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Google Search Ads Spy Tool

by maxoq
8 replies
  • PPC/SEM
    • |
Hi all,

I am facing the following issue.

My Google Search ads lose / gain positions every day because of competitors' activity.

Since Google Adwords shows you incorrect Average Position I cannot track where my ad went down.

Example:

Google Adwords shows Avg. Position 2.0, However, in reality, the ad appears below organic listings or even on the 2nd page! (Checked with Google Ad Previewer & via VPN)

On top of that, Adwords does not support real time alerts for any changes in the account. At least nothing I am aware of.

Therefore I need a 3rd party tool to get accurate data.


My Question:

Is there an affordable tool that tracks my competitors Search Ad positions and alerts me real time via email?

I know about Whatrunswhere, but it is expensive as heck.
I have tried SEMRush but they have weekly reports only.

Thank you in advance for your help !
#ads #google #search #spy #tool
  • Profile picture of the author MMYERS0429
    Give iSpionage a twirl. We use to do competitive snooping at it's been pretty helpful for us.
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    • Profile picture of the author dburk
      Hi maxoq,

      AdWords does not show incorrect average position.

      They call it "average" position, because the position tends to differ with each search query, based on ad rank score. Because ad rank score is calculated separately for each query your actual ad position tends to fluctuate, especially if you, or your competitors, are using broad match keywords, or targeting different locations, or using bid adjustments.

      You can indeed see when your ads are ranking higher, or lower by using the segment button in your AdWords report data. You can see you ad position by day of week, and even hour of day. The data is there, you just need to know where to look. Here's a link to help you learn how to use the segment option to see you ad positions by hour of day:
      https://support.google.com/adwords/answer/2454008?hl=en
      Signature

      * Get Results - Outsource Your PPC Management |
      *       Don Burk Advertising & Marketing - www.donburk.com

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      • Profile picture of the author maxoq
        They call it "average" position, because the position tends to differ with each search query, based on ad rank score.
        dburk, I agree. Maybe I should have structured my question better... It's more like:

        How to make sure I am on the top of the search results page as opposed to the bottom or even second page?

        Here are 2 examples:

        1) Avg. Position 2.0; Two advertisers bidding on that term; My ad ALWAYS appears at the bottom of the page.

        2) Avg. Position 1.0; I am the single advertiser bidding on that term; My ad ALWAYS appears at the bottom of the page.

        I know the reason is low AdRank, and therefore I will have to increase my bid and/or ad quality.

        However, I need to absolutely make sure I am alerted on time when 1) or 2) occurs, so I can immediately adjust bids / ad quality.

        I don't think that Adwords has a feature allowing you to see that. (I have tried something called "Search Page Location Targeting" but was very disappointed to see that this feature calculates bids on Avg. Position)

        That is why I am looking for 3rd party data solution.
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    • Profile picture of the author maxoq
      MMYERS0429, thank you!

      It looks impressive so far.. I have scheduled a demo.
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      • Profile picture of the author dburk
        Hi maxoq,

        Third party data sources will not have the data you need, You can use the AdWords API to access the data.

        Alternatively, you can use build custom segments for ad slot positions in Google Analytics, or use Custom Alerts to be notified whenever specific ad slot positions are occuring.

        Be aware that you need to be using exact match keywords, and include only one keyword per ad group, else you ad positions are going to fluctuate based upon the relevancy of the search queries, in addition to location based competition.

        Other options that might be useful include
        Signature

        * Get Results - Outsource Your PPC Management |
        *         Don Burk Advertising & Marketing - www.donburk.com

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        • Profile picture of the author maxoq
          dburk,

          Thank you for the very detailed and well-structured answer.

          Initially, I thought of using Google Analytics' functionality - Custom Reports / Advanced Segmenting + Custom Alerts.

          So it seems the way to go for now.. while looking for 3rd party monitoring tool.
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  • Profile picture of the author Bob Fadi
    iSpionage is best for you, I use this and get good results....
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    • Profile picture of the author maxoq
      Originally Posted by Bob Fadi View Post

      iSpionage is best for you, I use this and get good results....
      Thank you Bob Fadi,

      I've contacted iSpionage and they do not support daily alerts.

      The tools that work for me would be: WhatRunsWhere, Adclarity, Adbeat. Unfortunately they are expensive as heck... starting from $250/m
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