Google custom segments for B2B: recipes by role and buying stage
How to build Google Ads custom segments for B2B: keywords, search terms, URLs and apps that describe your buyers, where segments work, and recipes by role.
Google custom segments let B2B advertisers describe their buyers by the searches they make, the websites they read and the apps they use. They are the closest Google gets to role and ICP targeting. Build one segment per buyer role and stage, use them in Display, Demand Gen, YouTube and Gmail, and measure them on engaged accounts.
What a custom segment is
A custom segment is an audience you define with your own inputs. According to Google Ads Help, you can add three kinds:
- Keywords, as interests or purchase intentions. Google reaches people whose browsing and search behaviour suggests interest in those topics.
- Search terms. People who searched for these terms on Google properties. This option only applies to campaigns running on Google properties; elsewhere, the terms are used as interests.
- URLs and apps. People who browse websites similar to the ones you enter, or use similar apps. Your ads will not necessarily show on those sites or apps.
Custom segments work in Display, Gmail, Demand Gen and Video campaigns. They cannot be added directly to Performance Max; there you use them as audience signals instead. Segments can't be shared between accounts.
Why custom segments matter in B2B
Google doesn't let you target job titles, companies or industries. A B2B buyer is still a person with a daily routine: they search for specific problems, read trade publications, use certain tools and visit certain communities. Custom segments let you describe that routine.
A segment built only from your product category ("expense management software") reaches people who are already shopping. A segment built from the job ("month-end close checklist", "accounts payable automation", "IFRS 16 lease accounting") reaches the finance people who will be shopping soon. You want both.
How to build a good segment
- Start from one role in your ICP. Pick the economic buyer, the user or the technical evaluator. Mixing them dilutes the segment. Use your ideal customer profile to choose.
- List the problems they search for. Pull from sales calls, support tickets, your site search and the buyer questions you track. Write them as real searches, three to six words long.
- Add the tools they use. Integrations, adjacent software, file formats and standards that only your buyers care about.
- Add the sites they read. Trade publications, professional associations, review and comparison sites in your category, and specialist communities. Avoid general news and huge platforms, which add reach but no signal.
- Remove consumer meanings. "Payroll" also means "my payslip". "Pipeline" also means plumbing. Drop or qualify ambiguous terms.
- Check the estimate. If the segment is very small, broaden; if it is enormous, it probably contains generic terms.
Keep each segment focused on one idea. Twenty to fifty strong inputs usually say more than three hundred loose ones.
Recipes by role
The examples below are illustrative starting points, not tested lists. Replace them with the language your own buyers use.
| Role | Search-term ideas | URL and app ideas | Avoid |
|---|---|---|---|
| Finance leader | "month-end close process", "cash flow forecasting model", "audit readiness checklist" | Accounting and finance trade publications, professional body sites, ERP community forums | "personal budget", "tax refund" |
| IT and security | "SSO for SaaS apps", "SOC 2 vendor review", "endpoint management comparison" | Security news sites, admin communities, cloud provider documentation | "phone repair", "antivirus free" |
| Operations | "warehouse slotting optimisation", "supplier scorecard template", "OEE calculation" | Supply chain and manufacturing publications, industry association sites | "home organisation" |
| Sales leadership | "sales territory planning", "pipeline coverage ratio", "CRM data hygiene" | Revenue operations communities, sales methodology blogs | "sales jobs", "retail sales" |
| HR and people | "employee onboarding workflow", "compensation bands by role", "HRIS migration" | HR association sites, people analytics publications | "job search", "resume tips" |
By buying stage
Role tells Google who; stage tells Google when.
- Problem stage: searches about the pain and how others solve it. Larger reach, lower intent. Use for awareness with educational creative.
- Solution stage: searches about the category, features and integrations. Smaller, warmer. Use comparison and proof creative.
- Vendor stage: searches for alternatives, pricing models and reviews in your category. Smallest and most expensive. Use demo and trial offers.
A practical setup is one campaign per role, with two or three ad groups by stage, each using its own custom segment.
Where custom segments fit in an ABM plan
Custom segments reach people, not accounts. They will reach the right roles at companies you've never heard of, and that is useful, but they can't promise delivery to a named account. Combine them with tools that do work by account:
| Goal | Google tool | Account precision |
|---|---|---|
| New reach toward your ICP | Custom segments | Low before a visit |
| Follow-up with target accounts | Company audiences after a visit | High, after the first visit |
| Find more people like your best visitors | Lookalike segments in Demand Gen | Medium |
| Cold reach to named accounts | Not available on Google; use Microsoft company targeting | High on Microsoft |
When a custom segment brings a visitor from a company that fits your ICP, company identification can add that company to your list and move its visitors into a company audience. That is how a people-based tool feeds an account-based programme.
Settings that protect B2B budgets
- Watch optimised targeting. In some campaign types Google can expand beyond your segment to find conversions. If your conversion goal is shallow, expansion often finds cheap, off-target traffic. Turn it off for early tests, or feed it pipeline conversions.
- Apply placement exclusions. Segments decide who sees the ad; exclusions decide where. Both matter. See placement exclusions for B2B.
- Use audience reporting. Compare segments on cost per engaged account, not CTR.
- Refresh quarterly. Buyer language changes. Revisit inputs when you update your buyer questions.
How IntentBid helps
IntentBid builds ICP custom segments in your own Google Ads account from the searches your buyers make and the sites they read, based on your ICP and buyer questions. It pairs them with company audiences after a visit and suggests lookalike companies for your list. You pay Google directly, with 0% fee on media spend. Campaigns are created paused with compliance checks, and company engagement reporting shows which segments brought accounts that fit.
FAQ
What replaced custom intent and custom affinity audiences?
Google merged them into custom segments. The search-terms option covers what custom intent used to do on Google properties.
Can custom segments target job titles?
No. Google offers no job-title targeting. Custom segments approximate a role by describing what people in that role search for and read. For real job function targeting, use Microsoft Advertising.
Can I enter competitor websites?
Google lets you enter any URL to describe the kind of sites your audience browses. Your ads won't appear on those sites. Many teams prefer category, trade and comparison sites, which describe the buyer more reliably.
Do custom segments work in Performance Max?
Not directly. In Performance Max you can add them as audience signals, which guide the system but don't restrict delivery.
How big should a segment be?
Large enough to deliver steadily at your budget. If a segment barely serves, add related problem searches or sites; if it reaches far beyond your market, remove generic inputs.
Build ICP segments and company audiences in your own Google Ads account. Start a 14-day trial, no card needed.