PPC on competitor's names

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I found an interesting article regarding whether PPC directed at keywords which are modeled after your competition's company name could be viewed as a matter of Google TOS and ethics.

http://certifiedknowledge.org/blog/q...me-in-ad-copy/

What do you guys think if I targeted my competitor's company name with adwords?
#search engine optimization #competitor #names #ppc
  • Be careful.

    I would not use other people's product names without approval.
  • If you poke around on adwords you can see some pretty large brands doing it consistently. I don't have any legal knowledge on the subject though.
    • [1] reply
    • My concept was more along the lines of ethics and what role it plays in targeting a competitor's prospects by way of PPC. I wouldn't ask for legal advice on warriorforum.
  • Banned
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  • You can use competitor's brand names as keywords, but you cannot use them in your ad copy.
    • [3] replies
    • Exactly. And usually, Adwords displays an error message when you try to save an ad with a Trademarked word in it.
    • Can you please provide a source?
      • [1] reply
    • You can use them both. Google only says they "may" restrict them.
      Pretty hard to do in the US. Free speech. A company must really
      be able to prove something. Darn near impossible.

      If you sell iphones, well, what else are you going to use? ephone?

      Google clearly allows it.

      Paul
  • Targeting competitor keywords is not an issue, unless it is trademark or something, however be careful before using your competitor's name in your ad.
  • In addition to whether you can use it in the ad text or not, you probably will have a low quality score unless you have your competitor names on your site somewhere. The clicks could get pricey.
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    PPC on competitor's names

    I found an interesting article regarding whether PPC directed at keywords which are modeled after your competition's company name could be viewed as a matter of Google TOS and ethics. http://certifiedknowledge.org/blog/q...me-in-ad-copy/