# Search terms and n-grams

{% embed url="<https://youtu.be/TQjNG4SJ6dk>" %}

With thousands or even millions of search terms in many accounts, manual reviews aren’t realistic. Adalysis helps you to review and act on them at scale — no spreadsheets, no guesswork, and no manual sifting. This tutorial will help you get started.&#x20;

### Prebuilt search term alerts

Adalysis carries out automated audit checks across your accounts from day one. Review your recommendations under **Audit alerts** within an individual account and fix issues straight from the dashboard.

<figure><img src="https://3203600314-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FGlXujWJyreRidNjZDCw2%2Fuploads%2FdnfHwOC10T1TWtnVDUFx%2FPB%20ST%20al.png?alt=media&#x26;token=72a6c948-b197-47c8-8832-eb275df2f771" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

Here are the prebuilt search term alerts. You can also create your own [custom alerts](https://docs.adalysis.com/tools/audit/how-to-create-custom-alerts) as needed.

* [New keyword suggestion (from search term)](https://docs.adalysis.com/tools/audit/prebuilt-alert-list/search-terms/new-keywords-from-search-terms)
* [New negative keyword suggestion from search term (for Search & Shopping campaigns)](https://docs.adalysis.com/tools/audit/prebuilt-alert-list/search-terms/negative-keywords-from-search-terms)
* [New negative keyword suggestion from n-gram search term (for Search & Shopping campaigns)](https://docs.adalysis.com/tools/audit/prebuilt-alert-list/search-terms/negative-keywords-from-n-gram-search-terms)
* [Duplicate search terms (for Search & Shopping campaigns)](https://docs.adalysis.com/tools/audit/prebuilt-alert-list/search-terms/duplicate-search-terms)

There’s no setup needed, but we recommend reviewing the default settings under **Audit** > **Audit settings** > **Prebuilt** > **Search terms**. Depending on your account, you may want to [customize ](https://docs.adalysis.com/tools/audit/how-to-customize-prebuilt-alerts)them.

{% hint style="success" %}
You can also filter accounts with search term alerts from your **Audit & budget** overview.
{% endhint %}

<figure><img src="https://3203600314-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FGlXujWJyreRidNjZDCw2%2Fuploads%2FxXG1lTBqpbKShV6IttvN%2FAlert%20type.png?alt=media&#x26;token=f29b2cea-1a0e-407e-b358-34e9d32042a9" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

### Search term analysis at speed&#x20;

When you’re ready for a deeper look at a specific account, start on the **Manage** > **Search terms** screen.

Here, you’ll find your search terms filtered against your negative keywords and broken down into campaign and account-level n-grams.

Filtering and sortable column headers help you to find relevant insights even faster. Simply click on a headers or activate your filter.

<figure><img src="https://3203600314-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FGlXujWJyreRidNjZDCw2%2Fuploads%2FwtpcLHrxD2u56uE8OFzS%2Fsearch%20terms%201.png?alt=media&#x26;token=80e11337-95a0-4092-bb73-c65edd6bc396" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

{% hint style="warning" %}
The Google Ads report will show you search terms even when they’ve been blocked by a negative keyword. The Adalysis report is different: we only show you actionable search terms. This is why your search term numbers will be different in Google Ads versus Adalysis. However, you can click **Blocked search terms** to see your negatives at any time.
{% endhint %}

### How to add negatives

Adalysis offers two prebuilt filters (matching the audit alerts) that suggest potential keywords and negatives.

You can load the **Potential new negative** filter from **Manage** > **Search terms** and customize the criteria.

<figure><img src="https://3203600314-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FGlXujWJyreRidNjZDCw2%2Fuploads%2FqXLybCZbQO0BNWXvkJYE%2Fsearch%20terms%202.png?alt=media&#x26;token=94ba6731-3334-4e2c-879e-7f9827c53ac5" alt="" width="522"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

<details>

<summary>Common ways to customize this filter</summary>

If your account has a low volume of conversions, you may want to raise the click threshold. This is often the case with big-ticket purchases like cars.

</details>

Select the search terms you want to block and click **Add as negative keyword**. Adalysis will alert you to any potential conflicts with existing keywords. Then review and adjust the prefilled match type and level for your new negative. (Levels include ad groups, campaigns, accounts, and lists.)

