Search terms are the evidence; keywords are the input
A keyword is an input you give Google; a search term is the query someone actually used. The gap between them matters more when broad match, AI Max or Dynamic Search Ads extends beyond your literal list.
If a campaign is getting clicks but the wrong people, start with search terms before rewriting the whole account. They show whether the mismatch comes from one query, one keyword theme or a broader expansion pattern.
Add the keyword column before drawing conclusions
Google’s search terms report can show which keyword triggered a query. Add the Keyword column if it is not already visible. This helps you distinguish a broad keyword that repeatedly wanders from a query found through another mechanism.
Dynamic Search Ads do not use keywords in the same way, so their matched terms will not return a normal keyword value. AI Max also has additional reporting that should be reviewed alongside the standard search terms view.
Related guide: Google Ad Grants keyword rules: match types, Quality Score and mission relevance
Classify the query before excluding it
For each meaningful pattern, ask three questions: is the search relevant to the mission, does the landing page answer it, and does the visitor have a useful next action? A query can be relevant even when it does not immediately produce a donation.
For example, a housing charity may value advice searches, volunteering searches and donor searches differently. Reporting should preserve those distinctions instead of calling every non-donation query waste.
Choose the negative match type deliberately
Negative broad, phrase and exact do not behave like positive keyword matching. Negative broad blocks searches containing all of the negative’s words, negative phrase requires the words in that order, and negative exact blocks only that complete query without extra words.
Negative matching also does not automatically cover every synonym or singular/plural variant. Inspect what you saved and add another form only when the evidence shows it is needed.
Use the narrowest scope that solves the problem
An exact negative can remove one bad query without suppressing a useful topic. An ad-group negative can separate two themes. A campaign negative can protect one campaign’s purpose. Account-level negatives should be reserved for intents that are irrelevant everywhere.
Grants accounts often need more relevant reach, so an inherited negative list can quietly suppress the very demand you were trying to find.
Do not overreact to one strange query
Broad match and automated expansion will occasionally surface surprising searches. One odd query is not enough evidence to abandon broad matching or AI Max if the wider pattern is useful.
Look for repetition, spend, clicks, landing pages and actions. If a pattern keeps appearing and is clearly wrong, exclude it. If it is relevant but underperforms, the better fix may be the ad, destination or conversion path.
Turn the report into a recurring decision process
Review search terms more frequently after a new campaign, match-type change or expansion feature is launched. As patterns stabilize, the review can become part of the normal weekly operating rhythm.
Keep a short record of meaningful negatives and why they were added. That makes it easier to reverse an over-restriction later and prevents future account managers from treating every old exclusion as permanent truth.