If you’re running pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns and not keeping an eye on your competitors, you’re only seeing part of the picture. PPC competitor analysis is one of the most valuable tools in your digital marketing arsenal— and it’s not there for copying your rivals, but for outmanoeuvring them.
At our UK web design and PPC agency, we take a process-driven approach to PPC marketing competitor analysis, where we focus on collecting the right data, drawing real-world insights, and turning them into strategies that drive conversions.
Here’s how to do a proper PPC competitor analysis, what tools you’ll need, and how this research informs conversion-focused campaign content across your ads and landing pages.
What Is PPC Competitor Analysis?
PPC competitor analysis involves studying the ads, keywords, budget, and landing pages of your competitors to understand their paid search strategy. It helps you:
- Identify gaps in your own campaigns
- Discover new keywords to target
- Understand messaging that resonates in your industry
- Evaluate landing page structure and content
It also answers key questions:
- How much are my competitors spending on PPC?
- Which keywords are they bidding on?
- What does their ad copy look like?
- Where are they sending traffic?
Done right, competitor PPC analysis allows you to spend smarter, not more.
Step 1: Identify Your Real Competitors
Start by listing your actual PPC competitors. These aren’t always the same as your SEO rivals or your known business competitors.
To find competitors bidding on your key terms:
- Google your top search terms and see which ads appear
- Use tools like SEMrush, Ahrefs, or SpyFu to identify advertisers targeting your keywords
- Check the auction insights in your Google Ads account
Some competitors may only target certain regions, products, or services, so segment accordingly. Yellowball’s team uses layered market research to tailor our analysis to each client’s business priorities.
Step 2: Find Competitor Keywords (PPC-Specific)
Next, dig into your competitors’ PPC keyword strategy. The goal is to find:
- Branded terms they’re bidding on (including your own)
- High-intent keywords you may have missed
- Long-tail phrases used in search ads
Tools to find competitors’ keywords in PPC:
- SEMrush: Use the Advertising Research tool to see keywords, ad copy, and landing pages
- SpyFu: Great for historical data on competitors’ PPC keywords
- Ahrefs: Filter keyword results to include only paid keywords
Make note of terms with high commercial intent. These often include action-driven phrases like “book,” “buy,” “compare,” or “near me.”
Learn more about building high-converting campaigns with our guide on creating PPC landing pages that convert.
Step 3: Check Competitor Google Ads Creatives
Want to know how to spy on competitors’ Google Ads? Start by looking at their ad copy.
Use tools like:
- Google Ads Transparency Centre: Shows active ads from any advertiser
- SEMrush Ad History: View creative changes over time
- iSpionage: See keyword-to-ad-to-landing page mapping
Look at:
- Their unique selling points (USPs)
- Calls to action
- Offer formats (free trials, discounts, bundles)
- Headline structures
- Use of sitelinks, callouts, or price extensions
Strong ad creative is only part of the story. Where those ads lead matters just as much—more on that next.
Step 4: Analyse Landing Pages and Funnel Strategy
Click through on competitor ads (using incognito or VPN if necessary) to inspect their landing pages. Here’s what to look for:
- Is it a dedicated PPC landing page?
- How fast does the page load?
- Does the messaging match the ad copy?
- Are there persuasive CTAs above the fold?
- Is it clear who the product/service is for?
Tools like BuiltWith or Wappalyzer can also reveal if your competitors are using landing page builders or A/B testing software. This helps you understand how sophisticated their conversion strategy is.
At Yellowball, we often reverse-engineer landing pages as part of a broader CRO strategy—pulling in insights to design web pages that convert with sharp messaging, well-timed CTAs, and a structure informed by user psychology.
Step 5: Monitor Competitor PPC Spend
You don’t need their ad account credentials to estimate competitor PPC spend. Use the following tools:
- SEMrush: Estimate monthly ad budgets based on traffic volume and keyword cost
- SpyFu: Gives historical and estimated monthly ad spend
- SimilarWeb: Provides traffic and media spend benchmarks
Use this data to benchmark your own investment. Are they outspending you significantly, or are you matching them in performance without blowing the budget? If their spend is high, but their creative or landing pages are weak, that’s your opportunity to outperform them with smarter execution.
