How to Generate Workaround Keywords

AdsWords is the technology that suggests alternative keywords for your ads — variants and phonetic typos of popular terms that still carry the same purchase intent, but cost a fraction of the CPC. To access it: on the product row, click Keywords.

The problem with expensive keywords

If you've ever tried advertising on Google Ads as an affiliate, you've probably run into the same wall: the keywords that actually convert are expensive. Sometimes $0.60, $1, even $2 or more per click.

The logic seems cruel — the most profitable products attract the most aggressive advertisers, who push the CPC up, and whoever is starting out simply can't compete. But there's a loophole most people ignore.

What is the Workaround Strategy?

The Workaround Strategy consists of identifying variations and phonetic typos of popular keywords — terms users misspell on Google — and advertising for those variants instead of the main keyword.

Why does this work? Because the user who types it wrong is still looking for the same product. The purchase intent is identical. It's just that nobody is competing for that variant, so the cost per click drops.

The core idea is simple:

• Original word: very expensive, heavy competition
• Variant (workaround): low CPC, almost no competition, same purchase intent

How do these typos happen?

There are three main sources:

1. Mobile keyboard typos — nearby letters on the phone's keyboard layout are frequently swapped. On a mobile QWERTY keyboard, for example, the letter y sits next to t. Fast typers can easily hit one instead of the other.

2. Phonetic errors — the user "stores" the product name by how it sounds, not how it's spelled. When searching, they type it the way they pronounce it mentally — and end up misspelling it.

3. Regional and language variations — international products advertised in multiple languages naturally generate spelling variations depending on the user's origin.

The result: a real volume of people searching for a word different from the product's official name — and you can capture those clicks for a fraction of the price.

The complete step by step

1. Find the variants with AdsWords

On the product row, click Keywords and select the Alternative Keywords tab. Pick the target language and click Search.

The tool uses AI to cross-reference product information with typing patterns typical of that language and shows you a list of variants, each with an explanation of why it makes sense.

For example, for a product called "NeoGast", the tool might suggest "NeoGas" as a variant, because:

• The letters t and s are close together on a mobile keyboard
• The user may have memorized the name with a different pronunciation

Each suggestion comes with the reasoning behind it, so you can judge whether the variant really makes sense for your audience.

2. Validate the search volume on Google

Once you have your list of variants, copy all of them with one click (AdsX has an automatic copy button) and go to Google Ads → Tools → Planning → Keyword Planner.

Select "Get search volume and forecasts", paste the words, and click Get Started. What you're looking for here:

• Variants with real search volume (even low — 100 to 1,000 is already enough)
• Low estimated CPC compared to the original keyword
• Variants that don't refer to a different product (this matters — search to confirm)

In the video example: the variant "Neo Gas" showed up with 100–1,000 monthly searches and a CPC of just $0.08, while the original word "NeoGast" had much heavier competition.

3. Set up the campaign correctly

Here's the technical detail that makes all the difference:

• Campaign keyword: use the variant (e.g., "NeoGas")
• Ad headlines and descriptions: use the correct product name (e.g., "NeoGast")

Why? Because you're telling Google you want to pay for users who search for the variant — but your ad talks about the correct product, which is what the user is actually looking for.

This produces a "Good" ad quality score on Google Ads (not "Excellent"), because Google notices the campaign keyword doesn't appear literally in the texts. But that's expected and completely acceptable for this strategy.

A "Good" score is more than enough here. You're not fighting for position 1 on ultra-competitive keywords. You're capturing a specific niche with extremely low competition.

What to expect in terms of volume

Be realistic: this is not a high-volume strategy. You'll get maybe 5 to 20 clicks a day on this campaign, because the number of people who type it wrong is naturally smaller than those who type it right.

But that's exactly why it works:

• Very low cost per click
• Zero or near-zero competition
• Same purchase intent from the user
• A campaign that doesn't burn through budget quickly

The idea is to stack several of these campaigns for different products, different variants, different languages. Each one runs at low cost and brings in consistent sales. Added up, the result is significant.

Why this works better with AdsWords

Finding these variants manually is a lot of work — you'd need to think through every possible phonetic typo, cross-reference it with keyboard patterns per language, and validate them one by one. AdsWords automates this analysis and delivers ready-made suggestions, with the reasoning explained, in seconds.

Final thoughts

The Workaround Strategy doesn't replace your main campaigns — it complements them. It's an extra layer of qualified traffic capture at minimal cost.

Before scaling any variant, always check that it doesn't point to a different product. That ensures you're capturing the right audience and avoids wasting budget.

Updated on: 18/08/2026