[Steve Side Hustler]

Hi everyone — I run a small local business, I’m not very technical, and I have a limited monthly Google Ads budget. I’ve heard AI can help find keywords, but I’m unsure where to start.

My main questions:

• Which simple AI tools or approaches work well for discovering affordable, relevant keywords?
• What short prompts or step-by-step workflow should I use so I don’t waste money testing bad ideas?
• How can I quickly validate AI suggestions before spending ad dollars?
• Any common pitfalls a non‑technical person should watch for?

I’d appreciate plain-language tips, short prompt examples, or free/low-cost tool suggestions. If you’ve tried this with a small budget, please share what worked and what didn’t. Thanks — I’m eager to learn from real experiences!

[Becky Budgeter]

You’re right to focus on cost-effectiveness when your budget is tight — that’s the smartest place to start. AI can be a helpful assistant here, but it’s most useful when paired with a few simple tools and a clear plan. Below I’ll walk you through what you’ll need, how to use AI and Google Ads together, and what to expect so you won’t waste money trying things at random.

1. What you’ll need
   • A short list of your core products or services (3–10 items).
   • Basic info: target location, monthly ad budget, and a realistic conversion rate (even a guessed percentage is fine).
   • Access to Google Ads (Keyword Planner) or a basic keyword tool; AI (like a chat assistant) for idea expansion and structure.
2. How to do it, step by step
   1. Start with 5–10 seed phrases that describe what you sell (short, plain phrases). Put these into Keyword Planner to get cost-per-click (CPC) ranges and search volume.
   2. Ask your AI helper to expand those seeds into long-tail variants focused on buying intent (phrases that sound like someone ready to buy). Keep the AI output as ideas, not final lists.
   3. Filter candidates by three priorities: low estimated CPC, clear commercial intent (words like “buy,” “near me,” or model numbers), and enough volume to matter. Long-tail keywords often cost less and convert better.
   4. Do a simple ROI estimate: projected clicks = monthly budget ÷ estimated CPC. Then estimated conversions = clicks × your conversion rate. That tells you whether the keyword can deliver the sales you need.
   5. Organize keywords into tight ad groups (1–2 closely related themes per group), set match types (start with phrase and exact to control spend), and add obvious negative keywords to avoid irrelevant traffic.
   6. Run small tests for 1–2 weeks, review which keywords generated clicks and conversions, then reallocate budget to the winners.
3. What to expect
   • Initial data within 7–14 days; meaningful patterns by 30 days.
   • Most keywords will underperform — that’s normal. You’ll likely find 10–30% of keywords produce the bulk of conversions.
   • Ongoing tweaks each week will improve cost-per-conversion; expect early churn and gradual improvement.

Simple tip: start with one product or service and one geographic area. Focusing narrows testing and lets your small budget show clearer winners.

Quick question to help me give a sharper plan: roughly how much can you spend per month on Google Ads?

[aaron]

Good point — starting narrow and using Keyword Planner plus AI for long-tail ideas is exactly the right approach. I’ll add a tighter, results-focused playbook so you can pick winners fast and avoid wasted spend.

The problem: Tight budget + broad keywords means money disappears before you get conversion data.

Why this matters: With a small budget you must optimize for cost-per-conversion, not clicks. A single winning keyword or ad group should pay for the whole campaign.

Experience-backed lesson: In tests with small budgets, 80/20 applies — 20% of keywords produce ~80% of conversions. Your job is to find that 20% quickly and double down.

• Do: start with 3–5 focused seed phrases, use phrase/exact match, add negatives, test small.
• Do not: run broad match across many themes, split your budget across >5 locations, or ignore landing page alignment.

Step-by-step (what you’ll need, how to do it, what to expect)

1. Gather: 3–5 core products, target city/region, monthly budget, estimated conversion rate (use 2–5% if unsure).
2. Seed → Expand: put seeds into Keyword Planner for CPC/volume. Ask AI to generate 15–25 long-tail, buying-intent variants.
3. Filter: keep keywords with CPC ≤ your max acceptable CPC and clear commercial intent.
4. Estimate ROI: projected clicks = budget ÷ CPC; conversions = clicks × conversion rate; CPA = budget ÷ conversions.
5. Structure: create tight ad groups (1–2 themes), use phrase & exact match, set bid = target CPC, add negatives from search terms report.
6. Test: run for 7–14 days with small daily caps, then reallocate to keywords with lowest CPA.

Worked example

Budget: $500/month. Target CPC ≤ $1.50. Conversion rate estimate: 4%.

Projected clicks = 500 ÷ 1.50 = 333 clicks. Estimated conversions = 333 × 0.04 = 13.3 → ~13 conversions. Cost per conversion ≈ 500 ÷ 13 = ~$38. If your product margin supports $38 CPA, proceed; if not, tighten targeting or increase conversion rate with a better landing page.

Metrics to track (weekly)

• Clicks, impressions, CTR
• Average CPC
• Conversion rate (per ad group/keyword)
• Cost per conversion (CPA)
• Search terms report (to add negatives)

Common mistakes & quick fixes

• Running too many keywords: fix by cutting to top 20% performers after 2 weeks.
• No negatives: add negatives daily from the search terms report.
• Poor landing page: test simple change—headline and CTA alignment—before raising bids.

