The Search Marketing Advisor Newsletter Article:
March 2008, Volume 7, Issue 3

Expanded Broad Match: The New Odd Couple

by Jennifer Robertson, Search Marketing Specialist, iProspect

If you’ve noticed your PPC ads being matched to some strange search queries in the past year, you’re not alone. For instance, the last time I checked, someone searching for “men’s casual wedding attire” wasn’t looking for men’s pajamas. Yet as odd as it might seem, such matches are anything but a rarity today. The reason? Google’s expanded broad match.

The Culprit
Voted the “most hated feature” of 2007 by WebProNews, expanded broad match was developed by Google to help campaigns achieve more visibility by matching keywords to what their technology determines to be related phrases. However, the results have generated a cool response. In fact, many consider it less than helpful since such irrelevant matches can increase campaign costs and lower returns.

Telltale Signs
Unsure whether or not your campaign has been opted into expanded broad match? Finding out for sure is easy. The first sign is a sudden spike in impressions and clicks, most likely without the benefit of an increase in conversions. To confirm your suspicions, run one of Google’s Search Query Reports, and look at what sorts of queries your ads are showing up for. If the keyword phrase “short pink dress” is bringing up your ads for men’s shirts, you’re officially in expanded broad match.

Optional or Mandatory?
So how did you get opted into expanded broad match? Simple – you have no control over it. When you choose your match type, there are only three options: broad match, phrase match, and exact match. Google automatically deems a campaign ready for expanded broad match once it has reached a certain performance threshold. Not surprisingly, Google has not revealed exactly what that threshold is.

Fighting Back
Fortunately, there are ways to stave off potential damage from this “helpful” program:

First, add more negative keywords. Using the Search Query Report, identify words and phrases that you don’t want your ads to show up for, and add these as negative keywords within your campaigns. This should be done regularly to make sure you are aware of any new matching opportunities Google has identified for you.

Second, experiment with alternative match types. Try using phrase and exact match more frequently. Some search marketers find it effective to use these match types for all keyword phrases that are two words or shorter, and broad match for all phrases with more than three words.

Lastly, hit Google from every angle. Realize that it will likely take a combination of the above tactics to effectively limit the number of times your ads show up for irrelevant search queries.

Vigilance Matters
While Google’s expanded broad match is intended to help campaigns, instead, it could actually do the opposite. Given that, marketers need to be more and more vigilant about where their ads are showing up. Otherwise their campaigns will pay the price with higher costs and lower return.

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The Search Marketing Advisor Newsletter Article: March 2008, Volume 7, Issue 3

Expanded Broad Match: The New Odd Couple

The Search Marketing Advisor Newsletter Article:
March 2008, Volume 7, Issue 3