Question: While looking at his campaign's latest search terms report, Manuel notices search queries that don't appear to match his core business are triggering his ads to serve. To make sure that his ads are only serving on relevant searches, what step can Manuel take?
- Manuel can switch to a cost-per-action bid strategy.
- Manuel can create a Customer Match list.
- Manuel can add these terms as negative keywords.
- Manuel can use broad match keywords.
Explanation
The search terms report is used to identify queries that triggered ads but are not relevant to the business. Google Ads recommends adding those irrelevant queries as negative keywords so the ads stop showing for searches that do not match the products or services offered. This improves targeting by filtering out unwanted search intent instead of changing bidding or audience settings. It is the direct control for preventing future ad serving on those irrelevant searches. Google Help+1
Why the other options are incorrect
Cost-per-action bid strategy This changes how bids are optimized for conversions, but it does not block irrelevant queries from triggering ads. Google Help
Customer Match list This is an audience solution based on customer data, not a query-filtering tool for excluding unrelated searches. Google Help+1
Broad match keywords These can expand query coverage, which would not solve the problem of irrelevant searches appearing in the report. Google Help
Source for verification
https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/2472708?hl=en
https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/105671?hl=en
The answer(s) to the question is highlighted in the BOLD text above. You can also find more questions and answers related to the exams on the "Google Ads Search Professional Certification" page.