How to Do a Competitor Ad Analysis

Ad creative has become the number one impactor for Facebook ad success in 2024. This underscores the crucial role of compelling ad creatives in driving conversions and engagement. But making ads that convert is not an easy task. 

If you're seeking inspiration for your next batch of creatives, analyzing your competitor's ads or companies that target the same audience can be a powerful source of ideas. This process can spark creativity and innovation in your own ad strategies. 

In this guide, we’ll review the key opportunities for competitor ad analysis, including ad formats, messaging, creative elements, and engagement. These insights are invaluable, allowing you to create data-driven strategies that enhance your campaign performance and make informed decisions about your ad formats and messaging.

Define Your Competitors

Create a list of your competitors. These can be companies that offer similar products or services, or those that target the same audience. Visit each of their company's Facebook pages. You'll want to know what the account name is, and it can be found in the URL of their page.  

Use tools like the Facebook Ad Library or Foreplay. Co to see which competitors are actively running social media ads. Facebook Ad Library, in particular, allows you to see real-time ads from competitors on Facebook and Instagram. 

Prioritize competitors with similar target audiences or those consistently running high-engagement campaigns. High-engagement campaigns are those that receive a significant amount of interaction from the audience, such as likes, comments, and shares. As their strategies can provide the most relevant insights for your business.

Analyze Ad Formats

Ad formats play a crucial role in performance. Whether static images, videos, or carousel ads, each format serves a different purpose and appeals to different audience segments. The first step is to identify which ad types your competitors use. According to Marpipe, 1/4 of all digital ads on paid social were dynamic product ads in 2022. 

Compare the variety of formats used and track engagement metrics such as likes, comments, and shares. For example, video ads may generate higher engagement but might be used less frequently by your competitors. Understanding the balance between engagement and ad type lets you decide which formats to invest in.

Evaluate Messaging and Copy

You hear many marketers on LinkedIn talk about the importance of creative, and while I agree it is very important, you can’t have good creative without great messaging. Spying on your competitor's messaging angles provides you with insight into how they position themselves in the market—do they rely more on emotional marketing messaging, or do they lean into rational messaging like product benefits or features? This can reveal how different messaging resonates with your shared target audience.

Review the CTA button text they select, and consider how their tone and storytelling techniques, such as humor, urgency, or relatability, impact their audience. The effectiveness of their language and tone can provide clues on what might work better for your campaigns.

Review Creative Elements

Creative elements are the visual building blocks of an ad. Analyzing your competitor’s visuals can offer insights into how they grab attention and maintain brand consistency. Look at imagery, color schemes, and design elements reinforcing the brand’s identity.

Pay special attention to elements that stand out—headlines, animations, or eye-catching visuals designed to capture attention. Understanding competitors' creative strategies can inspire your designs or highlight areas where your current visuals may need improvement.

Assess Audience Targeting and Engagement

Over the last two years, ad targeting has moved away from hacks within ads manager and become more dependent on the messaging you incorporate into your ad copy and creative. Look at it the same way you do on-page SEO. The Facebook algorithm uses copy and creativity as context for who to target within your broader audiences. By analyzing your competitors' ads, you can infer the demographics or interests they’re targeting. Look at the ad messaging and positioning—does it speak to specific age groups, genders, or interests? This can give you clues about their targeting strategies.

Evaluate the level of engagement their ads receive. While you can't assume high engagement means high ROAs, there can be a general correlation between the two. 

Another key opportunity is the comments left on ads. Measure the frequency of positive and negative comments to understand how people feel about your competitors. 

Identify Marketing Opportunities

Now that you have insights into your competitors' ads look at your creative to find potential opportunities. Are there areas where your ads outperform theirs, or are there gaps in your strategy? I generally break it into a few categories: creative formats, messaging angles, and creative design styles. What are the competitors doing that you may be able to replicate?

Apply Insights to Your Strategy

With the insights from your research, it’s time to create a custom 90-day plan outlining the messaging angles and creative themes you believe will lift performance. 

Competitor ad analysis is a powerful tool for improving your ad strategy. By analyzing your competitors' formats, messaging, creative themes, and audience targeting, you can refine your ads to boost performance. The key to long-term success is continuous monitoring and iteration based on competitor insights. Regular competitor ad analysis helps you stay ahead in an ever-evolving digital advertising landscape.

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