Best Use Cases For Broad Vs Phrase Match In Amazon PPC Ads Optimization

When it comes to Amazon PPC, match type isn't just a detail - it's a decision that can shape your entire ad performance.

So how do you choose between broad and phrase match?

That’s where real-world use cases come into play.

They help you see exactly when and why each match type works best, guiding you toward smarter, more effective ad optimization.

Recently, I had an insightful conversation with Kris and Adrian from AdFixer and Amvisible.

Together, we broke down how these two keyword targeting options differ and when you should use each to improve your Amazon PPC campaigns.

Whether you have a niche product or a bigger budget, understanding the differences between broad and phrase match can help you get better results and make smarter decisions with your ad spend.

In this article, I’m sharing a clear piece of our discussion, packed with practical tips and examples to help you optimize your Amazon ads right away.

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Difference Between Broad and Phrase Match Type

Vova: Hey everyone! Today, we're talking about broad match versus phrase match in Amazon PPC.

So, what’s the difference between these two?

And when should you use broad or phrase match?

In this conversation, we’ll share some useful tips about both broad and phrase match.

Plus, we’ll explore how they differ so you can improve your Amazon PPC campaigns starting today.

I’m Vova, and with me are Kris - also known as Hristo - and Adrian from AdFixer, which is an Amazon PPC automation software.

They’ve got a great offer for you, which you can check out by clicking the button below.

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Alright, guys, welcome!

So, today’s topic is broad versus phrase match in Amazon PPC - what exactly are these, and how do they work?

Let’s dive in and find out.

Kris: Thanks for having us, Vova.

Adrian: Let's jump right into it.

To start, it’s helpful to explain what broad and phrase matches actually are.

Phrase match is a bit more targeted than broad match.

With phrase match, you pick a specific keyword phrase, and Amazon can show your ad if people search for that exact phrase with words added before or after it.

This way, your ads reach people who are searching for something close to your exact phrase, but with a little extra context.

On the other hand, broad match is much looser.

Amazon can add words before, after, or even in the middle of your keyword.

This makes it less precise, so your ads can appear in a wider range of searches.

Because of that, broad match is often used for research purposes - to see what kinds of searches bring traffic - rather than to target specific keywords closely.

How to Decide Between Broad and Phrase Match

Adrian: Personally, I think phrase match is better for people who have more niche products or smaller budgets.

It’s a bit more focused and helps them get the most out of their money.

On the other hand, broad match works well for those who can afford to experiment a bit more.

It’s great if you want to find new keywords that actually perform well for your product.

In our experience, we use broad match a lot with our clients.

We usually start with this technique for research.

For example, we run a whole funnel using broad match - starting with automatic campaigns, then manual campaigns targeting broad keywords.

After that, we filter out all the search terms related to those broad keywords.

One thing about broad match is that it takes more time because you get more search terms to review.

You need to spend more time analyzing the data, but it’s really useful for research.

You’ll often find a lot of long-tail keywords that you can add later as exact matches to target more precisely.

So, yeah, those are the main differences between broad and phrase.

Phrase is definitely a solid choice too.

It really depends on the product and the budget you’re working with.

Practical Use Cases for Amazon PPC Match Types

Vova: Let me give an example.

Say the keyword is “water bottle.”

With phrase match, Amazon will take “water bottle” and can add words before or after it.

So, it could show up as a “mineral water bottle” or a “big water bottle.”

Both would match the phrase because the words “water bottle” stay together in order.

But with a broad match, if I understand it right, it’s even more flexible.

For example, if the keyword is “mineral water,” a broad match might show something like “mineral aqua water” because it can add or change words in the middle.

And if the keyword is “water bottle,” could it show “bottle aqua water” too?

Because the broad match type can mix things up like that, right?

Adrian: Exactly.

With phrase match type, the words stay in the same order - you can only add words before or after the phrase.

The broad match type is much wider.

It’s really broad!

Mostly, it’s used for research purposes.

I’ve seen some people run campaigns only using the broad match type.

They keep an eye on all the search terms and remove any that aren’t working by adding them as negative keywords.

That way, the campaign keeps only the broad terms that perform well.

But I think a more structured way is to take every search term that works, move it to a different manual campaign with exact match, and set the bids based on what you’ve learned.

Then, remove or block all the keywords that don’t perform by adding them as negatives.

This way, your campaigns become much more focused and effective.

Also, when you move keywords to another campaign - usually a manual campaign - we recommend putting those same keywords as negative keywords in the original campaign.

This way, you avoid having the exact same search terms running in two different campaigns for the same product with the same bids.

