How to Use Search Theme Prioritization to Align PMax & Search in Your Strategy

Here is how the auction works

• Only one of these keywords can match the search term and trigger an ad to enter the auction.

• The table below outlines the priority rules that determine which keyword is selected

The order ➡️

𝟭. 𝗘𝘅𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗸𝗲𝘆𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗺

Example : For the search term "skydiving license", the identical* exact keyword [skydiving license] in the Search campaign is prioritized over any other broad or phrase keyword or a Performance Max campaign.

𝟮. 𝗣𝗵𝗿𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗯𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗱 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗸𝗲𝘆𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗺

Example : For the search term "skydiving license", the identical* Performance Max search theme “skydiving license” is prioritized over the phrase keyword “skydiving”. In this case, the phrase keyword isn't identical to the query.

𝟯. 𝗥𝗲𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲: 𝗔𝗜 (𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲) 𝗯𝗮𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗸𝗲𝘆𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻

& 𝟰. 𝗔𝗱 𝗥𝗮𝗻𝗸

Practical tips:

• Use broad Search Themes to guide your PMax campaigns
• Match search intent with assets and messaging
• Avoid duplicates and close variants to prevent overlap
• Monitor spend allocation scripts
• Check Search Term Insights to analyze alignment
• You can include fewer than 25