How Many Keywords Do You Need in Google Search Ads for Local Businesses in the US

We examine how the principle of keyword selection has changed after Google algorithm updates, how the outdated SKAG strategy differs from the modern STAG approach, how many keywords are actually needed to launch, and what budget is best allocated for Google advertising to attract clients in the very first week.

A keyword is a targeting method for search advertising in Google. With its help, we indicate to the system who we want to show our ads to.

The working principle is simple: Google matches the specified keyword with the user’s search query. If there is a match — our ad is shown, if not — the ad is not displayed.

For example, if we set the keyword “plumber near me”, then our ad will be shown to users who are searching for something like “Boston plumbers near me”. At the same time, users who searched for “local pest control service LA” will not see our ad.

Until 2021, the SKAG (Single Keyword Ad Group) approach dominated the industry. Its essence was to create multiple ad groups, each containing only one keyword. The principle was simple: the more keywords, the better.

Within this approach, advertising campaigns could include up to 10,000+ keywords. This strategy actually worked and delivered results, but the situation changed with the update of Google’s algorithms.

Starting from 2022, Google significantly changed its algorithms. Now it’s not just about the number of keywords, but their structuring. The modern approach is called STAG (Single Theme Ad Group) — when ad groups are formed not by a single word, but by theme.

In STAG, there are two key aspects:

1. Depth — collecting all possible variations of one keyword query within a single theme.
2. Width — covering different themes within the niche.

It’s important how many “themes” we cover: for example, “plumber near me”, “drain cleaning”, “water leak detection”, “water heater replacement”, etc. Each theme represents a separate direction within one service area. There is no longer a need to write absolutely all words that can be found on the chosen theme.

If you are launching Google Ads for a local business in the US for the first time, it is enough to choose 1–2 themes:

• General theme, reflecting your main service (for example, “plumber near me”, “emergency pest control near me”)
• Specialized theme, related to a service that sells well for you (for example, “water leak detection”, “water heater installation”)

A specialized service often becomes an “entry point” — the client comes for it, remains in your database, and returns to order other services.

Within each theme, there is no need to strive for a huge number of keywords. Their number can vary from a few to several dozen, depending on your experience with contextual advertising. The main thing is not to go too deep, but to work by themes.

For most local businesses in the US that are just starting with Google Ads, the optimal starting budget is $25–50 per day for one location. This amount is quite sufficient for effectively launching and testing an advertising campaign.

We have a separate article in our blog about how much Google Ads advertising costs.

For local advertising in Google Ads, what matters is not the mass of keywords, but their thematic structure (STAG). Just 1–2 themes and a budget of $25–50 per day are enough to start attracting clients in the first week.