PPC marketing can seem overwhelming, especially when juggling ad creation, performance tracking, and bidding strategies. However, one crucial yet often overlooked aspect is PPC keyword research, which plays a vital role in the success of your PPC management campaigns.

Effective keyword research allows you to create ads and landing pages that better attract user clicks. By thoroughly conducting PPC keyword research, you can increase website conversions and achieve a stronger return on your ad spend, making the effort highly valuable.

In this post, we’ll dive deep into the importance of PPC keyword research, exploring why it matters, how to effectively conduct it, and the best tools to use.

PPC Keyword Research

What is PPC Keyword Research?

PPC keyword research involves identifying the keywords to target in pay-per-click advertising campaigns, typically on platforms like Google Ads or other search engine marketing tools. The purpose is to find the keywords you want to bid on so your ads appear when users search for those terms.

Here’s a breakdown of how keywords are categorized:

  • Average Monthly Searches: The frequency a keyword is searched on the search engine each month.
  • Cost-per-Click (CPC): An estimate of how much you’ll pay each time a user clicks on your ad when it shows up for this keyword.
  • Competition (CMP): A score from 0-100 in Google Ads’ Keyword Planner that shows the level of competition for ads targeting a specific keyword. Keywords are generally labeled as low, medium, or high competition.
  • Top of Page Bid: An estimate of how much you need to bid to ensure your ad appears at the top of search results for a particular keyword. Keyword Planner provides both low-range and high-range estimates since this amount can vary.

These metrics are essential for estimating how much you’ll need to invest monthly to make your ads effective.

Different Types of PPC Keywords

Keywords in PPC campaigns can be categorized in various ways, each crucial for crafting ads that align with the search intent behind the keywords.

Here are some common keyword categories:

Search Intent

Keywords can be grouped based on the intent behind the search. Understanding this helps you create ads that resonate with users’ needs.

  • Informational: The user is seeking information, such as definitions or “how-to” guides.
  • Navigational: The user is looking for a specific website or company, often to log into an account.
  • Commercial: Users are researching products or services, possibly with a purchase in mind, but not necessarily ready to buy.
  • Transactional: These keywords show the highest purchase intent, with users looking to take immediate action, such as buying a product or signing up for a service.

Keywords with high search intent, particularly commercial and transactional ones, are most effective for PPC campaigns. They allow you to capture search traffic when users are ready to take action, leading to higher conversion rates.

Brands may also bid on navigational keywords, especially for searches related to their own company, to capture more traffic alongside their organic search results. Some even use navigational keywords to bid on competitors’ brand names and potentially attract their search traffic.

Keyword Length

Keywords can also be classified by length:

  • Short-Tail Keywords: These are broad, popular search terms with high monthly search volumes but lack specificity. For example, “boots” is a short-tail keyword with significant search volume but doesn’t convey much detail.
  • Long-Tail Keywords: These are more specific phrases that include additional qualifiers. While they have lower search volumes, they often yield better results in PPC campaigns due to their specificity. For instance, “brown women’s ankle boots” is a long-tail keyword that might lead to more targeted and effective ads.

Keyword Match Types

Match types determine how closely a keyword must match a user’s search query for your ad to appear. Depending on your goals, you can be very specific or allow for broader variations.

  • Exact Match: Your ad only appears for the exact keyword you entered, including very close variants like spelling errors or plural forms. For example, an ad for “women’s boots” would also show for “boots women.”
  • Phrase Match: Your ad appears for variations of the keyword phrase. If you target “women’s boots,” your ad could show up for searches like “best women’s boots.”
  • Broad Match: Google shows your ads for related phrases, even if they don’t exactly match your keyword. For example, an ad targeting “women’s boots” might also appear for searches like “women’s doc martens” or “brown ankle boots.”
  • Negative Keywords: These are terms you want to exclude from triggering your ads. For instance, in a boots campaign, you might use broad match but exclude terms like “men’s boots” or “women’s sandals” to ensure your ads only appear for relevant searches. You might also exclude terms like “free” or “sale” if they don’t align with your campaign goals.

Why Does PPC Keyword Research Matter?

The success and cost-effectiveness of your PPC campaigns hinge on understanding which keywords to target and how to target them. This makes PPC keyword research a crucial step for your business. Here’s a closer look at why it’s so important:

Ad Relevance and Quality Score

Relevance isn’t just a basic advertising principle; it plays a significant role in your ad performance on platforms like Google Ads. Google evaluates the relevance of your ads in relation to the keywords you’re targeting, along with your landing page content and past ad performance (such as the number of clicks your ads have received). This evaluation results in a Quality Score, ranging from 1 to 10, which measures how well your ads and landing pages align with the selected keywords.

A higher Quality Score means that Google favors your ads, allowing them to perform better at a lower cost. On the other hand, a low Quality Score can make your ads less effective or require you to spend significantly more to achieve visibility in search results.

