Keyword searches, SEO, Google ads, and marketing campaigns are commonly used words in digital marketing. However, keyword match types are like hidden string that ties all of them together. Not the most focused when it comes to SEO and Google ads, but it holds the max relevance.
Don’t forget to learn about the keyword match types when launching a new marketing campaign. Not only in Google Ads but when aligned with SEO practices, keyword match types can help marketers reach the desired target audience in less time and at less cost.
Here is what you should know about the keyword match types. Even as a business owner, it’s important to have basic knowledge about digital marketing. This will help you understand your SEO expert’s decisions better. If you have a business website and hired an SEO to handle its reach, it’s important to know how keyword match types can affect how your Google ad will function once it’s live.
Anyway, an informed client is a blessing for an SEO expert.
Types of keyword match types
There are three keyword match types – broad, phrase, and exact.
Broad (high cost, low relevance, high reach)
Phrase (medium cost, medium relevance, medium reach)
Exact (low cost, high relevance, low reach)
Keyword match type determines who sees your ad. It determines which search terms to target so your ad appears before the right audience. Have you ever wondered how Google shows your ad to users? Google cannot simply place your ad before every user that searches on Google. If that were the case, your ad campaign budget would be skyrocketing.
To keep it economical and relevant, Google shows your ad to those most likely interested. For instance, if you are a shoe retailer, it will show ads to those looking to buy shoes. The ad will be shown to users that use similar keywords in their search terms like ‘shoe,’ ‘footwear,’ etc. However, your ad may also be shown to users using related keywords like ‘stilettos,’ ‘heels,’ and ‘women’s footwear.’ If your business only deals in men’s shoes, such queries are irrelevant to your ad.
In retrospect, how will Google know how far it should go to make your ad visible? This is when keyword match types come in. It helps marketers control the visibility of their ad such that it’s only visible to the desired audience.
Using a similar example,
Such a business should use broad match if it sells all types of footwear. You can also make use of broad match along with negative matches. You can create a negative keyword list of queries you are not looking to target but are likely to target. For instance, running shoes, football shoes etc. (as the case may be)
Such a business should use phrase match when many users have become acquainted with your brand. Your business is now at a phase where you need to target a more specific audience. You are closer to knowing the keywords your target audience uses to buy a similar product.
Use exact match for the most precise targeting. Your business has already set a stronger foot in the market and no longer needs to waste time on irrelevant leads. You are targeting the audience solely interested in your product and at the last stage of the sales funnel.
Better explanation of keyword match types
+Broad match+
If your ad includes broad match keywords, it will be shown to all users using the ‘related’ search queries. It considers changes in the order of words, misspellings, abbreviations, stemming, and singular/plural forms.
For instance, if the broad match keyword is wedding cake. It will match with search queries like:
Best wedding cake in Australia
Cake for weddings online
Wedding cakes online stores
Traditional wedding cake
Latest wedding cake designs
“Phrase match”
If your ad includes phrase match keywords, your ad will appear before users that use the same keyword without altering the change in the order of keywords. A phrase match makes your ad visible to a specific audience and cuts off irrelevant traffic to an extent.
For instance, if the phrase match keyword is wedding cake. It will match with search queries like:
Best wedding cake online
Wedding cake in Australia
Wedding cake marijuana strain
Wedding cake near me
In short, it will match every query that includes ‘wedding cake’ together and add a few words before and after the phrase.
[Exact match]
If your ad includes exact match keywords, your ad will appear before users that use the same exact keyword.
For instance, if the exact match keyword is wedding cake. It will match with search queries like:
Wedding cake
Cake wedding
No other search queries will be welcomed in case of an exact match. This is thus useful in the case of precise targeting.
-Negative match-
Marketers can add any keyword to a negative keyword list that they are not looking to target. This could include keywords that include areas you do not deliver or serve. They can also be words like worst, bad, and other negative keywords.
Negative keywords are also helpful in not targeting competitive keywords. You can add such keywords to a negative keyword list and save your marketing budget to a large extent.
For instance, birthday cake, bread, and baking can be added to the negative keyword list in the above example.
Using keyword match type in SEO
Keyword match types are more feasible for Google ads and less for SEO. For aiming a better SEO, you need to focus more on keyword research and less on keyword match type. Keyword match types are used for PPC marketing campaigns and not when you are working hard to get your website seen one day at a time (not in one day).
Since SEO refers to optimizing your website content organically (and not through paid ads), you need to add the right keywords within your website content.
In organic search, each search query is treated as a broad match type, so there isn’t a need to use a keyword match type. This also means the business has less control over exactly when its website will appear in search results. You simply cannot point out any keyword that would 100% result in making your website appear in the top search results.
It’s a long and slow process when your website would slowly appear on the front page. However, it’s all good as you do not have to pay for it as in the case of paid ads. You do not have to pay for every time someone clicks on your website.
Moreover, Google algorithms keep improving day by day. You no longer have to work hard to target the exact keyword to rank high. With its aim to make browsing easier, Google has started showing results with similar keywords as well. For instance, if the search query says, ‘top Korean dramas,’ Google is accommodative enough to show search results with ‘best Kdramas’ or ‘best Korean shows’ and other related terms.
This has helped marketers not to include every variant of the same keyword in the content.
More about keyword research
SEO focuses more on keyword research. Keyword research is the process wherein Google and other keyword planners shortlist the top keywords users use for a search query. Incorporating such search terms into the content increases the chances of getting seen.
For instance, if you have a recipe website, the below keyword research (image) shows that the keyword ‘cooking’ is a less commonly used term as compared to ‘dinner,’ ‘recipe,’ ‘breakfast’ etc. It has just 6,73,000 monthly search volume against the keyword dinner with 1,830,000 monthly search volume. The words dinner, breakfast etc are frequently searched keywords. So, instead of using ‘best cooking recipes’, aim at ‘best dinner/breakfast recipes’ in your content.
This makes marketers come to an inference that your content needs to prioritize keywords in the second image more than the first image down below as monthly search volume for keywords ‘recipe’, dessert, doughnuts are more.
Source: tools.wordstream.com
In Summary
Keyword match types are crucial for Google Ads but not for SEO. What keyword match type is to Google Ads is what keyword research is to SEO. Keyword match types cannot be applied to SEO as organic search considers each keyword as a broad match type (with no budget).
Keyword match types only work for PPC (Pay-Per-Click) advertising, while keyword research is helpful in case of ranking your website high in search engine results. In the case of paid ads, the results are spontaneous but last as long as you have the budget to keep your Google ad live. Moreover, in the case of SEO, it’s a slow process to rank higher, and the results stay there for longer as long as it meets the Google algorithms.
In short, keep balancing keyword research and optimizing keywords to stay visible on Google search results.
Image source: rawpixel.com
