Shopping captures product searches.
Search captures everything else.
When someone searches "best wireless earbuds under ₹3,000" or "alternative to Boat earphones," Shopping ads may not trigger — but Search ads will. Non-brand Search campaigns capture category intent, competitor comparisons, and problem-aware queries that Shopping cannot reach. For e-commerce brands running only Shopping and PMax, this is the traffic you are missing.
35%
E-commerce queries Shopping cannot reach
3 types
Brand, category, and competitor campaigns
Weekly
Search term review & negative sculpting
1.74×
Avg non-brand Search assist ratio
Why Search matters
Shopping shows products. Search answers questions.
Not every buyer searches for a specific product. Many search for a category ("best running shoes for flat feet"), a comparison ("Nike vs Asics for marathon training"), a problem ("shoes that don't cause knee pain"), or a competitor by name ("Boat Airdopes alternatives"). Shopping ads are designed for product-specific queries — they do not trigger well for these broader, research-stage searches. That is where Search campaigns fill the gap.
Problem-aware queries
"How to remove dark spots on face" → your skincare product is the answer, but Shopping will not trigger for this query.
Comparison queries
"Boat vs JBL earphones India" → the buyer is choosing between brands. A Search ad with the right RSA can intercept this decision.
Category queries
"Best organic cotton t-shirts India" → high intent, specific category. Shopping may show products but Search lets you control the message.
Competitor queries
"Mamaearth face wash review" → a buyer researching your competitor. A Search ad offering an alternative can capture the switch.
The three Search campaigns
Every e-commerce account needs up to three Search campaign types. Each has a different job.
Running one Search campaign with every keyword type mixed together is the most common mistake I see. Brand, category, and competitor keywords have different CPCs, different conversion rates, and different ROAS expectations. Separating them into distinct campaigns gives you control over budget, bidding, and performance measurement for each.
Brand Search
Defend & capture
Keywords: your brand name, brand + product, brand misspellings. These queries have the highest conversion rate (8–15%) and lowest CPC (₹2–₹10) in the account. The campaign exists to defend your brand SERP position, especially when competitors bid on your name.
Example keywords:
Budget: 5–10% of total. Bid strategy: Target Impression Share (90%+ top-of-page). Metric: Impression share, CPC.
Non-Brand / Category
Capture new demand
Keywords: product categories, "best" lists, problem-aware terms, specification searches. These are buyers who do not know your brand yet but are actively looking for what you sell. Conversion rates are lower (1–4%) and CPCs are higher (₹15–₹80) than brand, but this is where new customer acquisition happens.
Example keywords:
Budget: 10–20% of total. Bid strategy: tCPA or tROAS. Metric: Assisted ROAS, new customer rate.
Competitor
Intercept & convert
Keywords: competitor brand names, competitor + product, "competitor alternative." These buyers are deep in the consideration phase — they have chosen a category, possibly a product, but have not committed to a brand. The conversion rate is low (0.5–2%) and Quality Scores are typically 3–5, so CPCs run high. Use sparingly and measure by assisted conversions, not just direct ROAS.
Example keywords:
Budget: 5–10% of total. Bid strategy: Manual CPC or tCPA. Metric: Assisted conversions, CPA.
Match types & negatives
Match types control reach. Negatives control waste. Both need weekly attention.
In India, broad match can burn 40–60% of your Search budget on irrelevant queries if negatives are not actively maintained. I use a specific match type strategy for e-commerce accounts and review search terms weekly — not monthly — because even a few days of unchecked broad match can waste thousands of rupees.
| Match Type | How It Works | When I Use It | Risk Level |
|---|---|---|---|
| [exact] | Matches the exact query (plus close variants) | High-value product keywords with proven conversion history | Low |
| "phrase" | Matches queries containing the phrase (in order, with additions) | Category keywords and brand + product combinations | Medium |
| broad | Matches any query Google considers semantically related | Only with Smart Bidding + strong negative list. Never on new campaigns. | High |
My negative keyword process
Shared negative keyword list added with 200+ known irrelevant terms (jobs, salary, free, PDF, course, wiki, meaning, etc.)