Want help turning these insights into action? Our team uses this intel to fine-tune PPC messaging, structure, and conversion goals across your campaigns.
Step 6: Check Competitors’ Google Display Ads
Wondering how to check competitors’ Google Display Ads? Tools like Moat and Adbeat can show you where your competitors are placing banner ads and what those creatives look like.
Look at:
- Display ad formats (static, HTML5, video)
- The publishers and placements they use
- Retargeting strategies across the Google Display Network
For many of our clients, display remarketing is one of the most cost-effective channels. Seeing how your competitors approach display can reveal gaps in their funnel—and chances for you to intercept their audience with smarter creative and better targeting.
Step 7: Identify Missed Opportunities
Not every competitor is doing everything right. Part of effective PPC competitor research is spotting what they’re missing.
Examples:
- They bid heavily on generic keywords but don’t cover competitor terms
- Their mobile landing experience is poor
- They don’t use countdown timers or urgency triggers
- Their ad copy is vague or lacks trust signals
- They don’t offer free trials, guarantees, or pricing transparency
By mapping their weak spots, you can develop a stronger proposition—both in your ads and on your landing pages. Our approach at Yellowball is to use PPC competitor analysis to build standout messaging, not follow the crowd.
Step 8: Use Data to Strengthen Every Stage of Your PPC Funnel
What sets a winning campaign apart? It’s the ability to turn research into strategy. Competitor paid search analysis is only valuable if it leads to smarter decisions across:
- Keyword targeting and match types
- Bid strategy and audience targeting
- Ad copy and extension structure
- Landing page design and content
This is where Yellowball’s process-driven methodology shines. We apply competitor insights directly to:
- Craft compelling, conversion-focused ad messaging
- Design landing pages that anticipate objections and drive action
- Prioritise user experience and site speed
- Split-test USPs, headlines, and CTAs across campaigns
Bonus Tip: Track Seasonal Trends in Competitor PPC Activity
One of the most overlooked aspects of PPC competitor analysis is understanding seasonal patterns in your industry and how your competitors respond to them.
Most industries experience seasonal peaks and troughs in demand, and savvy advertisers adjust their PPC strategy accordingly. For example, eCommerce brands ramp up ad spend ahead of Black Friday, while tax advisors push hard in Q1. If you’re not monitoring these shifts, you risk getting outbid—or missing opportunities during quieter periods.
So how do you spot seasonal trends in your competitors’ PPC activity?
- Use Google Trends to track search interest in key commercial terms throughout the year.
- Use SEMrush or SpyFu to see monthly fluctuations in your competitors’ keyword targeting and estimated ad spend.
- Cross-reference these with your own performance data to identify strategic gaps.
Let’s say you notice a competitor increases bids on “wedding photography packages” from October to January, targeting early planners. You can use this insight to prepare ad creative and landing pages ahead of time, improving your ad quality score and relevance before the surge begins.
Alternatively, spotting when competitors pause or pull back on spend can reveal cost-effective windows to dominate impression share with a tighter budget.
At Yellowball, we factor these patterns into our campaign planning from day one, ensuring your strategy aligns with audience demand, not just your calendar.
How to Spy on Winning Competitors’ Google Ads—Ethically
If you’re wondering how to spy on winning competitors’ Google Ads without crossing ethical lines, focus on publicly available data:
- Use Google search and ad preview tools
- Explore Google Ads Transparency Centre
- Monitor landing pages and ad extensions
Everything you need is already out there. It’s not spying—it’s strategy.
Explore more actionable strategies in our full library of marketing and web design guides.
Better Insights, Smarter PPC Campaigns
PPC marketing competitor analysis isn’t about copying what other people are doing, it’s about understanding what they’re doing and what they’re missing. By unpacking your competitors’ strategies, you gain the clarity to improve your own campaigns from end to end.
At our PPC and web design agency in London, we bring this clarity to every PPC project we take on—applying hard data, creative thinking, and a strong CRO mindset to help clients build campaigns that convert.Want to know how your competitors stack up—and how you can do better? Contact us to get the ball rolling.
