Search engines seem to be all the rage these days. Internet users want easy accessibility to various sites for shopping, entertainment, business, etc. And the best way to do this is with the help of search engines like Google, Yahoo, or Overture.

So, how does an advertiser ensure that his/her web site is highly visible in search engines? One way is to buy your way in through paid text advertisements typically referred to as “Sponsored Links.” Google and Overture are the two major players in paid search listings. Depending upon your placement position, buying paid listings through either of these two search engines can get you visibility throughout the Internet and not just in these two search engines. But an important part of the execution process of setting up a paid listing campaign is deciding which “match type” you want to use. Match types indicate under what conditions (or not) your ad will be shown when a searcher types in a word or phrase containing your keywords. Selecting the right match type is important because it can mean the difference between effective clicks and wasteful clicks, where clicks equal dollars spent on advertising. So let’s help you out in understanding the various match types and how you can make them work better for your advertising dollars.

Google Match Types:

Google AdWords is Google’s own advertising system of purchasing keywords, allowing advertisers to, according to the Google web site, “create your own ads, choose keywords to tell us where to show your ads and pay only when someone clicks on them.” Google syndicates its top paid placements to other search engines such as AOL Search, Ask Jeeves and About.com and other top web sites such as the Washington Post.

The first step in the paid listing set-up process is to determine which keywords you would like to have your text ad displayed by. Every time your ad is displayed, it’s called an “impression.” General keywords generate the most impressions but often result in fewer clicks. On the other hand, by changing your match type options you can better target your ads using the same or similar terms. Google has four different keyword match type options, each with their own stipulations as to how you can target different sets of users. The options are as follows:

Google Broad Match: Google’s default option. You include your keyword or keyword phrase in your keyword list (it’s usually best to go with a phrase because users generally search for 2-3 word combinations at a time). Say you list “tennis shoes” as one of your keyword phrases — your ads will appear when a user searches for the words “tennis” and “shoes” in any order. Furthermore, your ad will appear when a user searches for plural terms or similar variations.

Google Phrase Match: When you enter a keyword in quotation marks like “shower curtains” your ad will show when a user’s search query contains these terms in their phrase in the order you’ve indicated. For example, your ad will also be displayed when someone does a search for “green shower curtains,” but not for “curtains for shower,” which would be considered a different phrase altogether. Phrase Match is obviously more targeted than Broad Match, but allows you more flexibility and possible visibility than Exact Match which is the next option.

Google Exact Match: This is the most targeted option of the four. Exact Match is indicated by setting up your term or phrase with brackets-[jewelry cleaner]- and subsequently your ad will only show when a user searches precisely for “jewelry cleaner,” in this order and without any other terms. Undoubtedly, this set-up is extremely targeted, and as a result, your impressions will likely decrease but your click-per-impression ratio will likely increase.

Negative Keyword: Negative Keywords allow you to filter out searches that would not be applicable to you or your products. Perhaps you sell dog collars of all colors except green. With Negative Keyword, you can select “dog collars” as your keyword but indicate the word “green” as your negative keyword by the minus sign followed by the word green: -green. If someone was then doing a search for “green dog collars,” your ad would not be displayed.

Overture Match Types:

Overture is now owned by Yahoo and as a result, the most common place Overture paid listings are seen is in the Yahoo search engine. But like Google, Overture syndicates its results to other search engines like Yahoo and MSN and to other top web sites such as CNN and ESPN. It is important to note that while Google and Overture offer similar services, they sometimes use the same language but mean different things to each engine, so be conscious of this fact when distinguishing between the different match type options. One of the most important differences to note is that Overture doesn’t distinguish between singular and plural versions of a term, so you cannot purchase these ads separately, a fact that sometimes works to your disadvantage.

Overture Broad Match: As with Google’s Broad Match, your ad will appear in the broadest context of results when someone does a search containing your term or phrase. For example, if a user types in “car used in James Bond movie” and your term is “used car,” your listing will appear. Overture’s Broad Match, however, is not the default option used when setting up a campaign.

Overture Phrase Match: Overture will preserve your search term in its exact order but will also allow for other terms to be included in the query. For example, if your keyword phrase is “golf shoes,” and a searcher enters “golf shoes in size 10,” your listing will show.

Overture Standard Match: This is the equivalent of Google’s Exact Match option, but unlike Google, Standard Match is the default. If your keyword is “diamond rings,” your ad will appear when someone types in this exact phrase, in singular or plural variations, or if any terms are misspelled in the query.

Regional Targeting:

There are also regional targeting options for advertisers. Regional targeting allows advertisers to not only specify a particular country, but they can get as granular as specific states and regions, too. This option can benefit advertisers that are trying to reach people in particular areas.

If you are selling your product or services but can only provide them to a very specific area, this is a very effective option to implement. Prospects in your targeted area/s will see your ad even if they enter very general terms.

The Keyword Determination Process:

Determining what keywords you should use for a campaign and how many you want to use can be a fairly complex process, particularly if you have limited ad budgets and you want to get the most out of the terms you do choose. Both Google and Overture have keyword tools to assist you, but in order to effectively select and manage these keywords, it still takes time, strategy, and good ol’ trial and error to determine what words will ultimately be the most cost effective ones for your campaign. That might be the time to consider bringing in a professional to help you out.

Related posts:

1. Driving Search Engine Results - Does it Pay to Pay?
2. How Search Engines Treat Similar Terms
3. Google AdWords - Search Engine Advertising That Makes Sense
4. Secrets of Search Engine Optimization 2001-Part I

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