Throughout the history of Google Ads, the platform has continually evolved, and Google has introduced new features and revised existing ones to, in their eyes, make the service run smoother and be more intuitive. One such change was the introduction of close variant keywords, and this is what I explore in the below article.
What Are Close Variant Keywords?
Google defines close variant keywords as:
“Close variants allow keywords to match to searches that are similar, but not identical to the targeted keyword, and help you connect with people who are looking for your business – despite slight variations in the way they search – reducing the need to build out exhaustive keyword lists to reach these customers.”
They go one step further to specify the different types of close variant keywords with examples:
- Words with closely related syntax: This includes misspellings, singular or plural forms, stemmings, abbreviations, and accents. For example, shelf, shelves, and shelfs would all effectively count as the same keyword within syntax variation even though shelfs isn’t a proper word.
- Reordered words with the same meaning: Google takes things one step further and essentially removes word order relevancy which can make a huge difference to keyword utilization. For example, if you were searching for women’s jeans, Google would also consider the close variant jeans women’s.
- Adding or removing function words: Function words are essentially useless words that don’t impact search intent. In the above example, if you searched for jeans for women, the “for” is classed as a function word and would be removed, leaving “jeans women”. This, in turn, would be a close variant for women’s jeans!
- Implied words: Oftentimes you may have keywords that include implied words and, in these instances, Google may match close variant keywords that don’t include the implied word too. An example Google gives is where your main keyword is “daydream VR headset”. Because VR is implied with the headset keyword and the model of the item, it would show close variants for “daydream headset” too.
- Synonyms and paraphrases: There are plenty of words that have commonly used synonyms too that mean exactly the same thing. In these instances, Google may show searches for close variant keywords that use synonyms for your match keyword. A great example is “swimming suit” and “bathing suit” – they are the exact same thing, but depending on your geographic location you may use either term when searching.
- Same search intent: Google tries to understand the intent behind your exact keyword matches too and provide close variant matches that have the same underlying intent – even if the wording isn’t the same. The example they give is “image royalty free” – Google may also match the close variant “free copyright images” as royalty free and free copyright have the same implication.
Close variants apply for both exact match keywords and phrase match keywords with slight variations on each. It’s also important to remember that not every close variant type applies to every language. For example, words with closely related syntax applies universally, whereas implied words only apply for a specific group of languages.
As we can see, close variants are keywords that Google may still match for based on your main keyword, even though they differ in terms of structure, syntax, spelling, or word order.
Pros & Cons of Close Variants
To further understand close variants, we can take a look at their associated pros and cons:
Pros
- Google claims that their introduction of close variant keywords should increase conversions and clicks across the board by between 3-4%.
- Close variants improve your dynamic search targeting and you gain a clearer understanding of exactly how customers are finding your business including misspellings etc. This info could prove useful in other areas of your business, including your SEO.
- As close variants are automatically accounted for, they should allow for the creation of more streamlined ad campaigns with less manual work involved creating huge keyword lists.
Cons
- The inability to not opt out of close variant keywords means that some control is lost over keyword targeting in relation to your Google Ads.
- This broader keyword targeting could potentially lead to an increase in redundant traffic and wasted budget i.e. people who weren’t intending to search for your business/industry/product.
- Similarly, close variant keywords giving broader matches could mean that your keyword targeting overlaps with your competitors which could invertedly result in a higher CPC.
How Can You Stop Close Variants Impacting Your Campaigns?
It’s important to note that you cannot simply switch close variants off. Google explicitly states that there is no opt out option – you get close variants whether you like them or not. Regardless, there are some things you can do to limit the impact close variants have on your ad campaigns and keep your campaign targeting cost-effective.
Consider using negative keywords
Negative keywords are the best way to combat close variants and stop them from affecting your Ad campaigns. These are keywords that you DON’T want your ads to appear for when people search for them. It’s a tried and tested measure used to streamline ads and target your intended customer base better.
