The Google Ads search terms report shows the words people actually typed before an advert was shown or clicked. It is where you find wasted spend, new keyword ideas and a mismatch between the language in the account and the language customers use.

Do not treat every unfamiliar query as something to block. Read it in the context of the campaign, match type, landing page and conversion data.

Review the report properly

1. Open the campaign or ad group you want to diagnose. Go to Campaigns, then Insights and reports, then Search terms. Set a useful date range, normally at least 30 days unless the account has high spend.
2. Add the right columns. Include search term, keyword, match type, impressions, clicks, cost, conversions, conversion value and value per cost. If profit data is imported, use it as well.
3. Filter for meaningful spend first. Sort by cost and review the largest non-converting terms. A term with one click is rarely enough evidence, while repeated spend with no commercial value deserves action.
4. Judge intent, not just vocabulary. A query may contain the right product word but still be informational, job related, free-seeking or aimed at a different audience. Open the landing page and ask whether it can genuinely satisfy that search.
5. Add negatives at the correct level. Use an account-level negative list for terms that are always irrelevant, campaign negatives for campaign-specific exclusions and ad-group negatives when you need to control routing. Check the match type before saving.
6. Promote useful queries into keywords. When a search term converts or clearly reflects valuable intent, add it to the best ad group with a deliberate match type, relevant advert and suitable landing page. Do not add hundreds of near-duplicates.
7. Look for structural problems. If one ad group is collecting many unrelated searches, the issue may be broad targeting, weak negatives or poor campaign structure rather than individual bad terms.

Avoid blocking good traffic

Before adding a negative, search the account to see where else the term is useful. A broad negative can stop eligible searches across more campaigns than expected. Use the Google Ads preview tools after important changes and annotate the date so a later fall in volume can be traced.

Run this review weekly for new or rapidly changing campaigns, then reduce the frequency once search behaviour stabilises. The aim is not to make the report look tidy. It is to keep relevant demand while removing spend that has no realistic route to revenue.