Why This Matters – If bidding is the gas pedal, negatives are the brakes. Without them, discovery campaigns drift, CPCs creep up, and ACoS blows past target. With them, you funnel budget into high-intent traffic and make every click work harder.
What a “Negative” Is (Amazon-specific)
- Negative Exact: Blocks a specific search term (and close spelling variants).
- Negative Phrase: Blocks any query that contains that phrase in order.
- Where to use: Sponsored Products (SP) and Sponsored Brands (SB) support negative keywords. Sponsored Display (SD) doesn’t use keyword negatives, but you can control audiences/ASIN targets separately.
- Levels: Add negatives at campaign or ad group level (we use both—see routing below).
Agency rule: Branded, Core (non-branded), and Discovery campaigns should never share traffic. Negatives are how you keep those lanes clean.
The Routing Framework (Keep Data Clean)
- Brand Hygiene
- In all non-branded campaigns → add your brand terms as negatives.
- In branded campaigns → add major competitor brands as negatives (unless you’re intentionally conquesting in a separate campaign).
- Harvest Loop (Discovery → Core)
- When a search term converts ≥2–3 orders at/under target ACoS, promote it to Core Exact.
- Then add that exact term as a negative exact in Discovery so traffic consolidates in Core (prevents double-serving and messy ACoS).
- Variant Guardrails
- If ad groups are split by size/color/flavor, add cross-negatives so “Vanilla” clicks don’t drain the “Chocolate” ad group, etc.
- Product Targeting Exclusions
- In product targeting ad groups, exclude ASINs/brands you can’t beat (massive review/price advantage, Prime perks you can’t match).
When to Add a Negative (Thresholds That Work)
Use both a click rule and a spend/ACoS rule so you don’t over-prune early.
- Click rule (default): 10–15 clicks, 0 orders → add negative exact (or bid down if relevance is borderline).
- Spend rule: If spend > 0.3–0.5× AOV with 0 orders or ACoS > 2× target across sufficient clicks, add a negative.
- Theme rule: If a pattern of irrelevant intent emerges (“manual,” “free,” “DIY,” wrong audience/size), add a negative phrase to kill the whole theme.
Tip: For high-ticket items with lower CVR, raise the click threshold; for low AOV fast movers, lower it.
Where Negatives Come From (4 Reliable Sources)
- Search Term Report (weekly)
- Sort by Clicks (desc) → filter to 0 Orders → evaluate spend vs. thresholds.
- Promote winners to Core; negative the rest in Discovery.
- Search Query Performance (brand analytics)
- Find queries where you get clicks without adds-to-cart → likely misalignment. Investigate listing/creative; add negatives if intent is wrong.
- Product Targeting Performance
- Identify ASINs/brands with high spend/low sales → exclude them at the ad group/campaign level.
- Support & returns intel
- If CS hears “I wanted X but got Y,” capture that language as negatives (e.g., “refill,” “case,” “manual,” “replacement part,” sizes you don’t sell).
Match Type Choices (When to Use Exact vs Phrase)
- Negative Exact: Your go-to for single dud terms that are otherwise close to your theme.
- Negative Phrase: Use for repeat offenders or semantic traps you never want (e.g., “free,” “DIY,” “used,” “men’s” if you sell women’s only).
Starter Theme Pack (customize to your catalog):
- Price seekers: free, cheap, discount code, wholesale
- Format mismatches: manual, PDF, instructions, template, refill, spare, replacement
- Audience mismatches: kids, toddler, men’s, women’s, for dogs/cats (if not relevant)
- Size/flavor mismatches: mini, jumbo, 1lb, vanilla, xl (use cross-negatives by ad group)
The 15-Minute Weekly SOP (Copy/Paste)
Mondays
- Pull Search Term Report (7–14 days):
- Promote: ≥2–3 orders & acceptable ACoS → add to Core Exact.
- Negative: 10–15 clicks, 0 orders → negative exact in Discovery.
- Theme: roll up irrelevant patterns → negative phrase.
- ASIN/Brand Exclusions (Product Targeting):
- Exclude ASINs with poor price/review parity or low CVR.
- Budget Shuffle:
- Shift $$ from Discovery to Core if Discovery >25–30% of spend with weak returns.
- Change Log:
- Note what you added & why (date | term | rule | location).
Thursdays (5-minute check)
- Early bleeders (≥8–10 clicks, 0 orders) → bid down or pre-emptive negative if obviously wrong.
- Make sure Discovery isn’t cannibalizing Core (cross-negatives present).
Category Mini-Playbooks
Supplements/Beauty
- Negate wrong use-cases (e.g., for pets if human-only).
- Add competitor brand negatives in branded campaigns; conquest in a separate campaign with strict thresholds.
Apparel
- Cross-negative sizes/genders when ad groups are split.
- Phrase negatives for style words you don’t stock (e.g., slim fit, bootcut).
Electronics/Accessories
- Phrase negatives for device models you don’t support.
- Exclude ASINs where the main product is bundled and you’re not.
Common Pitfalls (We Fix These in Audits)
- No brand hygiene: Branded terms leaking into non-branded campaigns.
- Over-negativing: Killing discoverable long-tails too fast (apply thresholds consistently).
- Only exact negatives: Theme leaks persist; use phrase for repeat patterns.
- Ignoring product targeting exclusions: Paying to sit under unbeatable ASINs.
- “Set and forget”: Negatives need a weekly rhythm, not quarterly clean-ups.
Quick FAQs
Should I negative competitor brands?
If conquesting bleeds (ACoS > target with enough clicks), yes—negative them in that campaign and move budget to winning routes.
Do negatives hurt organic ranking?
No. They affect ad serving only, not organic rank.
How fast do negatives apply?
Typically near-immediate (allow short propagation). Check again in a few hours.
Great Amazon PPC isn’t just about finding winners—it’s about stopping losers quickly. Use brand hygiene, a disciplined harvest loop, clear thresholds, and a 15-minute weekly SOP. Your ACoS stabilizes, TACoS trends down, and you unlock the budget to scale what actually works.
Want our negative-keyword starter sheet tailored to your SKUs?
Send your top 3 ASINs, target ACoS, and last 14-day Search Term Report—we’ll return a customized negative map and routing plan.kills. Now, it’s time to build the pipeline.