weekly, look at your most expensive and most irrelevant terms, and keep adding.

If you need help with Google Ads, contact Surfside PPC.

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WORK WITH SURFSIDE PPC

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WHAT WE GO OVER IN THIS EPISODE:

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- Cost, discount, and competitor searches you may not want

- Why Performance Max puts more junk in your search terms

- Building an account level negative keyword list

- Adding 1,000 account level negatives in account settings

- Mining your search terms report every week

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RELEVANT URLS

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▸ Google Ads Negative Keywords: Best Practices → https://surfsideppc.com/blogs/google-ads/google-ads-negative-keywords

▸ How to Use Search Terms Report for Negative Keywords → https://surfsideppc.com/blogs/google-ads/how-to-use-search-terms-report-negative-keywords

▸ Google Ads Keyword Match Types: Ultimate 2026 Guide → https://surfsideppc.com/blogs/google-ads/google-ads-keyword-match-types-the-ultimate-2026-guide

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TIMESTAMPS

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0:00 Negative Keywords, Episode 30

0:55 Negative Keyword Match Types Work Differently

1:35 What Happens Without Negatives: Plumber Cost

2:42 Searches Looking For Discounts

3:34 Competitor Searches You May Not Want

4:06 Junk in a Performance Max Search Terms Report

6:08 Finding Wasted Clicks in Your Search Terms

6:43 Creating an Account Level Negative Keyword List

7:17 Broad Match Negative Keywords

7:52 Phrase and Exact Match Negative Keywords

9:07 Applying Lists in the Shared Library

9:49 1,000 Account Level Negative Keywords

10:25 Protect Your Targets and Pick the Match Type

10:56 Do Not Block Words and a Starter List

11:40 Mine Your Search Terms Report Weekly

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ABOUT SURFSIDE PPC

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Surfside PPC helps businesses grow with Google Ads, Meta Ads, and SEO. Questions? Leave them in the comments. Episode 31 is out next week.