Identifying Underperforming Amazon PPC Terms

Signals to Review Before Adding Negatives

A single weak metric rarely tells the full story. Look for terms that combine meaningful spend with one or more warning signs: clicks without conversions, return on ad spend below the account target, or repeated appearance in multiple campaigns with the same weak outcome.

• High click volume but very few or no orders
• Spend above a set ROAS threshold without enough conversions
• The same term appears in multiple campaigns yet keeps missing the efficiency target

Once those terms are identified, the Amazon Negative Keyword Tool by Todoza can help organize a cleanup list for negation or bid reduction.

Marketplace-Level Comparisons

The same search term can behave differently in the US, UK, or Germany. A term that converts well in one marketplace may drain spend in another. Group performance by marketplace before making negative decisions, and account for differences in competition, purchase behavior, and currency.

• Review the same term side by side across each marketplace
• Compare conversion rate and order value relative to local expectations
• Apply marketplace-specific rules instead of a single global cutoff

This reduces the risk of negating a term globally when it only underperforms in one region.

When This Matters

This level of review matters most when campaigns run across multiple accounts or regions. Without a consolidated method, an underperforming term can hide across several reports and slowly consume budget. A structured review also helps team members apply the same decision logic used when building early-warning rules for Amazon PPC campaigns.