What it means for your advertising
On Google Search, keywords are the main way to decide who sees your ad. Instead of describing the person, you describe what they type when they need you. That makes search targeting precise about intent: someone searching “office coffee delivery” has told you what they want.
Your match type sets how closely a search has to match: broad, phrase or exact. Negative keywords stop your ad showing for searches you don't want. People don't need to know your business name; your ad can show for searches about the kind of service you offer.
Keywords sit alongside audience targeting: in-market and affinity audiences help Google find the searchers likeliest to become customers. ChatGPT ads don't use keywords; they're matched to the situation someone describes (conversation context).
An example
Java Roasters bids on “office coffee delivery” for its office service, “coffee beans wholesale” for cafés and “coffee gift subscription” for gifts. Someone searching “office coffee delivery manchester” matches the first, and can see its ad without ever having heard of Java Roasters.
Java Roasters is a fictional business, and its figures are illustrative.
How we handle it
We choose keywords from your campaign plan, then refine them as data comes in: keeping searches that bring enquiries and adding negatives for the ones that waste budget. More on Google Search advertising.