How to Choose Keywords for Google Ads Search Campaigns

Keywords for search advertising determine which queries can trigger your ad in Google. If the semantic core is collected superficially, the campaign quickly spends budget on irrelevant clicks: people visit the website but do not submit requests, do not buy, and do not move further through the funnel.

Keyword research for search advertising starts with understanding the business, demand, landing pages, geography, commercial intent, and the structure of the future campaign. In Google Ads search campaigns, a keyword should be connected to a specific user need, a relevant ad, and the page the ad leads to.

If you need full campaign preparation – from semantics and structure to ads, analytics, and optimization, take a look at the Google Ads search advertising service . At SEO-Evolution, we usually start advertising work with demand analysis, landing page review, analytics, and the structure of future ad groups. This approach helps separate commercial queries from informational ones, avoid mixing different user intents, and prevent budget from being spent on phrases that do not lead to a request or sale.

In this article, we will explain how to choose keywords for Google Ads on your own: where to find queries, how Google Keyword Planner works, how to choose match types, how to collect negative keywords, and how to check the semantic core after launching the campaign.

What are keywords in Google Ads

Google Ads keywords are words or phrases that an advertiser adds to a campaign so the system can match ads with user search demand. For a law firm, these may be queries about legal consultation; for an online store, category and product names; for a clinic, names of services, diagnostics, or medical directions.

If you see the phrase Adwords keywords in older materials, it refers to the same area, but the current name of the advertising platform is Google Ads. The logic of keyword research remains similar: you need to find queries that match customer demand, budget, landing page, and campaign goal.

How a keyword differs from a search query

A keyword is added by the advertiser, while a search query is entered by the user. Because of match types, one keyword can trigger ads for different query variations. That is why in Google Ads it is not enough to collect a keyword list once and launch the campaign.

For example, you add the keyword apartment renovation. The ad may be shown to people searching for turnkey apartment renovation, apartment renovation price, apartment renovation contractors, and with overly broad settings – also for related or weakly relevant phrases. After launching the campaign, check the Google Ads search terms report to see the real user phrases that triggered ad impressions.

First, define the advertising goal

Before collecting semantics, define what action the user should take after clicking. It may be a form submission, call, purchase, booking, consultation request, registration, price list download, or messenger click. The goal determines which advertising queries should stay and which should be removed before launch.

For a campaign that should generate requests, commercial queries take priority. They show that the person is already looking for a provider, product, service, price, terms, or a specific solution. Informational queries may be useful for a blog, remarketing, or the upper part of the funnel, but in search advertising they often create a longer and more expensive path to a request.

Where to find keywords for Google Ads

It is better to collect semantics for Google Ads from several sources. One tool rarely shows the full picture of demand, and real user wording often differs from how a business describes its services on the website.

• Website pages. Write down service names, categories, products, brands, cities, districts, work formats, customer problems, and commercial modifiers.

• Google Keyword Planner. Check keyword ideas, search volume, forecasts, competition, and the approximate cost per click for each keyword.

• Google search results. Review suggestions, related searches, ads, and competitor landing page types.

• CRM and requests. Look at how customers describe their needs in real inquiries. These messages often contain phrases that are missing from the website.

• Google Search Console. If the website already has organic traffic, check queries with impressions and clicks. Some of them can be used for advertising.

• Competitors. Use competitor keyword analysis as a source of hypotheses, but check every phrase before adding it to a campaign.

For complex projects, combine keyword research with a review of landing pages, analytics, and the advertising account. If campaigns are already running but the budget is being spent without a clear result, start with an advertising account audit .

Google Keyword Planner

Google Keyword Planner is the basic keyword research tool inside Google Ads. It helps find new keywords, review estimated search volume, competition, click forecasts, impression forecasts, and approximate cost per click. Google’s official help describes two main scenarios: discovering new keywords and viewing search volume and forecasts for an already prepared list. Google Keyword Planner instructions can help you verify the current path inside the account.

