Local SEO (local search engine optimisation) is a type of SEO that focuses on optimising a websites online presence to attract more potential customers from local searches. Search engines look for signals such as local content, links, profile listings, and social media pages to gather information for local search results. With Google accounting for a 94.7% market share of search engine searches in Australia, most people are using Google to search for local businesses.

How Does Local SEO Differ from SEO?

The key difference between SEO and local SEO is that local SEO is targeted to a specific geographical location. The aim of local SEO is to get your products and services in front of potential customers within your geographic area. Local SEO uses the same tactics as a normal search engine optimisation strategy – quality content and link building, but with a specific focus on your region.

What are the Benefits of Local SEO?

Local searches are becoming increasingly prominent with 46% of all searches on Google having a local intent. In the past 2 years alone there has been a 900% growth in ‘near me’ searches. Google knows that when a consumer is searching for a local business or service they tend to state the name of a city, town or postcode. For example, rather than searching “blinds”, you instead search “blinds Newcastle”. With this slight modification you go from telling Google you want to know about blinds in general to you want blinds stores in Newcastle.

Google Ads

How To See All Your Competitor’s Google Ads for Free

Brogan Renshaw

Founder & Director Firewire

Updated On:

March 12, 2025

It’s always necessary to be aware of your competitors’ strategies, particularly when it comes to running Google Ads campaigns.

In business, it’s handy to always have one eye on your competitors. Gaining insights into their advertising strategies, such as keywords, ad copy, and landing pages, allows businesses to adapt and improve their own campaigns. Fortunately, there are ways to access this valuable information without spending a cent.

Key Takeaways

By conducting manual searches using specific operators and filters in Google, advertisers can uncover competitor ads running for targeted keywords.
Manual search techniques allow advertisers to gain insights into their competitors' ad messaging, offers, and strategies without relying on expensive tools.
Regularly monitoring competitors' ads can help inform ad strategy adjustments, identify trends, and stay competitive in the market.
While this approach provides a free method for competitor research, it requires ongoing effort and may not be as comprehensive as paid competitive analysis tools.

Identifying Your Google Ads Competitors

Let’s start by being clear about what you can’t do:

See exactly what your competitors are spending
See exactly which Google Ads keywords your competitors are bidding on

However, you can spy on your competitors Google Ads and:

Gain insights on what competitors are up to
Analyse their strategy by what they are targeting in search ads
Understand how this data may map to campaign results
Leverage your own data to make educated assumptions on how well their campaigns perform.

To identify your competitors and see their ads for free, you can follow several steps.

Firstly, conduct thorough market research to shortlist the businesses that are competing with you in your industry. This can be done by searching for keywords relevant to your products or services on search engines, such as Google, and examining the ads displayed on the first page. Performing this task at regular intervals will provide you with fresh insights into the competition.

If you are already running a Google Ads campaign, another effective means of finding competitors is through the ‘Auction Insights’ report. This report can offer valuable information on your competitors’ performance, such as their impression shares, average positions, and overlaps in your targeted keywords. This helps you better understand their strategies and ultimately make informed decisions for your own campaigns.

By regularly monitoring your online presence and that of your competitors, you can maintain a clear and confident understanding of your market’s landscape. This approach will help you make data-driven decisions and enable you to stay ahead of the competition.

There are various tools and methods available to see your competitors’ Google Ads for free.

Identifying Your Google Ads Competitors

Google Ads Transparency Center

One of (if not the best way) the ways is utilising Google’s Ads Transparency Center. This is currently by far the best free site to gather information on competitors’ Google Ads. You can view:

How many ads are they running
What type of ads are they running, search, YouTube, display
When each ad was last shown
The Ad copy
Call to Action
Promotional Offers
If they are running dynamically generated search ads
What images are they running on search ads
What videos are they running on YouTube ads
What banner ads they are using for display

The Google Ads Transparency Center is a wealth of information on all your competitors. This should be your first stop in your own Google Ads strategy and competitor analysis.

Using Google Ads Auction Insights Report

The Google Ads Auction Insights Report is a powerful tool that provides valuable information about your competitors’ advertising strategies. It allows you to assess your ad performance relative to other advertisers participating same google ad auctions and in the same auctions as you. By using this report, you can identify competitors’ best practices and adapt your strategies accordingly.

The Auction Insights Report includes several key metrics that help you understand your position within the auction. Some of these metrics are:

Impression Share: This metric indicates the percentage of impressions your ads received in comparison to the total number of impressions available. A higher impression share suggests that your ads have a stronger presence in the auction.
Overlap Rate: Overlap rate shows the percentage of times your ads were shown alongside those of other advertisers. A high overlap rate may imply that you are targeting similar keywords or audiences as your competitors.
Average Position: The average position reveals where your ads rank compared to other ads in the auction. A lower average position means that your ads typically appear higher on the search results page.
Top of Page Rate: This metric shows the percentage of times your ads appeared at the top of the search results page, above organic results. A higher top-of-page rate suggests that your ads are more competitive and more likely to be visible to users.