Search term report reviewed. Irrelevant queries added to negatives. New patterns identified and blocked at ad group or campaign level.
Cross-campaign negative review. Ensure brand terms are negative in non-brand campaigns. Ensure competitor terms are negative in category campaigns.
Full negative list audit. Remove outdated negatives that may be blocking valid queries after market changes.
Indian e-commerce: queries I always block
These appear in almost every e-commerce search term report in India. They waste budget on non-buying intent.
Ad copy strategy
RSAs for e-commerce: headlines that sell, not headlines that describe.
Responsive Search Ads give Google 15 headlines and 4 descriptions to mix and match. Most e-commerce accounts fill these with generic product descriptions. I write headlines that address buyer objections, highlight differentiators, and include conversion triggers (pricing, shipping, reviews, urgency) that Shopping ads cannot communicate.
✕ Generic headlines (what I replace)
Buy Cotton Kurtas Online
Best Kurtas for Women
Shop Now at Our Store
Quality Cotton Kurtas
Wide Range of Kurtas
✓ Conversion-focused headlines (what I write)
Organic Cotton Kurtas — ₹799 Onwards
Free Shipping on Orders Over ₹999
4.6★ Rated by 12,000+ Buyers
Easy 7-Day Returns, No Questions
New Arrivals — Summer 2026 Collection
Every RSA I write uses at least 3 headline types: product + price anchors (sets expectations), trust signals (reviews, ratings, years in business), and action triggers (free shipping, easy returns, limited time). Descriptions reinforce USPs and include a clear call to action. I pin the strongest headlines to positions 1 and 2 to ensure they always show, while leaving positions 3–15 flexible for Google to test combinations.
Search in the full-funnel context
How Search, Shopping, and PMax work together — not against each other.
The biggest risk with adding Search campaigns to an account that already runs Shopping and PMax is cannibalisation — all three campaign types bidding on the same query and competing against each other in the auction. I prevent this with clear keyword separation, negative keyword cross-mapping, and budget allocation rules.
| Query Type | Primary Campaign | Why |
|---|---|---|
| "buy blue denim jacket men" | Shopping | Product-specific intent. Shopping shows image + price + reviews — higher CTR than text ads for this query. |
| "best winter jackets for men India" | Search (category) | Category-level. Buyer is comparing options. Search ad with USPs + landing page wins over a product listing. |
| "Zara jacket alternative India" | Search (competitor) | Competitor intent. Shopping won't target this well. Search ad positioning you as the alternative. |
| "[your brand] jacket" | Search (brand) | Brand query. Low CPC defence. Brand Search excludes this from PMax to prevent cannibalisation. |
| Broad discovery across all surfaces | PMax | Cross-channel reach. PMax handles the unpredictable, long-tail queries across Search, Display, YouTube. |
Anti-cannibalisation rule: Brand terms are added as negatives in non-brand and competitor campaigns. Competitor terms are added as negatives in category campaigns. PMax gets account-level brand exclusions. This ensures each campaign only serves on the query types it is designed for — no internal competition, no budget waste.
What goes wrong
6 Search Campaign Mistakes I Fix in E-commerce Accounts
All keyword types in one campaign
Brand, category, and competitor keywords in a single campaign means your ₹5 brand clicks and ₹60 category clicks share the same budget and bid strategy. Smart Bidding cannot optimise for both simultaneously. Separate campaigns, separate budgets, separate targets.
Broad match without negatives or Smart Bidding
Broad match in India matches almost anything. "Cotton kurta" can trigger ads for "kurta stitching class," "kurta meaning," or "kurta manufacturer in Surat." Without a robust negative list AND Smart Bidding to filter intent, broad match becomes a budget drain within days.
Sending Search traffic to the homepage
A buyer searching "best organic face serum for oily skin" who lands on your homepage has to find the product themselves. A dedicated category or product landing page with the same keywords in the headline converts 2–5× higher. I build landing page recommendations into every Search campaign plan.
