How long should I wait before moving a search term to exact match?

Time alone is not the right measure: clicks and sales data is. A low-traffic keyword may need four weeks to accumulate 15 clicks; a high-traffic keyword may reach that threshold in three days. Review the search term report weekly and promote when the term has two to three sales and at least 10 to 15 clicks, regardless of how many days have passed.

Can I add the same term to multiple exact match campaigns?

You can, but it is generally not recommended. If the same exact match keyword is active in two campaigns simultaneously, both will bid on the same auction, inflating your CPC and splitting the conversion data across two records. Keep each confirmed exact match keyword in one campaign with one bid so you have clean data and clear control.

What bid should I use when promoting a search term to exact match?

Start at the average CPC the term achieved in the broad or phrase campaign where it was discovered. This is a data-backed starting point rather than a guess. After the exact match campaign has run for two weeks, adjust based on ACoS: lower if ACoS is above target, higher if ACoS is below target and you want more impression share.

When should I move a search term into an exact-match campaign?

A search term is ready to move into an exact match campaign when it has generated consistent sales at an acceptable ACoS and you have enough clicks to be confident the performance is real rather than lucky. Promoting search terms to exact match too early wastes budget on insufficient data; waiting too long means your best terms remain mixed in with weaker performers in a broad or phrase campaign. The threshold for moving a search term to exact match depends on three factors: how many clicks the term has received, how many of those clicks produced a sale, and whether the resulting ACoS is close to or below your target. A commonly used starting point is two to three sales from at least 10 to 15 clicks. Below this level, a single sale can appear as an impressive conversion rate by chance, and a single non-purchase run can look like a failing term when it may have converted soon. For higher-priced products with average order values above 50 pounds or dollars, one confirmed sale may be sufficient to promote a highly relevant term because each sale has meaningful revenue attached to it. For lower-priced, high-volume products, you may want to see three to five sales before committing a dedicated exact match bid to a term. Copy the exact wording of the search term from the search term report into a new or existing exact match campaign. Do not paraphrase or approximate: you want the keyword to match the precise string that has already proven it converts. Set the initial bid at or slightly above the average CPC the term achieved in the broad or phrase campaign, then adjust after two weeks based on the new campaign's ACoS. After adding the search term to an exact match campaign, add it as a negative exact keyword in the original broad or phrase match campaign. This prevents both campaigns from entering the same auction for that query, which would drive up costs and muddy the performance data. The broad or phrase campaign continues discovering new terms; the exact match campaign now owns this one. Do not promote a search term if its ACoS is already significantly above your target, even if it has generated sales. Moving it to exact match with a dedicated bid locks in that inefficiency rather than addressing it. Lower the bid on that term within the broad or phrase campaign and monitor whether efficiency improves before investing in a dedicated exact match position. Also avoid promoting search terms that are very similar to terms you already have in exact match. Overlapping exact match keywords can create auction competition within your own account. Use your existing exact match keyword and adjust its bid to capture the nearby intent more efficiently.

Move a search term to an exact match campaign when it has generated consistent sales at an acceptable ACoS across a meaningful sample of clicks.