Google changes the Search Terms Report

By Jaye Cowle

What you need to know

In September 2020, Google announced that it would only be including terms that were searched by a significant number of users in its search term reports. 

Now, we don’t think most accounts ever had 100% visibility on the Search Terms Report (STR) but it is the tool we use to find and add negative keywords to refine a campaign and prevent unwanted clicks.

Google is citing privacy as the reason for doing it, although many are sceptical. What it means is that you need to be hot on negative keyword lists right from the get-go – and when you combine it with the constant expansion of close variants, it means that accounts are more likely to see spend increase on irrelevant traffic.

On the flip side, with over 16% of search queries every day brand new to Google, perhaps digital marketers have been refining keyword lists too much and, in the age of audience marketing, we should loosen our control over keywords.

Time will tell of the effects!