Ignoring the search terms report
The search terms report is where you see exactly what Google matched your keywords to. Reviewing it monthly is not enough for e-commerce — new irrelevant patterns appear weekly. I check it every week and add negatives immediately. One week of unchecked broad match can waste 15–20% of a month's Search budget.
Using Maximise Clicks on e-commerce Search
Maximise Clicks optimises for volume, not value. It drives the cheapest clicks possible — which for e-commerce often means low-intent, information-seeking queries. For non-brand Search, tROAS or tCPA is almost always better because it forces Google to find buyers, not browsers.
Not cross-referencing Search with Shopping coverage
If Shopping already covers a specific product query effectively, adding a Search ad for the same keyword creates internal competition that raises your CPC without adding conversions. I use SEMrush and auction overlap data to identify gaps where Search adds value versus where it just duplicates Shopping coverage.
Go deeper
Related E-commerce Ads Guides
E-commerce Google Ads Overview
Full-funnel management — Shopping, PMax, and Search built around your actual margins.
Campaign Strategy
Structure, budget allocation, margin-based ROAS targets, and scaling roadmap.
Performance Max Guide
How to structure, audit, and extract transparency from PMax campaigns.
Measurement & Tracking
GA4, GTM, enhanced conversions — the tracking foundation everything depends on.
Attribution Models
Why last-click misleads e-commerce decisions and which models work better.
Full Campaign Management
Done-for-you Google Ads — setup, weekly optimisation, and transparent reporting.
Common questions
E-commerce Search Campaign FAQ
My Shopping campaigns are already performing well. Do I really need Search?
Shopping is designed for product-specific queries. If a buyer is not searching for a specific product — they are searching for a category, a comparison, a problem, or a competitor — Shopping either does not trigger or shows a generic product listing with no message control. Non-brand Search captures this traffic. Whether you need it depends on your growth goals: if Shopping and PMax are maxed out and you want to acquire new customers, Search is the next lever. I always recommend testing with a small budget (₹15,000–₹30,000/month) before committing to a full Search expansion.
Should I bid on competitor brand names?
It depends on your market and margins. Competitor bidding has the lowest conversion rates (0.5–2%) and highest CPCs of any Search campaign type because your Quality Score for competitor terms is inherently low (your landing page does not match the competitor brand query). But it works well for considered-purchase categories where buyers actively compare brands — fashion, electronics, skincare. I only recommend it when your gross margin can absorb the higher CPA, and I measure success by assisted conversions (competitor ads often start journeys rather than finishing them) rather than direct ROAS.
How do I prevent Search and Shopping from competing on the same queries?
Short answer: they will both show on some queries, and that is fine — Google can serve both a Shopping ad and a Search ad on the same results page, giving you two positions. The risk is internal CPC inflation. I manage this by focusing Search on queries where Shopping does not trigger well (category, comparison, problem-aware), using negative keywords to exclude product-specific queries from Search campaigns (let Shopping handle those), and monitoring auction overlap reports monthly to catch any emerging cannibalisation.
What budget should I allocate to Search for my e-commerce account?
Brand Search typically gets 5–10% of total budget — it is a low-CPC defence campaign, not a growth campaign. Non-brand Search gets 10–20% depending on how much category and competitor demand exists for your product type. Competitor Search gets 5–10% maximum. Combined, Search typically accounts for 20–35% of a well-structured e-commerce account, with Shopping and PMax taking the remaining 65–80%. I start with a smaller allocation and scale based on assisted conversion data and new customer acquisition rates.
Where should Search ad clicks land — homepage, category page, or product page?
It depends on the query intent. Category queries ("best face serums India") should land on a curated category page with filters and multiple product options. Specific product queries ("niacinamide serum 10%") should land on the product page. Brand queries can land on the homepage. Never send non-brand traffic to the homepage — the buyer has to navigate from scratch, which drops conversion rate by 60–80% compared to a relevant landing page. I include landing page mapping in every Search campaign build.
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