Yandex Direct vs. Google Ads / Bing Ads

Match types and negative keywords

Yandex Direct

Broad Match

Keywords will be shown for all incoming search queries. For example, the keyword iphone 6s will be shown on search queries:

• iphone 6s cases
• iphone 6s release date
• iphone 6s price
• iphone 6s wallpaper

You need to add the maximum number of negative keywords if you use broad match.

In Yandex.Direct you can use operators to refine a keyword:

• !  Matches the form of the word (case, number, and tense).

For example, keyword: “buy !apple iphone”. Ads will be shown for such search queries as buy apple iphone, but not buy apples iphone.

• +  Matches stop words (auxiliary parts of speech and pronouns, and any words that do not add meaning).

Keyword: iphone +from hong kong

Ads will be shown for iphone from hong kong

Ads will not be shown for iphone hong kong or iphone in hong kong

• “ “  Matches the exact number of words. Displays ad for search queries that contain the keyword without any additional words. Repeated words are considered as one word. It doesn’t match the order of words.

Example 1. Keyword: “buy iphone”

Ads will be shown for buy iphones or iphone buy

Ads will not be shown for buy iphone 6s or buy red iPhone

Example 2. Keyword: “buy iphone in shop in us”. There are six words in the search query, but the preposition in is repeated and counted as one. So any single word can be added to the search query.

Ads will be shown for buy iphones in shop in us, buy red iphones in shop us and buy used iphones in us shop

• [  ] Matches the order of words. This takes into account all word forms and stop words.

Keyword: tickets [from new york to moscow]

Ads will be shown for tickets from new york to moscow or cheap tickets from new york to moscow

Ads won’t be shown for tickets new york moscow or tickets from moscow to new york

• ( ) and | Group words in complex search queries.

Keyword: buy iphone (new york|los angeles)

Ads will be shown for buy iphone new york, buy iphone los angeles or buy cheap iphone in new york

• Official article from Yandex https://yandex.ru/support/direct/keywords/symbols-and-operators.html?lang=en

Related Keywords

“Related keywords are keywords which are automatically selected to extend the list of keywords set by the advertiser. These new keywords can help you increase your target audience and waste less time selecting keywords.”

Negative Keywords and Phrases

There are 3 levels of negative keywords in Yandex Direct:

1. Campaign. Campaign will be not shown on search queries content set negative keywords.
2. Ad group. Keywords will be used only in Ad Group.
3. Keyword. Keywords won’t be shown on search queries content negative words. It is done in order to avoid competition between keywords.

For example, keywords cheap hotels and cheap hotels london.

We need to add negative keyword london in cheap hotels  to avoid competition:

cheap hotels -london

We can not add negative keyword on keyword level on Google Ads or Bing Ads. Yandex Direct adds negative keyword on keyword level automatically or you can add them manually in Direct Commander.

Keyword will be shown if the negative keyword contains the keyword.

Below you can see the screenshot with an example of keywords added on campaign level:

Note: “We can use operators and phrases in negative keywords.”

Placement Exclusions

We can exclude placement in Google Ads on group or campaign level. In Yandex.Direct ad network we can add placements exclusions only on campaign level.

Google Ads

Broad Match

Ads will be shown on all incoming search queries that include misspellings, synonyms, related searches and other relevant variations. The symbols of Google Ads broad match are the same of the symbols of Yandex Direct’s broad match.

Broad match in Google Ads is wider than Yandex Direct. For example, the keyword man’s fitness can be shown on such search queries as boy’s fitness, man’s physical exercises, etc.

Broad Match Modifier

The search queries match the word and its forms. Keyword +buy +car  will be shown on such search queries as buy red car, buy used car.  The words “buy” and “car” will be included in the search queries.

Broad match modifier does not consider word order.

Phrase Match

A keyword is enclosed in quotation marks (“ ”). Ads will be shown on search queries that contain the keyword or close variations of it. In the queries, additional words can be after or before. But they can not be inside the keyword. And matches the order of the words.

For example, the keyword “tickets new york london”.

Ads will be shown for the following search queries:

• buy tickets new york london
• tickets new york london sales

And ads will not be shown for:

• buy tickets london new york
• tickets schedule new york london

Exact Match

“Ads may show for searches that match the exact term or are close variations of that exact term. Close variations here may also include a reordering of words if it doesn’t change the meaning, and the addition or removal of function words (prepositions, conjunctions, articles, and other words that don’t impact the intent of a search). The keyword [women’s hats] enclosed in square brackets may show up when someone searches Google for “women’s hats”.

