What it means for your advertising
Negatives keep your budget away from searches that look relevant but aren't: people after jobs, free things, DIY instructions or a service you don't offer. They matter most with phrase and broad match types, which reach further.
It's easy to over-apply them and block searches you wanted, so negatives need reviewing as the campaign runs.
An example
Java Roasters adds “jobs” and “repair” as negatives. Its ad no longer shows for “office coffee delivery driver jobs” or “office coffee machine repair”, searches that would have cost clicks and never led to an enquiry.
Java Roasters is a fictional business, and its figures are illustrative.
How we handle it
We start your campaign with negatives from your plan and add more from the searches your ads actually appear for. More on Google Search advertising.