To collect Google Ads keywords through Keyword Planner, follow these steps:

1. Open Google Ads and go to Google Keyword Planner.

2. Select the option to discover new keywords.

3. Enter base phrases, service names, category names, or the landing page URL.

4. Specify the country, city, or region if the campaign does not target the entire country.

5. Review keyword ideas, search volume, competition, and bid ranges.

6. Remove queries without commercial intent, duplicates, overly broad topics, and irrelevant directions.

7. Distribute keywords across ad groups so each group has a separate theme.

Do not evaluate a keyword by search volume alone. A query with lower search volume can generate more requests if it has clear commercial intent. For example, the phrase buy 5 kW generator is often more valuable for advertising than the broad phrase generator, even though the second one may have higher demand.

Evaluating keywords before launch

After collecting the first list, check each keyword group against several criteria. This helps avoid moving unnecessary advertising keywords into the campaign that increase costs but do not generate requests.

In SEO-Evolution projects, we do not evaluate keywords only by search volume. Before launch, we check whether there is a relevant page for the query, whether the commercial intent is clear, whether the business can process such a request, and whether the estimated cost per click matches the margin or average order value. Sometimes a lower-volume query produces a better result than a broad phrase with a high search volume.

Which keywords to remove from the list

Do not add overly general words, informational queries without a separate strategy, phrases with unclear intent, competitor brand names without risk analysis, or keywords without a relevant page on the website to the main search campaign.

Google evaluates ad quality through several factors, including expected CTR, ad relevance, and landing page experience. Google’s Quality Score help page shows why keyword research should be connected to the ad text and the destination page.

Competitor keyword analysis

Competitor Google Ads analysis helps identify which demand directions are already being used by other market players. The goal is not to copy someone else’s semantic core. Competitors provide ideas that should be checked through Keyword Planner, landing pages, budget, and commercial intent.

1. Enter the main commercial queries of your niche into Google.

2. Look at which ads appear consistently.

3. Pay attention to headlines, price mentions, guarantees, geography, delivery, deadlines, consultations, or other arguments.

4. Open the landing pages and evaluate which query groups they were created for.

5. Add ideas to a separate list, then filter them by relevance.

Analyzing a competitor’s website for keywords gives only part of the picture and does not show the economics of advertising. A competitor may have a different margin, budget, brand awareness, sales department, website conversion rate, and campaign goals. A keyword that works for another business may be unprofitable for yours.

Grouping keywords by ad groups

Keyword grouping is needed so that each ad group has one clear theme. Google recommends grouping similar keywords by products, services, or categories so users see more relevant ads. Google’s official help page on keywords in search campaigns also recommends combining similar keywords into ad groups.

Do not put all advertising keywords into one group. If one group mixes apartment renovation, interior design, bathroom renovation, and construction company, the ad will be too general. A user searching for turnkey bathroom renovation should see an ad about bathroom renovation, not a universal text about all renovation services.

For the start, the logic one theme – one ad group is enough. Do not split the campaign into dozens of groups without data, but do not mix queries with different intents either. Focus on the meaning of the query, the ad text, and the page that best answers the user’s need.

Keyword match types in Google Ads

Keyword match types determine how close a search query must be to a keyword for the ad to be eligible for the auction. Google Ads uses broad match, phrase match, and exact match. Google’s official help explains that broad match gives wider reach, phrase match provides intermediate control, and exact match helps manage queries more precisely. More about Google Ads match types .

For a new account, start with phrase and exact match for the most commercial queries. Add broad match after setting up goals, request tracking, a starter negative keyword list, and a clear campaign structure.

Negative keywords in Google Ads

Negative keywords for search advertising help exclude irrelevant queries and avoid spending budget on clicks that do not lead to a target action. Google explains that negative keywords in search campaigns can use broad, phrase, or exact match, but they work differently from regular keywords. Google help page on negative keywords .

During the first semantic collection, create a basic negative keyword list. Do not take it mechanically from someone else’s templates: a word that cuts off unnecessary traffic for one business may remove valuable queries for another.

After launch, expand the list through the search terms report, not through templates from the internet.

How to connect keywords, ads, and the page

A keyword group should lead to an ad and a page with the same theme. The query bathroom renovation should not lead to a universal page for all renovation services if the website has a separate section about bathrooms. This way, the user sees an answer to their query already in the ad and finds the needed details on the page.

Google Ads uses responsive search ads for search campaigns. Google allows you to add several headlines and descriptions, and the system tests different combinations to show a more relevant message. Google help page on responsive search ads explains how this format works.