Return on Advertising Spend (ROAS)

While it might seem straightforward to load your campaign with perfectly relevant keywords, this strategy can quickly escalate costs if not managed properly. High relevance doesn’t always guarantee performance; it can lead to high ad spend with disappointing results.

To maximize your Return on Ad Spend (ROAS), it’s essential to categorize PPC keywords into specific campaigns with tailored landing pages. Analyzing metrics like cost-per-click and competition levels helps you estimate campaign costs and optimize your budget.

By conducting thorough keyword research, you can ensure that your ad revenue exceeds your spending, resulting in a positive ROAS.

Seasonal Targeting

Keywords, like consumer behaviors, often fluctuate seasonally. Search volumes for certain keywords can peak at specific times of the year or in response to market conditions or global events.

With careful keyword planning, you can time your spending to coincide with these spikes, maximizing the effectiveness of your PPC campaigns. Tools like Google Trends can help you track how search volumes for specific keywords change over time. For example, searches for “women’s ankle boots” typically surge from October to November and taper off by January. This type of insight allows you to optimize your campaigns, turning them on and off at the right times to achieve the best results.

How to Conduct PPC Keyword Research

Need help with the step-by-step process for PPC keyword research? Let’s walk through it together.

Imagine you’re an eCommerce store launching a new line of women’s ankle boots for the fall/winter season. Here’s how you can approach your keyword research:

1. Set Up Your Google Ads Account

Start by heading over to Google Ads and creating your account. Make sure you’re signed into the Google Account you want to use for running your ads. Click “Sign In” and follow the prompts to choose whether you’re an individual or organization, confirm your address, and provide payment details.

2. Switch to Expert Mode

Google Ads defaults to Smart Mode, which simplifies the ad setup process but limits your access to detailed metrics and tools like Keyword Planner. To unlock the full range of features needed for effective keyword research, switch to Expert Mode by clicking the Settings icon on the gray toolbar and selecting “Switch to Expert Mode.”

3. Access Keyword Planner

Use the hamburger menu in the top left corner to open the options. Select “Tools” and then click “Keyword Planner.” You’ll be given two options: “Discover new keywords” or “Get search volume and forecasts.” Choose the first option to start exploring keyword options for your campaign.

4. Start Generating Keyword Ideas

Now it’s time to brainstorm keywords related to the products or services you want to promote. For a campaign focused on women’s ankle boots, you might start by entering terms like “women’s boots,” “ankle boots,” or “winter footwear.”

If you’re struggling to come up with keywords, try using the “Enter a site” option in Keyword Planner. By entering a URL—either your own or a competitor’s site—Keyword Planner will generate a list of relevant keywords found on that page.

5. Refine Your Keyword List

Once you have a list of keyword ideas, it’s time to refine it. Keyword Planner offers several ways to do this:

  • Broaden Your Search: Use the suggestions under this option to expand your list with related ideas.
  • Refine: Use this tool to remove unwanted options, such as brand-specific searches like “Doc Marten” or “Timberland” if they aren’t relevant to your products.

By de-selecting various options, you can narrow down the list to a more targeted set of keywords that better fit your campaign.

6. Save Your Keywords and Organize Them

Select the keywords that you believe are worth targeting for your PPC campaign. You can then add them to an existing Ad Group or create a new one. To do this, select the keywords, choose the appropriate Ad Group, and click “Add Keywords.” This will save your selected keywords under the “Saved Keywords” tab.

If you need to add more keywords later, you can easily do so by clicking the circular + button. Once you’re satisfied with your keyword list, you can proceed to “Create Campaign” to start building your ad copy and bidding strategy.

7. Monitor Your Forecast Results

As you refine your keywords and add new ideas, it’s important to keep an eye on the Forecast tab. This tool provides estimates of the potential results you can achieve with the keywords you’ve selected. While these forecasts offer useful insights, remember that actual results will depend on the quality of your ads, landing pages, and overall strategy.

8. Repeat the Process for Additional Campaigns

If you’re planning to run multiple campaigns, repeat this process for each new category of keywords. Creating separate Ad Groups for each keyword category will help you stay organized and ensure your campaigns are highly targeted, ultimately leading to a better return on ad spend (ROAS).

Best PPC Keyword Research Tools

Here are some of the top tools for conducting PPC keyword research:

  1. Google Keyword Planner: A free, reliable tool that offers direct insights from Google, though it can be overwhelming for beginners.
  2. Ahrefs: Known for its user-friendly interface and robust data, Ahrefs provides both organic and PPC keyword insights.
  3. SEMRush: This tool offers specialized PPC features, such as keyword grouping and competitor analysis, making it ideal for more complex campaigns.
  4. Keywords Everywhere: A budget-friendly Chrome extension that provides on-the-spot keyword data directly in your Google search results.

Start Your PPC Keyword Research Today

Whether you’re just starting with Google Ads or looking to refine your existing campaigns, PPC keyword research is essential. It lays the foundation for creating targeted, effective ads that deliver strong results and a positive return on your investment.