Member Avatar for Evalovesmoney

I have read EXTENSIVELY on Google AdWords and I have heard that you should just start your keywords out on exact match. What do you all think?

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The short answer is: it depends — but the right starting point in 2024+ is not the same as it was in 2009. Google has moved match types toward intent-based matching: Exact now covers close variants, Phrase absorbed much of the old Broad Match Modifier behavior, and Google began enabling Broad (with Smart Bidding) as the default for some new Search campaigns. That means “exact = literal only” is obsolete, and “broad = totally wild” is less true when paired with conversion-driven automation — yet the risks to a small budget remain real. ()

A practical, low-risk workflow that reflects those changes:

  • Get conversion measurement and micro-conversions correct first — automation needs clean signals.
  • Use a layered structure: Exact for core intent, Phrase for controlled scale, and a very small Discovery Broad layer only once automated bidding has reliable data. Treat Broad as a disciplined discovery tool (strict negatives, limited budget).
  • Give Smart Bidding time and volume (practical guidance from experienced PPC tools is ~30–50 conversions/month per campaign to stabilize automated bidding).
  • Mine the Search Terms report frequently and push low-value queries into shared negative lists; promote winning search terms from Broad -> Phrase -> Exact as they prove profitable. ()

Echoing points already made by and about qualification and testing, and about discovery: start with control, measure, then scale. For very small budgets a tight Exact core still preserves ROI; for scaling, let Phrase and carefully managed Broad (with Smart Bidding and negatives) find incremental demand. Double-check campaign creation settings because the new default broad-with-automation behavior can surprise newer accounts. (searchengineland.com)

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Member Avatar for textbox

Exact match will most likely bring in less clicks as the targeting is very specific unless of course your keyword is auto insurance for instance. Less clicks in not necessarily a bad thing as exact matching will qualify your visitors better.

Member Avatar for middletown77

I have read EXTENSIVELY on Google AdWords and I have heard that you should just start your keywords out on exact match. What do you all think?

It completely depends on your business and how you setup your campaigns. What type of business do you have?

In general, you should start with broad, phrase, AND exact and have negatives as well, and make sure to track conversions. Generally speaking, phrase and exact do tend to convert better than broad, but not always... and sometimes you lose valuable search volume by excluding broad. Just be sure to use negatives if you use broad.

Member Avatar for jrafique

Both can work for you but certainly depends on your business. Exact match may give you best ROI and then phrase match.

Member Avatar for ArvindSharma

I have read EXTENSIVELY on Google AdWords and I have heard that you should just start your keywords out on exact match. What do you all think?

i think that the best option is broad match because it is able to provide you all the combination of the word with any word phrase..

Then phrase match and least one is exact match..

but these all category are depends only on the particular keyword.
If you think your keywords are very generic and you are getting targeted keywords through that or your conversion rate is not upto the mark ..then you should move to another match

Member Avatar for InsightsDigital

Why do you recommend to measure negatives? Im curious.

Member Avatar for bobchrist

I think you should target Broad Match. :)

Member Avatar for logodesigner

You can use the broad and exact match in your pay per click . And test what would be the best result

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