- July 6, 2026
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- Google Ads
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Most Google Ads accounts we audit have never touched their negative keyword list. That single gap is often the fastest way to recover wasted budget without changing a single bid.
What Negative Keywords Actually Do
They stop your ads from showing for searches that include specific terms, even if your target keyword technically matches. Without them, broad match keywords can trigger your ad for searches with completely different intent.
Common Wasted-Spend Triggers
Searches containing “free,” “jobs,” “salary,” “course,” or “how to do it myself” frequently trigger ads for commercial keywords, generating clicks from people who were never going to become customers.
Build the List From Search Term Reports
Your Google Ads search term report shows exactly what people typed before your ad showed. Reviewing this weekly for the first month of any new campaign usually reveals ten to twenty negative keywords worth adding immediately.
Revisit It Regularly
Negative keyword lists aren’t a one-time setup. New irrelevant search terms appear as your campaigns scale, so this is an ongoing maintenance task, not a launch checklist item.
