What are negative keywords?
Negative keywords in WriteText.ai are terms you exclude from automated keyword analysis. When WriteText.ai scans for target keywords, it builds a candidate pool based on different available product and competitor data. Negative keywords filter terms out of that pool before they can enter your keyword optimization pipeline.
This feature is therefore used for keyword targeting, not as a content filter. Negative keywords do not prevent the AI from using a word in your generated copy. If WriteText.ai determines a term is contextually relevant to a product, it may still appear in the output even if that term is on your negative keyword list.
Why use negative keywords?
Negative keywords are most useful when you use full automation or bulk keyword analysis and can't review keywords for every page. They let you remove low-value or irrelevant terms from your SEO targeting automatically, without manual cleanup.
Common use cases include:
- Excluding competitor brand names from your keyword pool
- Filtering out discount-related terms like "sale," "cheap," or "free" that attract the wrong traffic
- Removing marketplace names (e.g., Amazon, eBay) that have no value for your own store's rankings
- Keeping your keyword strategy focused on terms that reflect your actual brand positioning
Default negative keywords
WriteText.ai includes a preloaded list of default negative keywords that filter out commonly low-value terms from automated analysis. This list covers popular ecommerce marketplaces and terms like "free," "cheap," and "sale" that most stores want to exclude from their keyword targeting by default.
All default negative keywords use the Contain match type, so any keyword containing the term is excluded. You can fully manage this list: edit or remove defaults, switch individual entries to Exact match for more precise filtering, or associate exclusions per webshop. For example, if you run a dedicated sale site, you can remove "sale" from that webshop's negative keyword list while keeping it excluded elsewhere.
Match types
Contain — Excludes any keyword that includes the term anywhere within it. Best for broad filtering where you want to catch all variations.
Exact match — Excludes only the precise word or phrase entered. Useful when a term appears in some valuable keywords you still want to capture.
Interaction with custom keyword pipelines
If you're building a custom keyword pipeline and try to manually add a keyword that matches one of your negative keywords, you'll see an error. You'll need to remove the term from your negative keyword list before adding it to the pipeline.
What negative keywords do not do
Negative keywords will not prevent a word or phrase from appearing in your generated content. If you want to stop certain language from appearing in your copy entirely — for compliance, brand voice, or any other reason — that requires a different approach.
How to manage negative keywords
Negative keywords are managed inside your platform.writetext.ai account.
1. From the left sidebar, click Keyword management.
2. In the Negative keywords panel, click Open negative keywords.
3. On the Negative keywords page, click Add negative keywords to add terms manually, or click Import to upload in bulk via CSV.
4. When adding manually: select the webshop(s) and language(s), choose a match type (Contain or Exact match), enter one keyword per line, then click Add negative keywords.
Use the filter options at the top of the page to narrow by webshop, match type, or language — especially useful if you manage multiple stores or have a long list.
Once saved, negative keywords are automatically applied to all future automated keyword analysis for the selected webshop(s).
Adding and managing negative keywords is a Pro feature.
Best practices
- Use Contain for broad filtering and Exact match for precision.
- Review your list periodically — over-exclusion can block valuable keywords over time.
- Combine negative keyword filtering with manual keyword review for the best results.
- Remember: negative keywords affect your keyword analysis only, not the text the AI writes.