At the same time, you want to add as negative keywords any search terms that have a high ACoS, meaning they cost too much compared to the sales they bring.

Keywords that get a lot of clicks but don’t convert into sales should also be added as negatives.

This helps focus your budget on what actually works.

But here’s an important point - even if some search terms have a high ACoS, if they’re really relevant to your product category, it’s often a good idea to keep them.

That’s because those keywords help improve your product’s ranking in Amazon search results.

For example, using our “water bottle” example - “water bottle” might be the main search term in your category and could have the highest search volume.

Even if it has a high ACoS, like 70%, and your margins aren’t very big, it still helps your product show up higher in searches for that keyword.

So, it’s usually smart to keep it running to boost your ranking.

Vova: So, organically, we might still get sales from those keywords eventually, right?

Because those terms are so popular, and lots of people see them.

Kris: Exactly.

For those kinds of keywords, we suggest putting them in a separate campaign that’s just focused on ranking.

That way, they don’t drain the budget from other keywords that might actually be your heroes - the ones bringing in the most sales.

You want to run those high-ACoS keywords in a different campaign, with a good budget - not too low or too high, but somewhere balanced.

Adrian: Right, it’s about finding a budget they can afford.

This approach helps your product rank organically on those important keywords over time.

Vova: That’s pretty awesome.

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Why Negative Keywords Matter a Lot

Vova: So, broad versus phrase - anything else?

We’ve covered a lot.

Do you guys have any other tips for using phrase or broad match types?

Or maybe some common mistakes you see with phrase versus broad type?

Kris: I’d say the biggest mistake is when people don’t use negative keywords properly.

That’s a huge one.

Adrian: Exactly. 

And when people aren’t using exact match campaigns enough, they might see that their broad or phrase campaigns have an 80% ACoS, which sounds bad.

But often, that high ACoS is caused by just one or two search terms within that keyword.

When you remove those bad search terms as negatives, your campaign can perform much better.

You really have to look closely at the data, and that’s what many people miss.

They don’t use negatives to clean up their campaigns, and that causes problems.

Kris: Another common mistake is putting broad and phrase match keywords in the same campaign.

You should keep them in separate campaigns.

If you mix broad and phrase together, they end up competing against each other.

One broad keyword might use up all the budget, and you won’t know if the phrase match is working well or not.

So, splitting broad and phrase into two different campaigns helps you see how each one performs, without them interfering with each other.

Vova: Yeah, that makes a lot of sense.

Thanks for explaining that!

Adjust Your Bids for Different Keywords

Kris: Also, one tip is to adjust your bids a bit for different keywords.

For example, with phrase match, you might find more success by increasing the bid by around 20%.

Since phrase match is more precise, you could try lowering the bid a little there compared to broad match.

It’s about testing and seeing where you get better conversions.

Vova: Cool, that’s a lot of useful tips.

I really appreciate it!

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Get Free Consultation With AdFixer

AdFixer is an Amazon PPC automation software created by these guys, and it can really help if you’re struggling to get good results with your Amazon PPC campaigns.

The software helps you organize and automate your campaigns with just a few clicks.

There’s even a video review explaining exactly how it works.

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Also, Amvisible is an agency that offers various services for Amazon sellers and can help with many aspects of your business.

Thanks so much for sharing all this valuable info about broad and phrase match types.

And if anything else comes to mind, feel free to share!

Kris: Yeah, that’s all for match types now.

If anyone wants, you can book a free consultation - your first one is on us.

We’re here to help you with everything, including reviewing your shop and improving your PPC.

It’s free because we want to help everyone grow and get more sales.

Thanks for having us, Vova.

It was a pleasure being part of this conversation.

Vova: Thank you very much! :)

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Conclusion

To sum up, broad and phrase match each have distinct roles in Amazon PPC campaigns.

Broad match works well for initial research and discovering new keywords, while phrase match offers more precise targeting, especially for smaller budgets or niche products.

The key is to manage your campaigns carefully - use negative keywords to cut costs, separate broad and phrase campaigns to avoid competition, and move high-performing terms to exact match campaigns for better control.

Remember, even keywords with higher ACoS can help improve your product’s organic ranking, so handle those strategically in separate campaigns.

With these insights, you can refine your PPC approach and focus your budget on the keywords that truly drive sales.

If you want to dive deeper, Kris and Adrian from AdFixer and Amvisible offer free consultations to help sellers improve their PPC results.

Thanks for joining this conversation, and here’s to better Amazon advertising!

I also recommend you read this guide on Amazon PPC day parting ads, also with Kris and Adrian. Enjoy!