Google Ads Search Terms Actions (Labs)

This node is a pure executor — all decision logic (rules, filtering) should be done upstream using KNIME nodes like Rule Engine, Row Filter, or Joiner.

Actions

  • Add as Negative Keyword: Block terms from triggering ads. Can be added at campaign level, ad group level, or to shared negative keyword lists (Account or MCC level).
  • Promote to Keyword: Add high-performing terms as keywords to gain more control over bidding and ad relevance.

Workflow Example

  1. Use Google Ads Query node to fetch search term performance data
  2. Join with CRM data (MQLs, opportunities) using Joiner node
  3. Apply rules using Rule Engine to decide which terms to act on
  4. Filter using Row Filter to keep only actionable terms
  5. Connect to this node to execute the actions

Preview Mode

Use Preview mode to review proposed changes before applying them. The output table will show what would happen without making any changes to your Google Ads account.

Duplicate & Conflict Detection

By default, the node queries existing keywords/negatives before processing to:

  • Detect duplicates: Keywords that already exist are marked with status "ALREADY_EXISTS" and skipped.
  • Detect conflicts: Warns when adding a negative keyword that conflicts with an existing positive keyword (e.g., adding "shoes" as negative when it's already a positive keyword in an ad group). The action is skipped and no changes are made to your Google Ads account.

⚠️ Shared Negative Lists (Account/MCC Level)

When adding negatives to Account Shared Negative Lists or MCC Shared Negative Lists, the node performs full conflict detection by checking keywords in all campaigns linked to the shared list. This includes checking for conflicts with both positive and negative keywords at campaign and ad group levels.

⚠️ Important: Skip Duplicate Check Option

The "Skip Duplicate/Conflict Check" option in Advanced Settings disables all pre-execution queries for better performance. When enabled:

  • No duplicate detection: Duplicates will only be caught when the API returns an error.
  • No conflict detection: Negative keywords that conflict with positive keywords will be added without warning. Google Ads allows this, but it can cause your positive keywords to stop triggering ads!

Use this option only when you're confident the keywords don't already exist, or for testing purposes.

Performance for Large Accounts

The node uses batched API queries to efficiently check for duplicates, even in accounts with thousands of ad groups and keywords. The batch size can be adjusted in Advanced Settings if needed (default: 100 ad groups per query).

Tip: Bulk Negative Uploads

This node works with any text input—not just search terms. You can bulk-add negative keywords from a seed list, CSV, or Excel file. Just provide a text column with the campaign/ad group resource names and the node will create the negatives for you. Common use cases: competitor brand terms, industry blacklists, or proven negatives from previous campaigns.

Options

Action

Choose whether to add terms as negative keywords or promote them to keywords.

Available options:

  • Add as Negative Keyword: Block search term from triggering ads.
  • Promote to Keyword: Add search term as a keyword to the ad group.
Scope

Choose where to add the negative keyword: campaign level, ad group level, or a shared negative keyword list.

Available options:

  • Campaign level: Add negative keyword at campaign level (blocks across all ad groups in the campaign).
  • Ad Group level: Add negative keyword at ad group level (blocks only in that ad group).
  • Account Shared Negative List: Add negative keyword to an account-level shared negative keyword list. Use this for lists created within the client account. Requires a column with the shared set resource name.
  • MCC Shared Negative List: Add negative keyword to an MCC-level (Manager Account) shared negative keyword list. Use this for lists created at the Manager Account level that are shared across client accounts. Requires a column with the shared set resource name.
Negative Match Type

Match type for negative keywords.

Available options:

  • Exact: Matches the exact search term only.
  • Phrase: Matches searches containing the phrase.
  • Broad: Matches broad variations of the term.
Keyword Match Type

Match type for promoted keywords.

Available options:

  • Exact: Matches the exact search term only.
  • Phrase: Matches searches containing the phrase.
  • Broad: Matches broad variations of the term.
Term Text

Column containing the term text to add as keyword or negative keyword.

Campaign Resource Name

Column containing Google Ads campaign resource names (e.g., 'customers/123/campaigns/456'). Not required for shared list scope.

Ad Group Resource Name

Column containing Google Ads ad group resource names (e.g., 'customers/123/adGroups/789'). Required for ad group negatives and keyword promotion.

Shared Set Resource Name

Column containing the shared negative keyword list resource name (e.g., 'customers/123/sharedSets/456'). Use the 'Negative Keyword Lists' pre-built query in the Google Ads Query node to retrieve available lists.

Mode

Preview generates a report without changes. Apply executes the changes.

Available options:

  • Preview: Generate proposed changes without applying them.
  • Apply: Apply the changes to the Google Ads account.
Skip Duplicate/Conflict Check

When enabled, skips the pre-execution check for existing keywords and conflicts. This significantly improves performance but has important implications: (1) Duplicates will only be detected when the API returns an error. (2) Conflicts between negative and positive keywords will NOT be detected — negative keywords will be added even if they conflict with existing positive keywords, which can cause your ads to stop showing for those terms. Use only when you're confident the keywords don't already exist or for testing.

Batch Size for Duplicate Check

Number of ad groups/campaigns to query per API call when checking for existing keywords. Higher values reduce API calls but increase query size. For accounts with thousands of ad groups, a smaller batch size may be more reliable. Default of 100 works well for most accounts.

Input Ports

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Connection containing credentials, customer ID, and optionally a Manager Account (MCC) ID to access the Google Ads API.

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Table containing terms and the required resource names (campaign, ad group, or shared set) depending on the selected action and scope.

Output Ports

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Results with status for each term action.

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Installation

To use this node in KNIME, install the extension KNIME Python Extension Development (Labs) from the below update site following our NodePit Product and Node Installation Guide:

v5.12

A zipped version of the software site can be downloaded here.

Plugin provider: KNIME AG, Zurich, Switzerland
Plugin version: 5.12.0.v202606171811
On NodePit since: 2026-08-08
Last update: 2026-08-08
Tags: Modern UI
KNIME versions: Since v5.12

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