How to Use the Google Ads Search Terms Report Effectively

The search terms report is a specific view within your Google Ads account that lists the exact phrases users entered into Google search that resulted in your ad being displayed. Unlike the keywords report, which lists the keywords you are bidding on, this report reveals the user’s intent. It provides a bridge between your chosen keyword match types and the actual reality of user search behavior. In a typical account, you might find that while your keyword ‘running shoes’ is broad, users are actually searching for ‘free running shoes’ or ‘running shoes repair shop’, which may not align with your retail objectives.

Accessing this report is straightforward. You navigate to the Campaigns tab, select your specific campaign or ad group, and then click on the Insights and Reports menu. From there, you can view the search terms table. This table displays critical metrics such as impressions, clicks, cost, and conversions for every individual query. By tracking these performance metrics, you can identify which search terms are profitable and which ones drain your budget without providing value. It is the most reliable way to monitor how your match types are performing in practice.

Refining keywords involves two primary actions: adding new, relevant keywords and filtering out irrelevant ones. When you see a search term that consistently leads to conversions, you should add that term as a formal keyword in your campaign. This allows you to bid more aggressively and write specific ad copy for that high-performing query. Conversely, if a search term generates clicks but no sales, you should add it as a negative keyword. This simple process prevents your budget from being spent on users who are not likely to purchase your product or service.

This manual cleanup cycle is a standard practice for managing any paid search account. For example, if a Shopify store selling high-end garden furniture spends money on the term ‘cheap garden furniture’, the conversion rate will likely be low because the intent does not match the price point. By adding ‘cheap’ as a negative keyword, the store ensures its ads only show to users looking for premium or high-quality items. This refinement process improves your quality score and lowers your average cost per acquisition over time.

• High-volume, low-conversion terms that signal a mismatch in intent.
• Brand terms being captured by generic ad groups, which might require a dedicated brand campaign.
• Long-tail, specific queries that show hidden customer needs.
• Competitor-related search terms that indicate your ads are appearing for the wrong brands.
• Irrelevant search terms that indicate a need for a broader range of negative keywords.

You will often find that broad match keywords trigger a wide variety of search terms, some of which are very helpful and some of which are entirely useless. A common pattern is seeing seasonal fluctuations in the types of terms users type into the search bar. By reviewing the search terms report on a weekly basis, you can stay ahead of these changes. If you notice a sudden spike in a specific irrelevant query, you can address it immediately rather than waiting for your monthly performance review. This consistency is what separates well-managed accounts from those that suffer from wasted ad spend.

At Alien Road, we use the search terms report as a core component of our audit and optimization process for every client. During our initial engagement, we perform a thorough review of the last 90 days of search term data to identify quick wins and necessary exclusions. We look for patterns where search terms indicate that the current keyword match types are too loose. By tightening these match types and building a comprehensive negative keyword list, we ensure that the ad spend is focused exclusively on the most relevant prospects.

For example, in a typical engagement for a lead generation client, we might discover that they are bidding on broad terms that include the word ‘free’. This keyword was attracting users looking for free templates, not paid consulting services. By adding ‘free’ as a negative keyword, we immediately improved the lead quality. We then set up a recurring schedule to review these reports every Friday, ensuring that the account remains clean and efficient. This proactive approach helps us maintain high performance without manual guesswork.

You should add negative keywords whenever a search term does not reflect the product or service you offer. If a user is searching for ‘how to fix X at home’ and you sell a professional service for X, that click is rarely valuable. By designating ‘how to’ or ‘fix’ as negative keywords, you block these queries from triggering your ads. This is especially important for smaller accounts where every dollar of the budget matters. You can add negative keywords at the campaign level or the ad group level depending on how specific your targeting needs to be.

Many advertisers make the mistake of leaving the search terms report untouched for weeks. This is a missed opportunity to save money and improve efficiency. If you find yourself spending a significant portion of your budget on queries that contain words related to competitors, you might decide to create a separate campaign for competitor terms. This allows you to bid differently and show more relevant ads for that specific audience segment. Always assess the intent behind the query before deciding whether to exclude it or embrace it as a new opportunity.

The search terms report is the ultimate test of your keyword match type strategy. If you rely heavily on broad match, you will see a much wider variety of search terms in your report compared to using phrase or exact match. If the report is filled with irrelevant queries, it is a clear sign that you should switch to more restrictive match types for those specific keywords. You do not need to abandon broad match entirely, but you must be prepared to manage the search terms report more frequently to keep your campaign performance stable.

• Check the report at least once every two weeks for smaller campaigns.
• Review the report weekly for campaigns with higher budgets.
• Look for search terms that have high impressions but zero clicks.
• Monitor for high-cost terms that lack conversions.
• Use the ‘Filter’ function to sort by ‘Conversions’ to identify your best-performing terms.

Low-volume queries often appear as ‘Other’ or ‘Other search terms’ in your report. This happens because Google hides some queries to protect user privacy. You should not worry about these hidden terms, as they represent a tiny fraction of your overall traffic. Focus your energy on the search terms that have enough volume to provide statistically meaningful data. If a term has only one impression and one click, it is usually not worth your time to add it as a negative keyword. Focus on the queries that consume a significant percentage of your daily budget.

By ignoring the noise and focusing on the high-volume queries, you save time and keep your account management manageable. This is a common practice among professional media buyers who manage many campaigns at once. The goal is to reach a state where your ads only appear for queries that are directly tied to your business objectives. This keeps your click-through rate high and your cost-per-click reasonable. It is a simple, effective cycle of checking, evaluating, and adjusting that yields results over the long term.

Start by setting a recurring task for yourself to review the search terms report every Monday morning. Open your campaign, filter the results to show the last 30 days of data, and sort the list by spend. Identify the top 20 most expensive search terms that have not resulted in a conversion. Add the clearly irrelevant terms as negative keywords. Then, look for terms that are relevant but not yet in your keyword list, and add them as new keywords. By doing this every single week, you will gradually improve your campaign efficiency and ensure your budget is invested in the right places.

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