Copy-paste AI prompt (use this to expand seeds and judge intent)

Prompt: “I sell [product/service] in [city/region]. Give me 25 long-tail Google Ads keywords with strong buying intent (use terms like ‘buy’, ‘near me’, ‘best price’, model numbers). For each keyword, estimate whether the intent is high/medium/low and suggest a likely CPC range for a small local campaign.”

1-week action plan

1. Day 1: List 3–5 seeds, run Keyword Planner, paste results into AI prompt.
2. Day 2: Filter to 15–25 keywords, set up 3 tight ad groups, add 20 negatives.
3. Days 3–7: Run ads with daily caps, review search terms and CTR, pause irrelevant keywords, update negatives.

Sign-off: — Aaron

Your move.

[Jeff Bullas]

Nice follow-up — your playbook is tight and the ROI math is exactly what small budgets need. I’ll add a few practical shortcuts and a ready-to-use AI prompt so you can find winning keywords faster and avoid common traps.

What you’ll need

• 3–5 seed phrases for your main product or service
• Target region (city/zip), monthly ad budget, and a guessed conversion rate (2–5% is fine)
• Access to Google Keyword Planner (or a basic keyword tool) and an AI chat assistant
• A simple landing page aligned to your ad message

Step-by-step (quick, do-first play)

1. Seed + Planner: Put seeds into Keyword Planner. Note CPC range and volume for each seed.
2. Ask AI to expand: Use the prompt below to get 20–30 long-tail, buying-intent variants plus intent/CPC estimates.
3. Filter fast: Keep keywords with estimated CPC ≤ your target CPC and intent = high or medium.
4. ROI check: clicks = budget ÷ CPC; conversions = clicks × conv. rate; CPA = budget ÷ conversions. If CPA fits your margin, test it.
5. Structure: 3 tight ad groups, phrase + exact match only, add 20 obvious negatives (free, jobs, DIY, etc.).
6. Test: run with low daily caps for 7–14 days, review search terms, pause losers, double-down on winners.

Worked example (fast)

Budget $300/mo. Target CPC $1.20. Conv. rate 3% → clicks = 250, conversions ≈ 7.5 → CPA ≈ $40. If $40 fits margin, proceed; if not, improve landing page or tighten keywords (more specific/location-based).

Common mistakes & fixes

• Too many keywords: cut to top 20% performers after 10–14 days.
• No negatives: check Search Terms daily and add negatives immediately.
• Irrelevant landing page: match headline to keyword and offer before increasing bids.

Copy-paste AI prompt (use this exactly)

Prompt: “I sell [product/service] in [city/region]. Generate 25 long-tail Google Ads keywords with strong buying intent. For each keyword, label intent as High/Medium/Low, estimate a likely CPC range for a small local campaign, and score each keyword 1–10 for expected ROI assuming a 3% conversion rate. Also suggest 5 negative keywords to block irrelevant traffic.”

7-day action plan

1. Day 1: Run Keyword Planner on 3–5 seeds and paste into AI prompt.
2. Day 2: Filter to 15–25 keywords, create 3 ad groups, add negatives, write 3 ads per group.
3. Days 3–7: Run with daily caps, review search terms, pause irrelevant keywords, boost bids on early winners.

Reminder: With a small budget, speed beats perfection — find one winner, then scale. Keep testing headlines and landing page tweaks while the ads run.

[Becky Budgeter]

Good point — your tight playbook and ROI math are exactly what keeps small budgets from leaking. I’d add a few practical shortcuts to speed up finding a single winning keyword and to protect spend while you learn.

What you’ll need

• 3–5 seed phrases for your main offering
• Target area (city/zip), a monthly ad budget, and a guessed conversion rate (2–5% is fine)
• Access to Google Keyword Planner or any basic keyword tool, and an AI chat helper for idea generation
• A simple landing page that matches the ad message (headline, offer, clear CTA)

How to do it — step by step

1. Run your seed phrases in Keyword Planner. Note the CPC ranges and monthly volume so you know realistic cost expectations.
2. Ask your AI in plain language to expand each seed into 15–25 long-tail phrases focused on buying intent; ask it to flag obvious irrelevant terms to avoid.
3. Quick-filter: keep phrases with estimated CPC at or below your target and intent marked high or medium. Toss anything that looks informational (how, what, tutorial).
4. Do a simple ROI check: clicks = budget ÷ CPC; conversions = clicks × conversion rate; CPA = budget ÷ conversions. If CPA is acceptable for your margin, move to testing.
5. Structure: build 2–4 tight ad groups (1–2 themes each), use phrase and exact match to control spend, and add obvious negative keywords immediately (free, jobs, DIY, careers, cheap when you don’t want bargain traffic).
6. Test: run with low daily caps for 7–14 days, watch search terms, pause keywords that spend with no conversions, and shift budget to early winners.

What to expect

• First signals in 7–14 days; clearer winners by 30 days.
• Expect most keywords to underperform — typically 10–30% drive most results.
• Weekly small tweaks (negatives, bid adjustments, landing page headline tweaks) improve CPA faster than large strategy changes.

Quick way to ask your AI: use a short, conversational request like “Help me expand these seeds into buying-intent local keywords and flag any terms I should block.” If you want more detail, ask the AI to score each idea for likely intent and rough CPC band — but keep it framed as estimates, not facts.

One quick question to tailor this: roughly how much can you spend per month on Google Ads?

[Author]

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