Virginia Beach → Richmond Migration
Exact changes to match Richmond's campaign structure
Richmond runs one Search campaign, 12 ad groups, 58 keywords, and 198 negatives. It generates 607.5 conversions at $206 CPL. Virginia Beach runs two campaigns, 8 ad groups, 38 keywords, and 553 negatives. It generates 318.4 conversions at $364 CPL. This page lists every specific change — by name, by keyword, by match type — to close that gap.
Richmond runs zero Performance Max. VB's PMax campaign "A - VB P Max- 03-29-24" spends $68,245 and claims 549.7 conversions at $124 CPL — but PMax cannibalizes brand searches that would convert cheaper in Search. Richmond proves you don't need PMax when your Search campaign is structured correctly.
⚠️ IMPORTANT
Pause first, don't delete. Monitor for 2-4 weeks. If Search campaign absorbs the brand traffic (which it should — Richmond's Brand ad group captures 62.2% of all conversions without PMax), then delete permanently.
VB has 8 ad groups. Richmond has 12. These 4 are missing from VB. Two of them — Closets and Pantry Systems — are Richmond's 2nd and 3rd cheapest ad groups at $170 and $169 CPL respectively.
| KEYWORD | MATCH TYPE |
|---|---|
| closets | Exact |
| walk in closets | Exact |
| reach in closets | Exact |
| wardrobe closets | Exact |
| KEYWORD | MATCH TYPE |
|---|---|
| pantry shelving | Exact |
| pantry shelving systems | Exact |
| walk in pantry shelves | Exact |
| best shelves for pantry | Exact |
| pantry built ins | Exact |
| KEYWORD | MATCH TYPE |
|---|---|
| linen closets | Exact |
| custom linen closet | Exact |
| KEYWORD | MATCH TYPE |
|---|---|
| luxury closets | Exact |
Richmond has these keywords in its existing ad groups that VB does not. All should be added as Exact match.
| AD GROUP | KEYWORD TO ADD | MATCH | NOTE |
|---|---|---|---|
| Closet Builders | closet contractor | Exact | Richmond has 4 keywords, VB has 3 |
| Closet Companies | closet organizing companies | Exact | $134 spend, 1.8 conv in Richmond |
| Closet Companies | best closet company | Exact | New keyword |
| Closet Companies | closet design company | Exact | New keyword |
| Closet Design | closet design near me | Exact | $366 spend, 1.0 conv in Richmond |
| Closet Design | professional closet design | Exact | New keyword |
| Closet Types | custom walk in closets | Exact | New keyword |
| Closet Types | floating closets | Exact | New keyword |
| Closet Types | custom made closets | Exact | New keyword |
| Competitors | container store custom closets | Exact | New keyword |
| Competitors | creative closets | Exact | New keyword |
These keywords exist in VB but not in Richmond. Remove them and replace with the Richmond equivalents listed in Change 3 above.
| AD GROUP | KEYWORD TO REMOVE | REPLACE WITH |
|---|---|---|
| Closet Companies | closet organizer company | closet organizing companies |
| Closet Companies | closet design companies | closet design company |
| Closet Cabinetry | closet drawers and shelves | No replacement (not in Richmond) |
VB runs 41.7% Broad Match ($573 CPL). Richmond runs 17.3% Broad Match ($379 CPL). The fix: add Phrase match versions of top keywords so Google prioritizes Phrase over Broad.
| KEYWORD | AD GROUP | NOTE |
|---|---|---|
| "closet factory" | Brand | Richmond runs Phrase + Broad variants of brand term |
| "custom closets" | Closet Types | Capture phrase-level intent |
| "closet systems" | Closet Types | Capture phrase-level intent |
| "closet company" | Closet Companies | Capture phrase-level intent |
| "closet design" | Closet Design | Capture phrase-level intent |
| "closet remodel" | Closet Builders | Capture phrase-level intent |
| "built in cabinets" | Closet Cabinetry | Capture phrase-level intent |
| "california closets" | Competitors | Capture phrase-level intent |
| "closets by design" | Competitors | Capture phrase-level intent |
How this works:
All 38 VB keywords are already Exact match — that's correct. The Broad match traffic (41.7%) comes from Google's AI Max feature expanding beyond those Exact keywords. By adding Phrase match versions of the same keywords, Google will prioritize the Phrase match (which is more controlled) over Broad expansion. This is exactly what Richmond does — it runs both Exact and Phrase versions of its top keywords, which is why Phrase match accounts for 29.8% of Richmond's spend vs. only 10% in VB.
Every single one of Richmond's 198 negative keywords already exists in VB's list. VB has 349 additional negatives that Richmond doesn't have. No negative keyword changes are required. VB's negative list is already a superset of Richmond's.
After pausing PMax, the Search campaign needs to absorb the budget — but not evenly. Richmond's secret weapon is its Brand ad group: 48% of all search spend, 62.2% of all conversions, $159 CPL. VB's Brand ad group currently gets only 16.5% of spend but already converts at $144 CPL — even cheaper than Richmond's. It's underfunded.
Specific Budget Actions:
After pausing PMax, total monthly budget drops from ~$13,143 to ~$8,268. Do not increase Search budget to match old total. Richmond spends less than VB and gets more conversions.
Increase Brand ad group bid/budget to capture ~48% of search spend (up from 16.5%). VB's Brand CPL is already $144 — cheaper than Richmond's $159. More budget here = more cheap conversions.
Reduce Closet Cabinetry ($651 CPL) and Closet Companies ($478 CPL) budget share. These are VB's most expensive non-brand ad groups. Richmond allocates only 5.2% each to these.
Closet Design ($1,130 CPL) and Closet Designers ($916 CPL) should be monitored closely. Richmond's Closet Design is also expensive ($440 CPL) but Closet Designers is much cheaper ($252 CPL). VB may need to restructure these ad groups' keywords.
Data: VB Search Terms Report (Jan 2025 – Feb 2026, 56,426 rows) vs. Richmond Search Terms Report (Jan 2025 – Feb 2026, 22,695 rows)
VB Negative Keywords: 553 | Richmond Negative Keywords: 198 | Overlap: 100%