Google Keyword Planner Tutorial for Top AdWords Keywords

Google Keyword Planner Tutorial for Top AdWords Keywords

Whether you’re brand new to AdWords or looking to revamp your campaigns, this tutorial will teach you how to use the Google Keyword Planner and will highlight the basic steps to finding great keywords to fit your marketing goals and to take your ads to the top.

What is the Google Keyword Planner?

The Google Keyword Planner is a free keyword research tool provided by Google for AdWords users to find new keywords, keyword trends, average monthly search volume, suggested bids, and much more. It generates results using historical data from real searches entered into data, so you can get a clear picture of what your ideal audience is looking for and how your business can be the answer to their query.

Step 1: Access the Keyword Planner

In order to access the planner, you need to sign in to your Google AdWords account. If you don’t have an AdWords Account, you’ll need to set one up in order to use the Keyword Planner. For help getting started with AdWords, read our Ultimate Beginner’s Guide to ensure a successful foundation for your campaigns.

If you don’t have an account just yet, head to the Google AdWords homepage. If you’re already logged in to your account, access the Keyword tool by clicking “Tools” then selecting “Keyword Planner” from the drop-down menu.

 

Access the Google Keyword planner from your AdWords account

 

Take a few minutes to jot down a list of potential keywords and phrases that are relevant to your business. Put yourself in the shoes of your ideal customer and brainstorm queries they may use to find your business.

Step 2: Search Data & New Keyword Ideas

Let’s say, you own an auto repair shop in Chicago, IL. Your list of brainstormed keywords might look something like this:

  • Auto repair
  • Windshield repair
  • Auto glass repair

Under “Find new keywords and get search volume data” click the tab labeled, “Search for new keywords using a phrase, website or category.” Start your research by taking a broad look at how often searchers are looking for your products or services. Enter a few keywords from your list into the first box and scroll down to click the blue “Get ideas” button.

 

Enter keywords into the planner to begin your research

 

Once the results are generated, here’s what to look for:

  • New keyword ideas based on your related products or services
  • A substantial number of monthly searches for keywords you want to target
  • Competition level among keywords to estimate your potential to rank
  • An estimated cost-per-click in the “suggested bid” column to determine a realistic budget
  • Opportunities of keywords with high search volume and low competition

TIP: Keep an eye on your competitors by returning to the Keyword Planner homepage and inserting your competitor’s URL into the box labeled “Your landing page.” The Keyword Planner will generate a list of keyword ideas that can help you stay ahead of your competition.

 

Gain insight on competitor keywords by plugging their website into the planner

 

Step 3: Find the Right Keywords

Now that you have an idea of what to look for, the following step will show you where to look.

Click on the “Keyword Ideas” tab to analyze the data surrounding the keywords you just entered. Just below your search terms is a list chock-full of related keywords and phrases to scan. For each keyword idea, the Keyword Planner generates the number of average monthly searches, the competition level and the suggested bid amount.

By default, the list of keywords is sorted by relevance, but you can easily customize the order of the results by clicking on the column heading of your choice.

 

Customize data columns to fit your goals

 

The Keyword Planner pulls from historical data to produce results that you can use to make an educated decision regarding your keywords, rather than make assumptions on a certain keyword’s performance.

For example, general and broad keywords typically have high search volume, so it’s easy to assume, the more people searching, the better it is to target — but that’s not always the case. Research shows that general and broad terms with high search volume only account for about 30% of all keywords that users enter into search engines. The other 70% of keywords are actually very specific key phrases using multiple words called “long-tail keywords.”

The long-tail keyword Search Demand Curve

 

Long-tail keywords are proven to be more relevant and convert at a higher rate than broad keywords because the searcher already knows what he or she wants, and is more likely to have intent to buy.

When you’re using the Keyword Planner to research strong keywords to target in your AdWords campaigns, look for longer, more specific keywords that are within your budget.

For example, a broad term like “auto repair” has an average of 246,000 monthly searches, and a keyword with a narrow target like “auto repair Chicago” has an average of 390 monthly searches. Although the search volume is significantly lower, targeting the long-tail keyword will save you from paying for potential clicks coming from irrelevant searches from people looking for auto repair services outside of Chicago.

 

Search volume of long-tail versus general keywords

 

Step 4: Use Targeting and Filters to Narrow Your Results

On the left side of the Keyword Planner, you’ll see a panel with multiple targeting options to customize your keyword research.

