Your broad match keywords might be sabotaging your campaigns right now.
And here’s the worst part: many of you are using broad match by accident. It’s the default setting in Google Ads, and that’s not by chance.
Match Types: Broad vs Phrase vs Exact
Before we expose the truth about broad match, you need to understand how each match type works in Google Ads. Let’s break it down.
Broad Match
This is the most flexible match type. It shows your ads for any search Google thinks is relevant to your keyword.
Here’s what that means in practice:
- Your ads can show for misspellings and synonyms
- They’ll appear for related searches Google thinks make sense
- You’ll reach variations you never thought of
Example: If you target “mens shoes,” your ad might show for:
- “footwear for guys”
- “men’s running sneakers”
- “comfortable shoes for men”
Phrase Match
Think of phrase match as your middle ground. It’s more controlled than broad match but still gives you decent reach.
Your ads will only show when:
- Searches include your keyword or close variants
- The words appear in the same order
- Additional words can come before or after
Example: Target “mens shoes” and you’ll show for:
- “best mens shoes”
- “mens shoes on sale”
- “cheap mens shoes near me”
Exact Match
This is your precision tool. Use it when you need tight control over when your ads appear.
Key points:
- Most restrictive match type
- Shows only for searches that match your keyword almost exactly
- Includes very close meaning variations
Example: Target [mens shoes] and you’ll show for:
- “mens shoes”
- “men’s shoes”
- “shoes for men”
What People Don’t Tell You About Broad Match Keywords
Broad match in 2024 is a completely different beast than it used to be.
Forget everything you think you know about broad match from a few years ago. Modern broad match doesn’t just look at search terms – it taps into a goldmine of user behavior data that phrase and exact match can’t access.
Here’s what really happens when someone searches:
- Google analyzes their recent search history
- It looks at their device type and location
- It considers time of day and seasonal patterns
- It evaluates dozens of other behavioral signals
That’s why you’ll sometimes see broad match keywords converting on seemingly unrelated searches. Google isn’t just guessing – it’s finding patterns in user behavior that we can’t see ourselves.
Most marketers still treat broad match like it’s 2020. They use it as a pure volume play, then get frustrated when traffic quality tanks.
But here’s the opportunity: When you understand how modern broad match actually works, you can use it to find converting traffic your competitors are completely missing.
5 Critical Mistakes Killing Your Broad Match Performance
1. Ignoring Lead Quality
Those cheap leads you’re getting from broad match? They might be worthless. We consistently see accounts where broad match delivers the lowest cost per lead but terrible conversion rates. You need to look past surface-level metrics. A $50 lead that converts to a customer is infinitely more valuable than ten $5 leads that go nowhere.
What to do instead:
- Focus on deeper funnel conversion events
- Use conversion values to optimize for quality
- Stop celebrating low CPL if none of those leads convert
2. Weak Negative Keyword Strategy
Running broad match without proper negative keywords guarantees wasted money. No exceptions. Smart bidding is powerful, but it needs guardrails to perform at its best. Think of negative keywords as your campaign’s immune system – they prevent waste before it happens.
Required components:
- Account-level negative keywords
- Negative keyword lists shared across campaigns
- Both negative phrase and exact match keywords
3. Wrong Campaign Budget & Bidding Setup
Your broad match keywords need the right environment to perform. Here’s what matters most.
Budget considerations:
- Don’t use broad match with tight budgets
- Allow longer optimization periods
- Expect higher initial spend during learning
Bidding strategy:
- Smart bidding works best with broad match
- Avoid manual CPC, especially for branded campaigns
- Give campaigns room to optimize
4. Misunderstanding Modern Broad Match
Most marketers miss something crucial about broad match keywords. They access more user data than phrase or exact match could ever see. This leads to some surprising results. Modern broad match isn’t just matching keywords – it’s matching user behavior patterns.
We’ve seen ‘Football Statistics’ searches convert extremely well for ‘Football Tickets’ broad match keywords. The reason? Google shows these ads only to users whose behavior indicates purchase intent, not to everyone searching for statistics.
That’s why you’ll sometimes see seemingly irrelevant search terms performing well with low spend. The system taps into behavioral signals that phrase and exact match can’t access. These seemingly random matches often outperform traditional keyword targeting because they’re based on actual user behavior, not just search terms.
5. Poor Keyword Organization
Don’t throw structure out the window just because you’re using a broad match. Redundant keywords and messy organization waste money fast. Smart bidding works best when it has clear signals to work with, and messy account structure muddies those signals.
3 Proven Strategies to Do Broad Match the Right Way
Let’s talk about what actually works, based on real campaign data.
1. Strategic Account Structure
Make your broad match keywords work harder by following these principles:
- Organize into logical themes
- Match keywords to relevant ad copy
- Create clear categories for performance tracking
2. Value-Based Optimization
Give your campaigns better data to work with:
- Use lower funnel conversion events
- Implement value-based bidding
- Track lead quality metrics
3. Market Testing Strategy
Put broad match to work finding new opportunities:
- Test new niches with a few broad match keywords
- Let the data show you what works
- Save time compared to testing multiple exact match keywords
What We’ve Seen Work
We challenged conventional wisdom with a highly specialized scientific brand where most would avoid broad match completely. The results surprised everyone.
We achieved:
- Double the daily impression share
- Lower CPCs compared to exact/phrase match
- High lead quality maintained due to the product’s specificity
The key insight? Ultra-niche markets can actually perform better with broad match because Google has less room for irrelevant matches. Every lead qualified because of the product’s specific nature. The very specificity that made the client nervous about broad match ended up being its biggest advantage.
It’s Time to Audit Your Google Ads Account
- Check Your Setup
- Find any accidental broad match usage
- Review your negative keyword strategy
- Verify your bidding strategy
- Optimize Your Structure
- Organize keywords by theme
- Set up proper conversion tracking
- Create comprehensive negative keyword lists
- Monitor Performance
- Track lead quality metrics
- Review search terms regularly
- Adjust budgets based on performance
The truth about broad match? It’s not inherently flawed – just widely misused. When implemented correctly, with proper structure and monitoring, it can become your most powerful tool for scaling campaigns efficiently.
Want to know if you’re using broad match correctly? Get a free audit of your Google Ads account and we’ll show you exactly where improvements can be made.
