How to Add Keywords to Google Ads?

Step-by-Step: How Do You Manually Add Keywords to Google Ads?

 

To manually add keywords, log in and navigate to the “Campaigns” icon, then select “Audiences, keywords, and content” followed by “Search keywords.” Click the blue plus (+) button to open the entry field. You must select a specific Ad Group, keywords cannot live at the campaign level. Enter terms one per line (up to 10 words per keyword) or use the “Get keyword ideas” tool to generate suggestions from a URL.

Understanding the Hierarchy

The interface enforces a strict structure: Keywords belong to Ad Groups, not Campaigns. This mandatory tier ensures that specific queries trigger specific ad copy. You cannot bypass this; if you try to add keywords without selecting an Ad Group, the system will block you.

• The Blue Plus (+) Button: This is your only entry point for manual addition.
• 10-Word Limit: The system imposes a hard limit on keyword length. Any single keyword phrase exceeding 10 words will be rejected.

 

In our experience, new advertisers often paste their entire inventory list into a single Ad Group to speed up deployment. We call this the Kitchen Sink error.

• Why it fails: If you mix distinct intents (e.g. “running shoes” vs. “formal loafers”) in one group, you force them to share generic ad copy. This dilutes relevance and lowers Quality Score. We strongly advise grouping keywords into tight, thematically consistent Ad Groups to ensure the ad matches the user’s specific intent.

The Strategic Evolution from Manual Keywords to Intent Signals

The modern Google Ads interface has shifted focus from manually curating exhaustive keyword lists to orchestrating broad intent signals. While you can still input terms via the “Campaigns” > “Keywords” tab, the platform now prioritizes pre-built campaign templates and AI-driven intent matching. Advertisers must view keywords as directional anchors that guide Smart Bidding algorithms rather than strict gatekeepers of traffic.

The Shift to Automated Onboarding

Google explicitly designed the new setup flow to capture the estimated 12 million SMBs who find traditional PPC complex. Internal data suggests that 38% of new advertisers abandon setup due to friction. To combat this, Pre-built Campaigns bundle keywords, assets, and targeting automatically based on your business profile. This automation reduces setup time by up to 78%, but it fundamentally changes the strategist’s role. You are no longer building a list; you are training a model.

Smart Bidding and Intent

In 2026, a keyword is just one signal among thousands. Intent Signals, derived from user history, device context, and landing page content, allow Smart Bidding to validate relevance in real-time. If you stick rigidly to exact match syntax without feeding the algorithm conversion data, you limit the system’s ability to find high-value users who don’t search exactly how you predicted.

Expert Analysis: The Rough Draft Approach

We strongly advise against using the “Lead Generation” or “Local Business” templates blindly. In our analysis, while these templates cut setup time to 8-12 minutes, they often seed accounts with broad, high-volume terms that burn budget on low-intent traffic.

 

Treat Google’s suggestions as a rough draft. We manually audit these auto-generated lists before enabling any campaign. The goal is to strip away generic terms that dilute your Smart Bidding data density during the critical learning phase.

How Do You Manually Add Keywords to Search Campaigns?

To manually add keywords, navigate to the “Campaigns” icon and select “Audiences, keywords, and content,” then click “Search keywords.” Use the blue plus button to open the entry field. You must select a specific Ad Group, keywords cannot live at the campaign level. Enter terms one per line (up to 10 words per keyword) or use the “Get keyword ideas” tool to scrape a URL for suggestions.

Step-by-Step Execution

The interface creates a strict hierarchy. You cannot simply add keywords to a campaign. You must first define the Ad Group level, which ensures your keywords match your specific ad copy.

1. Locate the Blue Plus (+) Button: This is your primary entry point, usually found in the sub-menu under “Keywords”.
2. Input Formatting: Enter keywords one per line. Do not use commas.
3. Constraints: Be aware of the 10-word limit for any single keyword phrase. If you try to add a long-tail query exceeding this, the system will reject it.

Using “Get Keyword Ideas”

During setup, the “Get keyword ideas” tool is integrated directly into the flow. It scans your specific URL or product description to generate immediate suggestions. This is useful for filling gaps, but rarely sufficient for a complete strategy.