At the top of the options panel, click the first tab labeled “All locations.” A window will pop, allowing you to enter in the locations within your business’ target market. Select “Advanced search” for a more interactive and visual way to search for locations or if you already have a long list of areas to target, simply paste them into the “Bulk locations” box.

Google Keyword Planner location targeting

 

Open the “Negative keywords” target option to enter any keywords that may trigger your ad to show for an irrelevant search term that could result in wasted budget. For example, you’re not looking to hire any new employees and your business doesn’t perform repair work for free, so a couple negative keywords you can include to avoid paying for unwanted clicks are “jobs” and “free.”

 

Filter out negative keywords in your keyword research
 

The “Date range” option allows you to choose a specific date range to find search volume for a certain time of year or over multiple years. You can even compare two date ranges to see if search trends have changed over time. This option is a great tool to use to stay ahead of the game when planning and budgeting for your campaigns.

 

Customize your keyword research by date range
 

Under the “Customize your search” option, select “Keyword filters” to refine your results by average monthly search, suggested bid, impression share, and competition level. The Keyword filterswill help you easily find keywords that will fit the specific needs of your goals.

 

Customize your keyword research by bids, impression share and competition level
 

If you’re set on targeting a specific product or service but are looking for new keyword variations, use the “Keywords to include” option. For instance, you want to see searches related to auto repair that include the keyword “engine.” Enter “engine” into the text box, click save, and the Planner will pull up a list of fresh new keywords you may have never thought to target.

 

Customize your keyword research to include specific terms to your keyword
 

Step 5: Add Keywords to Your AdWords Account

Once you find one or more keywords to target, you can save it directly to your account by clicking the double arrows in the “Add to plan” column, located on the right side of the Planner. When you’re finished constructing your own plan using the Google keyword tool, click “Review plan” to evaluate your keywords and make any adjustments to fit the needs of your campaign.

 

Easily add keywords to your adwords account

 

The “Performance forecasts” will give you great data points to play around with budget and bid range that will realistically meet your targeting goals.

 

Use the performance forecast to analyze data points and set attainable goals for your new keywords

 

Tip: Use the “Match types” drop down to narrow the focus of your target keywords.

Learn more about keyword match types in our full breakdown of each type and how to use them to drive conversions.

When your plan is to your liking, send your mouse to the top-right corner of your account and select “Save to account,” where you can add your new keywords to new or existing campaigns and ad groups.

 

Save your new keywords to your AdWords account and monitor their performance

 

Over the next few months, monitor the performance of your keywords to ensure they’re contributing to your account’s performance. Keep pushing your campaigns to the top by making keyword research using Google’s Keyword Planner a recurring practice. Repeat this process to keep your campaigns up-to-date and at the top of the page.

Get Your FREE REVIEW!

Logical Position

Logical Position, an Inc. 500 digital agency supporting 5,000+ clients across North America. LP is the proud recipient of Google’s Lead Generation Premier Partner of the Year and Microsoft's Global Channel Partner of the Year 2024! The award-winning agency offers full-service PPC management, SEO, Paid Social, Amazon and Creative Services for businesses large and small. As a Google Premier Partner, Microsoft Elite Partner & Meta Business Partner, LP is in the top 1% of ad spend managed across platforms.

How to Make an Effective Google PPC Ad Campaign

Keyword Planner

How to Make an Effective Google PPC Ad Campaign

Pay-per-click—commonly acronymized as PPC—is a popular online advertising model in which ads display on search engines such as Google via a bidding system. PPC operates [...]

By: Youssef El-Mansy | July 8, 2020

Read More

How to make money with Google AdWords: 7 Steps to Building Your Own Money-Making Machine

Keyword Planner

How to make money with Google AdWords: 7 Steps to Building Your Own Money-Making Machine

Much like the saying “money can’t buy you happiness,” money can’t buy you a profitable AdWords campaign. If only it were that simple.  [...]

By: Shelby Goldstein | May 11, 2017

Read More

5 Easy Ways to Use the Google Keyword Planner

Keyword Planner

5 Easy Ways to Use the Google Keyword Planner

Brainstorming a list of creative keywords is an important first step in creating an AdWords campaign. Targeting as many unique keywords you can muster up [...]

By: Mariah Ore | October 2, 2014

Read More

Join the 7,000+ Companies Using Logical Position

Sign up for email updates

Spam? No. Cool articles. Yes! Get notified on the latest news and tips from Logical Position.