The easiest way to show the logic is through one ad group: which queries it includes, what is written in the headlines, which description the user sees, and which page they land on after the click.

Use advertising text examples only as a draft. In the final ad, keep specific arguments: price, deadlines, warranty, region, work format, consultation, delivery, experience, certificates, or cases. Headlines and descriptions should match the keyword group and the page the ad leads to.

Example of a keyword structure for a campaign

Below is a universal example of semantics for search advertising. It is a model that shows how to split advertising semantics by user intent.

If ads lead to commercial pages, do not mix informational queries with hot commercial keywords. For a broader introduction to the topic, you can use the article about how search advertising works for business . For a systematic launch of paid channels, take a look at the general page on online advertising .

Search queries after launching advertising

When managing Google Ads, at SEO-Evolution we divide queries into three groups: those worth keeping and scaling, those that should be moved into separate ad groups, and those that should be added as negative keywords. This helps not only reduce unnecessary costs but also gradually make the campaign more precise based on actual data.

After launching a campaign, work with keywords continues. Even a well-collected semantic core needs refinement because real Google Ads search queries may differ from expectations.

In the search terms report, check:

• which real queries brought clicks;

• which queries generated conversions;

• which words spend budget without results;

• which phrases should be added as new keywords;

• which queries should be moved to negative keywords;

• whether broad match or phrase match Google Ads are working too broadly;

• whether queries match ad texts and landing pages.

For example, if a campaign for legal services receives clicks for queries such as free contract template or how to file a lawsuit myself, these phrases may be useful for a blog but not for a campaign paid for consultation requests. They should be checked and, if necessary, added as negative keywords.

To evaluate results correctly, goals, events, calls, forms, eCommerce, or other conversions must be configured. Without this, you will see clicks but will not understand which keywords bring business results. For such tasks, use web analytics and event setup in GA4 and Google Tag Manager.

Common keyword research mistakes

Most problems in search advertising appear because of weak campaign structure, incorrect semantics, and lack of regular optimization.

• Too broad keywords without control. One-word or very general queries quickly spend budget and often bring a mixed audience.

• One ad group for all directions. This makes ad texts too general, and the user does not see an answer to their specific query.

• No negative keywords. The campaign collects irrelevant clicks, especially with broad or phrase match.

• Focusing only on search volume. High keyword search volume does not guarantee sales. Commercial intent is more important than the volume itself.

• Copying competitors. Competitor keywords can suggest a direction, but they do not replace your own analytics, budget, and testing.

• Conversions are not configured. Without tracking requests, calls, and sales, it is impossible to understand which keywords are effective.

How to collect semantics for Google Ads step by step

To choose keywords for search advertising correctly, use the following sequence:

1. Define campaign goals: requests, calls, purchases, consultations, or other conversions.

2. Review the website structure, services, products, categories, geography, and landing pages.

3. Collect base keywords by topic from the website, CRM, Google Search Console, search results, and Keyword Planner.

4. Check search volume, competition, forecast, and cost per click for each keyword.

5. Filter out informational, irrelevant, overly broad, and questionable queries.

6. Group keyword phrases by topics, products, services, or categories.

7. Choose keyword match types for each group.

8. Prepare a starter negative keyword list.

9. Write relevant ads for each group.

10. After launch, analyze search queries, conversions, CPA, ROAS, and request quality.

An example of this approach can be seen in the VixClinic project : before launching advertising, the team updated the website information, implemented technical fixes, integrated the feedback form with a Telegram chat, and only after that configured and launched Google search advertising to attract new requests.

Conclusion

Keyword research for search advertising is the basis of a Google Ads structure. Semantics affect impressions, clicks, costs, traffic quality, and the number of requests.

A well-collected semantic core includes commercial queries, clear grouping, correct match types, negative keywords, relevant ads, and landing pages. After launch, it should be adjusted using conversion data, request cost, and lead quality.

If you collect Google Ads keywords on your own, start with the most targeted queries, check them in Google Keyword Planner, distribute them into groups, prepare negative keywords, and regularly adjust the campaign based on data. This way, you will see which queries generate requests and sales, and which only spend budget.