Google Announces the new “Modified Broad Match” keyword match type

By: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) posted on 07/16/2010

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Google has announced it's newest addition to the three existing keyword match types (exact, broad, and phrase).  This new match type, named modified broad match, is designed to give advertisers and businesses more controll over the queries their keywords are displayed for, while still giving Google some room to match their keywords with relevant variations.

Keyword Match Types: Explained

Keyword match types are considered one of the most important tools in limiting your Cost-per-click (CPC) while maximizing your Return-on-Investment (ROI).  However, match types also tend to be one of the most misunderstood topics in Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Management.  Match types are utilized to help Google determine what search queries should be matched with the keyword you are bidding on.  For example, if you are bidding on "shoes," Google might assume that you are interested in search queries such as "men's shoes," "children's shoes," and "women's shoes."  It is up to the advertiser to help Google direct the correct search queries to the correct keywords.

Before the addition of this new "modified broad match type," there were three distinct match types available, broad match, phrase match, and exact match.

Exact Match: These keywords act just as you would expect.  If you have a keyword utilizing exact match, only search queries that appear exactly like the keyword you are bidding will be shown.  Example: only search queries that are "shoes," with no words before or after it and with the exact same spelling will trigger the exact match keyword [shoes].  This will not trigger "men's shoes," or "where can I buy shoes?."

Phrase Match:  These keywords give the advertiser some controll over what search queries trigger a keyword.  If you have a keyword utilizing phrase match, search queries must contain the exact phrase that you are bidding on, but are allowed to have anything before and after that phrase.  Example: if you are bidding on the phrase match keyword "tennis shoes," it will be triggered for ANY search that contains the phrase "tennis shoes," in that order, somewhere in the search query.  The search query "best tennis shoes" or "womens tennis shoes in CA" will both trigger the phrase match keyword "tennis shoes."

Broad Match: For many, this match type is the most difficult to completely understand.  Here is Google's official description of the broad match type:

"With broad match, the Google AdWords system automatically runs your ads on relevant variations of your keywords, even if these terms aren't in your keyword lists. Keyword variations can include synonyms, singular/plural forms, relevant variants of your keywords, and phrases containing your keywords." 

For example, if you are bidding on the broad match keyword "tennis shoes," your keyword will be triggered for search queries such as "blue tennis shoes," "running shoes, and "tennis shoe photos."

Modified Broad: Broader than Phrase, Phrasier than Broad

The modified broad match type has been created to provide more reach than phrase match and more precision than broad match, a happy middle ground.  While broad match keywords allow google to replace your keywords with relevant search queries, modified broad match tells Google that certain words must be in the search query, but Google can replace them with "misspellings, singular/plural forms, abbreviations and acronyms, and stemmings," but not synonyms.  This diagram by Google helps to vizualize this concept.

By utilizing modified broad match type keywords in conjunction with other match types, advertisers have yet another opportunity in Google AdWords to lower their CPC's while increasing their ROI.