Excluding your own branded search terms (e.g., searches for “UTDS Optimal Choice”) from non-brand, automated campaigns (like Performance Max or Max Conversions) is a critical strategy.This practice prevents the automated systems from spending budget on high-intent users who would likely convert anyway, allowing you to use that budget to focus on prospecting new customers.

There are two primary methods for exclusion, depending on the campaign type:

Using Brand Exclusions (For Performance Max and Search)

Google has introduced a dedicated Brand Exclusions feature, managed through a Brand List, which is the most efficient method, especially for Performance Max (PMax) campaigns where traditional negatives are limited.

A. Create the Brand List (Account Level)

1. Click the Tools icon in the left side menu.

2. Under the ‘Shared library’ section, click Brand lists.

3. Click create a New brand list.

4. Name the list (e.g., “UTDS Brand Terms”).

5. Add your brand name and all relevant variations (e.g., “UTDS Optimal Choice”, “UTDS ERP”, “utds.io”).You can often select pre-populated brands or submit a request if yours is not listed.

6. Click Save

B. Apply the Brand Exclusion to the Campaign

1. Navigate to the non-brand campaign you want to restrict (e.g., your PMax or Max Conversions Search Campaign).

2. Click the Settings tab for that campaign.

3. Scroll down and click Additional settings (for PMax) or More settings (for Search).

4. Click Brand exclusions (or Brands).

5. Select the UTDS Brand Terms list you created.

6. Click Save.

Result: The campaign’s Smart Bidding algorithm is now prohibited from showing ads for search queries that contain the terms in your Brand List.

Using Negative Keywords (For Search Campaigns)

For standard Search campaigns, using Negative Keywords is still a highly effective and granular way to ensure traffic separation.

A. Create a Dedicated Negative Keyword List

1. Create a Shared Negative Keyword List titled “Brand Protection Negatives” (as detailed in a previous topic).

2. Add all variations of your brand name and key products to this list, primarily using Phrase Match and Exact Match to catch all branded searches.

• Phrase Match: “UTDS Optimal Choice”

• Exact Match: [utds]

• Misspellings: “UTDS Optomal”

B. Apply the List to Non-Brand Campaigns

1. Navigate to your non-brand Search campaign (the one using automated bidding for generic terms like “best ERP solution”).

2. Go to Keywords > Negative keywords.

3. Select the Brand Protection Negatives list you created.

Result: This prevents your generic, non-brand Search campaign from showing ads when a user is searching for your brand, allowing your dedicated Brand Campaign (which should typically be using a high-bid or Manual CPC strategy for maximum control) to capture that high-intent traffic cheaply.

Strategy Recommendation

• Always run a separate, dedicated Brand Campaign. This campaign should use low bids or Manual CPC to efficiently capture the traffic you are intentionally excluding from your automated campaigns.

• Use Brand Exclusions for Performance Max campaigns as it is the most reliable control lever provided by Google.

• Use Negative Keyword Lists for all non-brand Search campaigns for granular control and cleaner reporting.