1. Check Your Search Term Report
Go to Reports → Advertising Reports → Search Term Report.
Look for high-converting terms with no recent impressions.
If they disappeared after adding negatives — that’s your conflict.
2. Compare Against Your Negative Keywords
Review your negative keyword list (campaign and ad group level).
Look for overlaps between positive keywords and negative keywords — especially phrase and exact match types.
Example:
Targeting: "running shoes for men"
Negative Phrase: "running shoes"
→ This will block your target, causing underperformance.
3. Check for Broad/Generic Negatives
Sometimes broad negative terms (like “cheap” or “free”) unintentionally block long-tail converting queries.
Identify these by looking at keywords that previously converted, but are now excluded.
4. Use Amazon’s “Conflicting Keywords” Feature
In the Campaign Manager, Amazon often flags when a negative keyword is blocking a targeted term.
Go to the affected campaign → check for “conflict warnings” in the status area.
5. Pause/Remove Suspicious Negatives
Best Practices to Avoid Future Conflicts
| Tip | Why It Helps |
|---|
| Use exact match negatives more than phrase | Reduces risk of blocking related terms |
| Separate branded and non-branded campaigns | Helps apply negatives cleanly and with purpose |
| Regularly audit search term reports | Keeps you aware of lost opportunities |
| Document all negatives with intent | Know why each one was added to avoid guesswork later |
Tip:
Negative keywords are powerful—but if not managed carefully, they’ll block your best traffic. Troubleshooting is all about reverse-engineering what changed when performance dropped.