Navigating UI Frustrations

The modern interface often obscures granular controls that veteran advertisers look for. For instance, changing match types or specific settings often requires hovering over specific rows to reveal a hidden gear icon or edit pencil.

 

In our experience, the most critical step happens immediately after you hit save. We always double-check the “Status” column. It is common for new keywords to be instantly flagged as “Low Search Volume” or disapproved due to policy conflicts (e.g. trademarks). Catching this immediately prevents ghost campaigns that are active but delivering zero impressions.

Configuring Match Types for Semantic Relevance

Google has replaced strict syntactic matching with semantic understanding, meaning match types now dictate how loosely the AI interprets user intent rather than the exact words typed. Broad Match (no syntax) uses landing page context and user history to find relevant queries. Phrase Match (“keyword”) targets queries with the same meaning, while Exact Match ([keyword]) targets the precise intent.

The Death of Word-for-Word Matching

Advertisers must accept that Exact Match no longer guarantees a character-for-character match. In our testing, an Exact Match keyword like [running shoes] will trigger for “shoes for joggers” if the algorithm determines the intent is identical. This shift prioritizes the user’s goal over their specific vocabulary.

• Broad Match: The default setting. It is designed to work in tandem with Smart Bidding. It looks at your landing page, the user’s past search history, and other signals to find conversions you wouldn’t think to bid on.
• Phrase Match: Offers a middle ground. It respects word order more than Broad Match but is flexible enough to capture close variants.
• Exact Match: The tightest control available. Use this for high-value terms where you need absolute certainty about the relevance.

The Data Density Threshold

We found that moving to Broad Match too early destroys budget efficiency. Broad Match requires data to function correctly. If you launch a new account on Broad Match without conversion history, the AI has no signal to distinguish between a window shopper and a buyer.

 

Our recommendation: Start with Phrase and Exact Match to maintain tight control over your budget. Only expand to Broad Match once the specific campaign has logged 30–50 conversions in a 30-day period. This seed data trains the Smart Bidding algorithm on what a good user looks like, preventing the budget waste common with premature scaling.

Leveraging AI Max and Keywordless Targeting

AI Max is not a campaign type but a feature suite for Search campaigns that utilizes keywordless targeting technology to find queries standard keywords miss. Instead of manual entry, you enable Search Term Matching, which uses generative AI to scan your landing pages and dynamic assets to automatically match user queries to your most relevant content.

Moving Beyond the Keyword List

AI Max functions similarly to the legacy Dynamic Search Ads (DSA) but with significantly more nuance. It uses Search Term Matching to analyze the semantic content of your website. If you have a product page for “ergonomic office chairs,” AI Max can serve ads for “best chair for back pain 2026” even if you never added that keyword.

 

Key Control Mechanisms:

• Final URL Expansion: This setting allows Google to dynamically select the best landing page for a query. We advise using “URL Expansion” cautiously. For strict lead-gen pages, keep this off to prevent traffic from landing on low-conversion blog posts.
• Brand Settings: You can explicitly exclude or include brand terms to ensure AI Max doesn’t cannibalize your branded search volume.

The Discovery Layer Strategy

In our analysis, AI Max performs best as a discovery layer, not a primary driver. We use it to mine for data.

1. Launch AI Max with a capped budget to capture keywordless traffic.
2. Audit the “Search Term Match Source” column in your reports weekly.
3. Harvest High-Performers: When AI Max identifies a high-converting search term, we manually extract it and add it as an Exact Match keyword in our primary campaign.

This method allows you to lock in specific bids and ad copy for high-value terms while letting the AI continue to sweep the edges for new opportunities.

Implementing Search Themes in Performance Max

Performance Max (PMax) campaigns do not use traditional keywords; instead, you add Search Themes to the Asset Group signals. Advertisers can add up to 25 themes per asset group (some interfaces allow up to 50 in beta). These themes act as additive signals, guiding Google’s AI toward niche queries or new product categories that may not yet be indexed on your landing page.