<figure><img src="https://3203600314-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FGlXujWJyreRidNjZDCw2%2Fuploads%2FnnWPzCErR0daOAQtcZ69%2Fadd%20neg.png?alt=media&#x26;token=a4c71f25-5f54-4751-ad7e-e918efc33e47" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

{% hint style="success" %}
Click **Save** to reuse your custom filter criteria in the future.
{% endhint %}

### How to add keywords

The **Potential new keywords** filter identifies search terms that are converting well. By default, it also excludes search terms that already exist as exact-match keywords.

You can customize the filter to exclude search terms in **any match type** and change the number of conversions.

<details>

<summary>Common ways to customize this filter</summary>

If your account has a high volume of conversions and a low order value, you may want to raise the conversion threshold. This is often useful for smaller purchases like flowers. You can also add a cost per conversion threshold to match your target CPA.

</details>

To add new keywords to your campaign, select them in your search terms list and click **Add as keyword**. You can then choose from existing ad groups or create a new one.

<figure><img src="https://3203600314-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FGlXujWJyreRidNjZDCw2%2Fuploads%2F55H7b7I1QDywUvd25zSh%2Fadd%20kw.png?alt=media&#x26;token=d07643c2-5042-4129-822e-f1f8f158a144" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

### Automate your keyword mining

Create [automatic actions](https://docs.adalysis.com/tools/audit/how-to-auto-resolve-alerts) to add keywords or negatives in different match types to an ad group or campaign. Navigate to **Audit** > **Audit settings** > **Prebuilt** > **Search terms** and update your prebuilt alerts for keywords and negatives. This is essentially your search terms autopilot, which will optimize your account around the clock.

<figure><img src="https://3203600314-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FGlXujWJyreRidNjZDCw2%2Fuploads%2FQ1BqUKLA6NFB4w2zmZNQ%2Fautomatic%20action.png?alt=media&#x26;token=2dacf69f-df6c-4bcd-ad03-0483e5bcfa4b" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

### View blocked search terms

Adalysis will automatically filter out search terms blocked by negative keywords. As a result, your list may look different from the Google Ads report.

Filtering the list means you can focus on actionable search terms. However, you can always see the terms blocked by your existing negatives from the **Search terms** screen.

Click **Blocked search terms** to double-check when your negatives might be too aggressive.

<figure><img src="https://3203600314-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FGlXujWJyreRidNjZDCw2%2Fuploads%2FJzOW7n8XugVvkrBznDHL%2Fblocked%20search%20terms.png?alt=media&#x26;token=4800479b-7ce7-4936-b2f0-f15b1652be17" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

### N-gram analysis

An n-gram is a one, two, or three-word pattern found in your search term data. Adalysis aggregates n-gram performance at the campaign and account level. This helps you identify more opportunities for adding keywords or negatives.

Click **Campaign n-gram search terms** or **Account n-gram search terms** for details.

<figure><img src="https://3203600314-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FGlXujWJyreRidNjZDCw2%2Fuploads%2Fb7rEaOd3iMSAmYjlfiHE%2FN0grams.png?alt=media&#x26;token=bd34b09a-7228-4778-b49f-433948f26b40" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

By far, the biggest use of n-grams is finding wasted spend and potential negative keywords. This is why you’ll find a prebuilt **Potential negative keywor**d filter under **Campaign n-gram search terms**. It identifies n-grams with high impressions/clicks but poor conversions.

For more common ways to use n-grams to save time on search term analysis, [read our guide here](https://adalysis.com/blog/n-gram-analysis-the-secret-to-scalable-search-term-management-in-google-ads/).

{% hint style="success" %}
You can set automated actions from prebuilt or custom search term alerts. For example,&#x20;
{% endhint %}

### Monitor different campaign types

Adalysis provides search term insights for Search, Shopping, and Performance Max campaigns:

1. For Search campaigns, you can use the full toolset described in this tutorial.
2. Since Shopping campaigns aren’t keyword-based, we only offer negatives for this type.
3. For PMax campaigns, we offer innovative features to manage search term overlap, as well as negatives. [Find out more.](https://docs.adalysis.com/manage/search-terms/pmax-search-terms)


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