Ads will not show if the search queries contain other words in, before or after the keyword in the exact match.

For example, the keyword [buy iphone] will not be shown for such queries as:

• buy red iphone
• buy iphone sales

Negative Match

If you don’t sell red iPhones, you can exclude the word “red”. Ads will not be shown for such queries as buy red iphone.

Ads of Google Ads in contrast to the ads of Yandex.Direct will not be shown if the negative keyword contains the keyword.

For example, keyword buy iphone and negative keyword iphone. In this case, the keyword buy iphone will not be shown.

Placement Exclusions

You can exclude placements from the Google Display Network on account, campaign or group-level.

Official Google Ads article: https://support.google.com/adwords/answer/7478529?hl=en&visit_id=1-636474224965412922-1057639975&rd=1

Bing Ads

On Bing Ads, the match type is the same as on Google Ads. Bing Ads has the same differenences from Yandex Direct as Google Ads.

Official Bing Ads article about type match: https://advertise.bingads.microsoft.com/en-in/resources/training/keyword-match-options

Ad Formats

Yandex Direct

Search Ads

Components of search Yandex ad:

There are 3 main differences between Google Ads and the Yandex Direct advertising systems regarding search ads:

1. Quantity of valid symbols on Yandex Direct:

Title 1 — 35 symbols

Title 2 — 30 symbols

Ad text — 81 symbols

Display link – 20 symbols

4 Sitelinks – total length 66 symbols

Callouts – total length 66 symbols

2. Quantity of the symbols in Yandex Direct doesn’t include the quantity of the points, commas and exclamation marks.

3. The Google Ads and Yandex Direct consist in a #2 title. The #2 title of Yandex Direct will be shown not in all cases in contrast to the second title of Google Ads. The display of #2 title in Yandex Direct advertising system depends on the amount of space the two titles take up.

Don’t forget to add ad extensions: sitelinks, callouts and vcard.

Yandex Advertising Network (YAN) Ads

YAN is the analog of Google Display Network. There are two ad formats on YAN: Text & Image ad and Image ad.

Text & Image ad is the same as search ad. The only difference is that you can add an image to an ad.

Pay attention to Yandex’s recommendation:

“You can add images to ads in Yandex.Direct in both the standard image size (with an aspect ratio of 1:1 to 3:4/4:3) and the wide-format image size. They will be served in ads on different sites. To make sure your ads with images get good coverage, it’s recommended that in each ad group you create two version of the same ad — one with a standard image size, and one with a wide-format image size.”

Use all formats of the ads in combination to increase your chances of getting good coverage in ad networks.

You can also add videos to the Text & Image Ads:

An example of the video ads:

Image Ads are presented as banners. To create the Image ad you can upload ad creative or use templates:

Note: The YAN’s and search campaigns must be split in Yandex advertising systems in contrast to the Google Ads.

Google Ads

Search

There are 3 types of ads on search:

• text ad
• call-only ad
• responsive ad

Text ad. The principle is the same as on Yandex Direct. The quantity of symbols is different.

Headline 2 is shown always.

Quantity of valid symbols on Google Ads:

Headline 1 — 35 symbols

Headline 2 — 30 symbols

Description— 81 symbols

Display path – 2 paths, each 15 symbols

Sitelinks – 25 symbols

Callout extension – 25 symbols

There are more extensions than on Yandex Direct:

Сall-only ad. This type of ad will display on mobile devices only. Clicks on these ads let users call you from their smartphones. The Yandex Direct doesn’t support this type of ads.

Responsive ad. This ad’s format is supported on Google Display Network only.

Responsive ads are more flexible than ads on YAN (Yandex Advertising Network). The name speaks for itself =)

Google Display Network (GDN)

There are two types of GDN’s campaign:

• Display network (standard display and gmail)
• Ads on YouTube

The main differences between GDN and YAN are concluded in targeting and types of campaigns. There are many targeting options in GDN: audiences, demographics, keywords, topics, placements and automated targeting.

On Yandex Advertising Network we can choose basically keywords and remarketing lists (also e-mail and telephone, but they are rarely used). When we choose keywords, it works like content targeting and behavioral targeting together.

As we see, there are fewer functions in the YAN than in the GDN.

Bing Ads

In the first step, Bing suggest importing campaign from Google Ads

Bing Ads is the young brother of Google Ads. That’s why the difference between Bing’s ads and Yandex.Direct is the same difference as between Google Ads and Yandex. Direct.

Read our article on Bing Shopping vs Google Shopping if you are struggling to decide between these two platforms for your e-commerce store.