To access the Google Ads Auction Insights Report, follow these steps:

Log in to your Google Ads account and navigate to the ‘Campaigns’, ‘Ad Groups’, or ‘Keywords’ tab, depending on the level of detail you wish to view.
Select the campaigns, ad groups, or keywords for which you want to see the auction insights.
Click on ‘More’ in the toolbar, and then select ‘Auction Insights’ from the drop-down menu.

The Google Ads Auction Insights Report is a valuable resource for better understanding your competitors’ advertising strategies and gauging your ad performance in the auction.

Manual Competitor Analysis

Another approach to uncover advertising strategies is by conducting a manual competitor analysis. By regularly searching for relevant keywords, businesses can observe patterns in ad displays, identify common themes, and track any significant changes in competitors’ ads. This practice not only unveils competitors’ targeting tactics but also indicates their current areas of focus and investment.

Social media platforms can also provide valuable data on competitors’ advertising. Facebook’s Ad Library and Twitter’s Ads Transparency Center are excellent resources for identifying rivals’ messaging and promotions on these popular platforms. Regularly monitoring these sources of advertising research can reveal trends, new campaigns, and the demographics they are targeting.

Third-Party Tools

SEMrush

SEMrush is a popular choice among marketers, offering insights into your competitors’ advertising strategies. It allows you to access valuable data such as keywords, ad copy, and even landing pages used in their campaigns. The user-friendly interface makes it easy to navigate and gather essential information.

Ahrefs

Ahrefs is another reliable tool for competitor analysis. Their Site Explorer function provides a wealth of data on organic and paid search, traffic, backlinks, and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising. This data empowers you to make informed decisions on your own advertising campaigns and better understand the competitive landscape.

Adbeat

Adbeat is a unique platform that specifically focuses on display advertising. This tool provides information on how your competitors are allocating their budgets, the creatives they are using, and the websites their ads are appearing on. This information can help you refine your own strategies and target appropriate audiences.

SpyFu

SpyFu is perfect for those looking for a comprehensive google ads competitor analysis platform. It not only identifies your competitors’ Google Ads but also provides in-depth information on their organic search performance and backlinks. By better understanding your competitors’ tactics, you can devise effective strategies for your campaigns.

Utilising these third-party tools can give you a competitive edge in the ever-evolving world of online advertising. By knowing your competitors’ strategies, you can build your campaigns to stand out, target the right audience, and achieve better results. Each tool offers unique benefits, so carefully consider which one works best for your needs and enhances your Google Ads efforts.

Tips to Outrank Competitors Google Ads

One of the main goals in of a Google Ads competitor analysis is to outrank competitors. In this section, we will discuss some tips to help businesses outrank their competition on Google Ads, leveraging their knowledge of competitor ads to their advantage.

Monitoring Competitor Ads: The first step to outranking your competition is keeping an eye on their Google Ads. This can be done as shown above, using various free and paid tools. By monitoring their ads, you can identify potential opportunities, improve your ad creatives, and adjust your bidding strategy accordingly.
Prioritise High-Value Keywords: Businesses should consistently analyse their keyword strategy and identify high-value keywords with the most potential for success. Monitoring competitor ads will help in understanding the keywords they are targeting and determine if those have relevance to your business. Focusing on high-value, profitable keywords your competitors may overlook can give you a competitive edge.
Utilise Negative Keywords: To optimise ad spend and improve ad relevancy, it is essential to make use of negative keywords. These are the search terms that prevent your ads from showing up when irrelevant search queries are made. Evaluating competitor ads can help identify which search terms are not aligned with your business and should be added as negative keywords.
Create Compelling Ad Copy: Businesses must invest time and effort into creating ad copy that stands out from their competitors. Instil a sense of urgency, address customer pain points, and showcase your unique selling propositions to attract potential customers. Monitor competitor ads to learn their strategies and create compelling, persuasive copy that drives your target audience to take action.
Optimise Landing Pages: Along with optimising ad creatives, improving the landing page experience is crucial to driving conversions. Analyse competitor landing pages to identify areas that can be improved on yours. Ensure your landing pages are mobile-friendly, fast-loading, and have clear calls to action.
Implement A/B Testing: Regularly testing different ad variations and landing pages can help in identifying the most effective combination to drive conversions. Monitor the performance of your ads and make data-driven decisions to achieve optimal ad performance, thereby outranking your competition.

Marketers can conduct a thorough competitive analysis by utilising platforms such as the Google Ads Transparency Center, Auction Insights Report, and ad preview tool. These free tools empower businesses to identify successful keywords, ad copy, landing pages, ad placements, and bidding strategies within their industry.

By analysing and incorporating these insights into their own digital marketing efforts, businesses can tailor their Google Ads campaigns for optimal performance. This ultimately leads to improved marketing efficiency, greater return on investment, and increased brand exposure in the competitive digital landscape.