Skip to content
In my previous entry I talked about some generalities about keywords, today I am going start going into more detail about each type of keyword; broad, modified broad, phrase, and exact. Each has it’s own benefit but also limitations which will lead to testing before you can determine which is best for your advertising. One thing to keep in mind, when you hear or read about keywords it does not necessarily mean a single word it could be several words describing you product or service. It is the type of keyword that determines how it is used.
Broad keyword match is the most general and will attract the most traffic for you and is the default option but can be changed at any time. In most circumstances heavy traffic to your website is a good thing but when it causes spending money unnecessarily it is not. This is not to say using broad keywords is not beneficial. Broad keywords will show your ad when a search term contains your keyword term, close variations, or synonyms of it. You will be able to see which keywords are getting the most traffic which aids in eliminating less productive keywords
Using an example from Google will make understanding a little easier. If you have the broad keyword low-carb diet plan your ad will show on searches for low calorie recipes, carb-free foods just to name a couple.
By placing a “+” in front of one or more words in a broad match keyword you have what is called a Modified Broad Match Keyword. This narrows down the matches by excluding any synonyms of your keywords but still allows close variations.
Next I’ll be covering Exact and Phrase match keywords to finish the different keyword types available.
Written By: Gary Harvison – PPC
