How to Spy on Competitors' Google Ads

Two Approaches (Depending on Your Experience)

If You've Been Running Google Ads: You have actual data showing who you're competing against in ad auctions. This is the gold standard for competitive intelligence.

If You're New to Google Ads: You'll need to make educated guesses based on market knowledge. Refine this later once you have data.

Using Auction Insights (For Advertisers with Data)

How to Access:

1. Log into your Google Ads account
2. Navigate to Campaigns
3. Select Insights and Reports
4. Click on Auction Insights

Example Auction Insights Data

Domain	Impression Share	Overlap Rate	Position Above Rate
amazon.com	45%	38%	52%
[Your Business]	32%	-	-
competitor1.com	18%	65%	28%
competitor2.com	15%	58%	22%

Choosing the Right Competitors to Analyze

Ideal Competitor Characteristics:

• Direct Product/Service Overlap: Sell very similar products, target the same customer segments
• A Few Steps Ahead: Slightly larger than you, been advertising longer, higher ad spend

Why "A Few Steps Ahead" Matters:

Competitor Type	Why It's Good/Bad
Too Similar (Same Size)	They haven't figured it out yet either
Too Far Ahead (Industry Giants)	Different economics, can't replicate their approach
A Few Steps Ahead (Sweet Spot)	Have done testing you can't afford, learnings apply to you

What Is the Ad Transparency Center?

Google's free public database showing all ads currently running by any advertiser using Google Ads.

Access: adstransparency.google.com (No login required, completely free)

What You Can See

• All active ads from any advertiser
• Ad formats (text, image, video)
• Placement types (Search, Shopping, YouTube, Display)
• When ads last showed
• Total number of ads running

What You Can't See

• Performance metrics (ROAS, conversion rates)
• Ad spend amounts
• Targeting details (keywords, audiences)
• Bidding strategies

Critical Settings to Configure

Setting	Options	Recommendation
Time Frame	Any Time, Custom Range	Start with "Any Time" for comprehensive view
Geographic Location	Country/Region	Select where ads are SHOWN, not where company is based
Platforms	All, Search, Shopping, YouTube, Display, Gmail	Start broad, then drill down to relevant platforms

Example Analysis

Competitor: Baby Mori

• Total Ads Running: ~400 ads
• Shopping: 200+ ads
• Search: 300+ ads
• YouTube: 31 video ads
• Display: Extensive imagery

What This Tells You: Serious advertising investment, likely running Performance Max, sophisticated omnichannel strategy. High-priority competitor to analyze.

Part 1: Identify Active Ad Formats

Count volume in each format to identify priorities:

Format	Number of Ads	Interpretation
250+ Image Ads	High Priority	Shopping/Display is core strategy
300+ Text Ads	High Priority	Search is cornerstone
31 Video Ads	Medium Priority	Active testing but not primary focus

Part 2: Drill Into Text Ads (Search Campaigns)

Look for Language and Messaging Patterns:

Benefit-Focused vs. Feature-Focused

• Benefit-Focused: "Breathable bamboo keeps baby comfortable all night"
• Feature-Focused: "Made from 100% organic cotton"

Note which dominates—it tells you what resonates with customers.

Common Keywords and Phrases

Repeated Language = Tested Language

Example: Seeing "organic" appear in 50+ headlines strongly suggests customers care about organic materials.

Offer Strategies

• Discount Variations: "20% off your first order", "Summer sale: 60% off"
• Free Shipping Thresholds: "Free delivery over £65"
• Bundle Offers: "Buy 2, save 25%"
• Risk Reversal: "30-day money-back guarantee"

Market Segmentation

How are they segmenting their messaging?

• Age-Based: "Premature baby clothes", "Newborn essentials", "Toddler clothing"
• Use-Case: "Sleep training essentials", "Feeding time basics"
• Benefit: "For sensitive skin", "For hot sleepers"

If a competitor segments heavily: Generic messaging doesn't work well. Test segmented ad groups with specific messaging for each segment.

The Intelligence Extraction Framework

For each competitor, document:

1. What They're Testing

• How many ad variations are they running?
• What angles are they testing?
• What offers appear most frequently?

2. What's Working (Inferred)

High Volume = Tested and Working

• If they're running 50+ variations of one headline style, it's likely converting
• If an offer appears across multiple campaigns, it's probably successful
• Long-running ads (check date ranges) indicate sustained performance

3. Gaps and Opportunities

• What platforms are they NOT using?
• What audiences are they ignoring?
• What messaging angles are absent?

Competitive Intelligence Template

Category	Competitor A	Competitor B	Our Strategy
Primary Platform	Shopping + Search	Display + YouTube	?
Key Messaging	Organic, Premium	Affordable, Fast	?
Main Offer	20% first order	Free shipping £50+	?
Targeting	Newborn focus	All ages	?
Gaps	No video	No premium angle	Opportunity

The Model, Don't Copy Principle

Copying: Using their exact headlines, images, or offers → Bad (unoriginal, potentially legal issues)

Modeling: Understanding the strategy behind their approach and applying it to your brand → Good (smart competitive intelligence)

What to Model

Model This	Don't Copy This
Offer structure (% discount, thresholds)	Exact offer wording
Messaging angles (benefits, pain points)	Exact headlines
Platform strategy	Creative assets
Campaign structure approach	Brand elements
Segmentation strategy	Customer testimonials

Example Transformation

Competitor Headline: "Organic Baby Clothes - 20% Off First Order - Free Returns"

What to Model:

• Structure: [Product Category] - [Offer] - [Risk Reversal]
• Elements: Discount percentage, free returns policy

Your Version: "Premium Infant Wear - 15% Welcome Discount - 60-Day Returns"

Same strategic structure, completely different execution.

The 3-Layer Modeling Approach

1. Layer 1: Strategy - What are they doing? (Platform mix, offer types, audience focus)
2. Layer 2: Tactics - How are they doing it? (Ad formats, messaging angles, CTAs)
3. Layer 3: Execution - How will YOU do it? (Your brand voice, unique value props, creative assets)

Weekly Routine (30 minutes)

1. Check top 3 competitors in Ad Transparency Center
2. Note any new ad formats or messaging angles
3. Document significant changes
4. Identify test ideas for your own campaigns

Monthly Deep Dive (2 hours)

1. Full analysis of 5-10 competitors
2. Update competitive intelligence template
3. Identify market trends across competitors
4. Plan next month's testing based on insights

Quarterly Strategic Review (Half day)

1. Review Auction Insights trends
2. Assess which competitor strategies to model
3. Identify new competitors entering the market
4. Update overall competitive positioning

Red Flags to Watch For

• New Competitor Appearing: Sudden new player in Auction Insights with high impression share
• Competitor Scaling Up: Significant increase in ad volume (they found something that works)
• Competitor Testing New Platforms: Expansion to YouTube, Display, etc.
• Aggressive Offer Changes: Deeper discounts, better guarantees (preparing for competition)

Action Triggers

Observation	Potential Action
Competitor running 100+ video ads	Consider YouTube advertising
All competitors using free shipping threshold	Test your own threshold
No competitor targeting specific segment	Opportunity to own that segment
Competitor disappeared from auctions	Investigate—did they fail or pivot?