Updates to Google keyword matching options
Today Google Ads announced an update to the matching behavior of phrase and broad match modified (BMM) keywords.
What’s changing
Starting on February 18th, phrase and BMM keywords will begin to match the same user searches. With this updated matching behavior, ads may show on searches that include the same or more specific meaning as your keyword. This can lead to an increase in traffic on any phrase match keywords and a slight decrease in traffic on any BMM keywords.
To simplify keyword match types, this new phrase match will fully replace BMM by July. Existing BMM keywords will continue to work, and you can use phrase match keywords for new keywords you would have previously added as BMM.
What’s Happening to Broad Match Modified?
Phrase match will now expand to cover broad match modified instances. Google notes it will “continue to respect word order when it’s important to meaning.”
Advertisers will not have to take any specific action. Performance data will stay where it is, but the new matching behavior will start to take place.
Broad match modified keywords can continue to be added until July. At that point, it’s anticipated the full roll-out will be completed and no new ones will be added. Existing broad match modified keywords will continue to serve, but will be matched based on this update.