Guiding the Black Box

Unlike standard keywords, Search Themes are not strict targeting parameters. They serve as a nudge to the PMax algorithm, specifically useful during the Cold Start phase. Without historical data, PMax relies heavily on your landing page text. If your landing page doesn’t explicitly mention “luxury ergonomic seating,” but that is your target, adding it as a Search Theme bridges the gap immediately.

• Asset Groups: Search Themes live here. You must define them separately for each audience segment you are targeting.
• Auction Priority: Crucially, Search Themes share the same priority as Phrase and Broad Match keywords in standard Search campaigns.

The Cannibalization Warning

A common error we see is PMax campaigns competing directly with existing Search campaigns. In our testing, if you have an Exact Match keyword in a standard Search campaign, it will still take priority over a PMax Search Theme. However, if you rely only on Broad Match in your Search campaigns, PMax may steal the traffic.

Strategic Fix: Maintain a brand protection Search campaign with Exact Match keywords for your core terms. This forces the algorithm to serve your specific ad copy rather than a dynamically generated PMax asset.

Mastering Negative Keywords for Budget Efficiency

Adding Negative Keywords is the single most critical step for governing AI-driven expansion and preventing budget bleed. You can add them at the Account Level to block terms globally or at the Campaign Level for specificity. Recent updates allow advertisers to add up to 10,000 campaign-level negatives directly to Performance Max campaigns without contacting support.

The Strict Match Trap

Many advertisers incorrectly assume negative keywords function like positive ones. They do not. Negative Match Types (Broad, Phrase, Exact) are strict and generally do not account for synonyms or close variants.

• Example: If you add free as a negative broad match, it blocks “free CRM software.”
• The Gap: It does not automatically block “CRM software gratis” or “no cost CRM.”

You must be explicit. We recommend maintaining robust Negative Keyword Lists (e.g. “Job Seekers,” “Competitors,” “Cheap/Free Qualifiers”) and applying them across the entire account.

Governance in the Era of Broad Match

Because Broad Match is now the default for positive targeting, your negative keyword strategy must be twice as aggressive. In our audits, we often find 20–30% of budget wasted on irrelevant adjacent terms because the advertiser relied on the AI to figure it out. The AI prioritizes conversion volume, not necessarily lead quality. Manually excluding terms is the only way to force the system to focus on high-intent users.

Using Keyword Planner for Forecasting and Discovery

Use the Google Keyword Planner not just for discovery, but for forecasting performance before you spend a dollar. Access it via “Tools & Settings” > “Planning”. While the tool often provides search volume ranges (e.g. 10k–50k) rather than exact numbers for lower-spend accounts, its “Forecast” feature estimates clicks and conversions based on your specific bid settings.

Moving Beyond Volume

The metric “Avg. monthly searches” is a vanity metric in isolation. We prioritize “Top of page bid (high range)” to understand commercial intent.

• High Volume, Low Bid: Usually informational traffic (e.g. “what is crm”).
• Low Volume, High Bid: High intent, purchase-ready traffic (e.g. “enterprise crm pricing”).

The Pilot Campaign Validation

Expert strategists treat Keyword Planner data as directional, not absolute. The buckets of data (e.g. 10k–100k) are too broad for precise financial modeling.

 

Our Process:

1. Export the plan from Keyword Planner.
2. Run a Pilot Campaign with a small, capped budget ($500–$1,000).
3. Use the actual Impression Share and CPC data from the pilot to validate the forecast.

This test-then-scale approach prevents the common pitfall of committing annual budgets based on theoretical Google estimates.

The Final Verdict: Governance Over Curation

Success in Google Ads no longer comes from finding a secret keyword that no one else has bid on; it comes from providing the cleanest data signals to the bidding algorithm. Keywords are your primary lever for this, but they must be balanced with aggressive negative keyword lists and constant human auditing.

 

Do not set it and forget it. In our experience, the accounts that rely entirely on AI Max or Broad Match without human guardrails eventually plateau. Use the manual controls detailed above to force the system to adhere to your business logic, ensuring that every dollar spent trains the model to find better customers, not just more traffic.

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