With the Google Search Term report, there is the option to add a keyword as a negative. To make things even simpler, you can view the Match Type column to see which keywords are classed as close variants and then mark them to be added as negative keywords.
I don’t suggest simply going through all of your close variants and marking them as negative keywords, some may certainly be relevant and will help increase your targeting. However, there are some cases where close variants simply don’t work, with a brand campaign for example, so make use of the search terms report and add exact match negative keywords where needed for the close variants you want to exclude.
Another example of where we have seen close variants causing chaos in a campaign is where you are including searches containing the word company or companies. We have clients that are targeting searches such as ‘commercial cleaning company’ and ‘commercial flooring companies’ and these types of searches generally don’t work well with close variants. Google typically match these keywords with searches for actual companies within the industry which means your budget is quickly spent on your competitors brand names and therefore increase your average CPCs and lower your conversion rates.
Keyword variants classed as close variants within your Ad Groups
As we discussed, Google doesn’t allow you to opt out of close variant matching. But, you can use this to your advantage to tighten your keyword targeting.
Google uses AI (Artificial Intelligence) technology and automatic processes during its search resolutions. This means that close variants will still trigger your main target keywords. Therefore, you don’t need to target them separately, this is great for misspellings, singular or plural forms and abbreviations, you don’t need to build these into your campaign targeting.
This works really well if your campaigns are on an automated bidding strategy, however, if you’re using manual bidding and your keyword bids are high then before you start to prune your keyword groups and remove any that Google considers as close variants you may want to consider the cost of the keyword, targeting these close variant keywords will help to retain control over how much you spend on those searches.
Use the redundant keywords recommendation feature
Google Ads has a wealth of keyword management tools and automation that (according to Google) allows you to get the most out of the service and improve your ads, the redundant keywords feature within the recommendations tab is one of them.
If you have pruned your keywords in your Ad Groups, you may still have some redundant keywords that Google classifies as close variants or near close variants. You can then use the prompt within Google’s Recommendations tab to view the suggested redundant keywords.
However, procced with caution. By doing this, Google will remove keywords from your campaign and thus make your keyword selection tighter, but I strongly advise checking the data in your campaigns for the keywords Google classifies as redundant before removing them, Google may view a keyword with fewer impressions as redundant, but if that keyword has a much higher conversion rate it will have a big impact on your performance.
Best Practices for Google Ads Close Variants
There are some things you can do to manage close variants and make sure they only affect your Google Ads campaigns positively.
1. Don’t target close variant keywords in your Ads unless you have a good reason to control the bid
Close variants essentially remove the need to create large keyword groups with all these different variations as Google essentially does the work for you. Try to save time on managing your campaigns by streamlining your keyword usage bearing in mind the close variant types.
2. Don’t create separate ad groups for plurals or misspellings
Similarly, there is no need to create entirely new campaigns for plurals and misspellings, which is something businesses historically did. These are primary examples of close variants, so you are essentially wasting time serving the same set of ads.
3. Make use of the Google Search Term report
With close variants you will find that you use the Google Search Term report a lot more as this directly outlines close variant keywords and can highlight the performance of these variants. Use this reporting tool to remove unnecessary keywords and keep track of the impact close variants have.
4. Automate your analysis with scripts
Here at KP we love scripts to help to keep on top of our campaigns, and monitoring your close variant keywords is no different. This script from nilsrooijmans.com will check all Exact Match keywords in your account for close variants and will report the percentage of impressions per keyword that are matched by close variants, as well as the number of close variant search terms, check it out here:
Understanding Close Variants Can Help Streamline Your Google Ads Campaigns
As you can see, close variants are an important part to consider when managing your Google Ads campaigns and it’s important that you understand their classification, how they work, and the best practices. To start, checking your existing keyword lists and removing any targeting of what Google classes as close variants is a great beginning step.
If you need to revamp your PPC campaign and address things like close variants, feel free to contact us for a strategy session or to discuss your options.
