Google Ads Negatives

Google Ads Negatives

Read first:

• google-ads/references/operator-thesis.md
• google-ads/references/query-patterns.md
• google-ads/references/negatives-playbook.md
• google-ads/references/intent-map.md
• google-ads/references/deliverable-templates.md
• data/negative-inventory.md

Read workspace if available:

• workspace/ads/account.md
• workspace/ads/goals.md
• workspace/ads/intent-map.md
• workspace/ads/queries.md
• workspace/ads/negatives.md
• workspace/ads/learnings.md

Data Acquisition

Connected Mode (MCP available)

Pull via the search tool on google-ads-mcp:

Primary: Search terms with waste signals — last 30 days:

SELECT
  search_term_view.search_term,
  search_term_view.status,
  campaign.name,
  ad_group.name,
  metrics.impressions,
  metrics.clicks,
  metrics.cost_micros,
  metrics.conversions,
  metrics.conversions_value,
  metrics.cost_per_conversion
FROM search_term_view
WHERE segments.date DURING LAST_30_DAYS
ORDER BY metrics.cost_micros DESC
LIMIT 500

Retrieval ladder — if the primary query returns no rows, follow the shared retrieval ladder in data/search-term-retrieval.md. In pmax-fallback mode, only recommend negatives for extremely obvious junk terms — do not recommend exact negatives without per-term metrics. In limited mode, do not recommend negatives at all — ask for a UI export.

Required: Existing campaign-level negatives:

SELECT
  campaign.name,
  campaign_criterion.keyword.text,
  campaign_criterion.keyword.match_type,
  campaign_criterion.negative
FROM campaign_criterion
WHERE campaign_criterion.negative = TRUE
  AND campaign_criterion.type = 'KEYWORD'

Required: Negative inventory verification (all locations): Use the shared verification path in data/negative-inventory.md / scripts/negative-inventory.sh to check:

• campaign-level negatives
• ad-group-level negatives
• shared negative lists
• campaign/shared-list attachments
• shared-list keyword members

Required: Keyword view (understand what's triggering waste):

SELECT
  campaign.name,
  ad_group.name,
  ad_group_criterion.keyword.text,
  ad_group_criterion.keyword.match_type,
  ad_group_criterion.status,
  metrics.impressions,
  metrics.clicks,
  metrics.cost_micros,
  metrics.conversions
FROM keyword_view
WHERE campaign.status = 'ENABLED'
  AND ad_group.status = 'ENABLED'
  AND segments.date DURING LAST_30_DAYS
ORDER BY metrics.cost_micros DESC
LIMIT 200

Why keyword_view matters for negatives:

• A wasteful search term may be caused by a single over-broad keyword — pausing or narrowing that keyword is sometimes better than adding a negative
• Keyword match types reveal WHY certain search terms are matching — helps assess whether the negative or the keyword is the better fix
• Cross-referencing keywords with search terms reveals the "blast radius" of each keyword — how many waste terms it's generating

Required: Existing shared negative keyword lists:

SELECT
  shared_set.name,
  shared_set.type,
  shared_set.member_count,
  shared_set.status
FROM shared_set
WHERE shared_set.type = 'NEGATIVE_KEYWORDS'
  AND shared_set.status = 'ENABLED'

See data/gaql-recipes.md for additional queries.

Date Range Fallback

If LAST_30_DAYS returns 0 rows or <$5 total spend, fall back to LAST_90_DAYS, then all-time (no date filter). Negative keyword analysis is LESS time-sensitive than budget analysis — historical waste patterns are still actionable even if the data is older. Always state the date range used.

Export Mode (no MCP)

Ask the user for:

• Search Terms report: last 30 days (sorted by Cost descending)
• Current negative keyword list (campaign-level and shared lists)

See data/export-formats.md for recommended format.

Process

1. Announce mode (connected/export).
2. Load existing negatives from MCP query or workspace/ads/negatives.md.
3. In connected mode, run the shared retrieval ladder (data/search-term-retrieval.md). Report retrieval_mode in the output header.
4. Run the shared negative-inventory verification (data/negative-inventory.md / scripts/negative-inventory.sh) so you know whether negatives already exist at campaign, ad-group, or shared-list level.
5. If retrieval mode is pmax-fallback, only recommend negatives for extremely obvious junk terms. If limited, do not recommend negatives — ask for a UI export.
6. Review query evidence and recurring waste clusters.
7. Cross-reference against existing negatives — never recommend what's already excluded.
8. Cross-reference against keyword_view when keyword rows are available — for each waste cluster, check which targeted keyword(s) triggered it. If a single broad-match keyword generates most of the waste, consider recommending keyword narrowing (change to phrase/exact, or pause) alongside or instead of negatives.
9. For each waste cluster, decide: exclusion, isolation, or keyword fix?
   • Exclusion: the traffic has no plausible path to value → negative it
   • Isolation: the traffic has potential but is in the wrong bucket → recommend structure change instead
   • Keyword fix: the triggering keyword is too broad → recommend match type change or pause
10. For each recommended negative:
    • Choose match type (exact → phrase → broad, in order of safety)
    • Choose scope (ad group → campaign → shared list, in order of precision)
    • Assess collateral risk (what good traffic could this block?)
    • Note spend evidence (how much was wasted on this pattern?)
11. Use the negative recommendation template from deliverable-templates.md.
12. Write/update workspace memory.

Draft Output

Negative Keyword Draft — ALWAYS PRODUCED

This skill's primary deliverable is a negative keyword draft. Every run that identifies exclusion-worthy terms produces one.

Create using drafts/templates/negative-draft.md:

• Write to workspace/ads/drafts/YYYY-MM-DD-[account-slug]-negatives.md
• Include every recommended negative with all fields: keyword, match type, scope, reason, spend wasted, collateral risk, reversibility
• Group negatives by theme (e.g., "Job-seeker exclusions," "Informational queries," "Competitor brand terms")
• Update workspace/ads/drafts/_index.md
• Announce: "Draft created: workspace/ads/drafts/YYYY-MM-DD-[account-slug]-negatives.md — N negatives for [scope description]"