AI-Enhanced Competitor Monitor v2.0

Built by John Rippy | johnrippy.link

AI-Powered Competitive Intelligence with Claude AI Strategic Analysis

Track local competitor GBP changes, reviews, rankings, Google Ads activity, and social media presence with AI-powered strategic recommendations.

Features

Core Competitor Tracking

• Multi-Competitor Tracking - Monitor up to 20 competitors
• Review Monitoring - New reviews, rating changes, response patterns
• Post Tracking - GBP post frequency and content themes
• Profile Change Detection - Hours, photos, descriptions, categories
• Comparison Dashboard - Your business vs competitors
• Smart Alerts - Get notified of significant changes

v2.0 Enhanced Features

• Keyword Rankings - Track local SERP positions for target keywords
• Google Ads Detection - Discover if competitors are running ads
• Social Media Discovery - Find competitor profiles on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok

AI Analysis (BYOK - Bring Your Own Key)

Provide your Anthropic API key to unlock Claude AI-powered features:

• Strategic Summary - AI analyzes all competitor data and provides actionable insights
• Threat Assessment - Prioritized list of competitive threats to address
• Opportunity Identification - Market opportunities based on competitor gaps
• Recommended Actions - Specific next steps ranked by impact
• Competition Score - 0-100 overall competitive position rating

Quick Start

Basic Usage (No AI)

{
  "yourBusiness": {
    "name": "Acme Plumbing",
    "placeId": "ChIJ..."
  },
  "competitors": [
    { "name": "Bob's Plumbing", "placeId": "ChIJ..." },
    { "name": "Quick Fix Plumbers", "searchQuery": "Quick Fix Plumbers Dallas TX" }
  ],
  "trackReviews": true,
  "trackPosts": true
}

With AI Analysis (BYOK)

{
  "yourBusiness": {
    "name": "Acme Plumbing",
    "placeId": "ChIJ...",
    "website": "https://acmeplumbing.com"
  },
  "competitors": [
    { "name": "Bob's Plumbing", "placeId": "ChIJ..." }
  ],
  "trackReviews": true,
  "trackRankings": true,
  "targetKeywords": ["plumber", "emergency plumber", "drain cleaning"],
  "targetLocation": "Dallas, TX",
  "detectGoogleAds": true,
  "trackSocialMedia": true,
  "anthropicApiKey": "sk-ant-...",
  "enableAiAnalysis": true
}

Demo Mode

Test without real scraping:

{
  "demoMode": true
}

Input Parameters

Parameter	Required	Description
yourBusiness	No	Your business info for comparison
competitors	Yes	Array of competitors (name + placeId/searchQuery)
previousRunId	No	Previous dataset ID for change detection
trackReviews	No	Monitor reviews (default: true)
trackPosts	No	Monitor GBP posts (default: true)
trackPhotos	No	Monitor photos (default: true)
trackProfileChanges	No	Monitor profile updates (default: true)
trackRankings	No	Monitor keyword rankings (default: false)
targetKeywords	No	Keywords to track rankings for
targetLocation	No	Location for ranking tracking
detectGoogleAds	No	Check for competitor Google Ads (default: false)
trackSocialMedia	No	Find social media profiles (default: false)
webhookUrl	No	URL for alert notifications
alertThreshold	No	Minimum importance for alerts (all/medium/high)
anthropicApiKey	No	Your Anthropic API key for AI features
enableAiAnalysis	No	Enable/disable AI analysis (default: true)
demoMode	No	Return sample data without scraping

Output

Standard Output (Per Competitor)

{
  "competitor": "Bob's Plumbing",
  "placeId": "ChIJ...",
  "monitorDate": "2024-12-26T00:00:00.000Z",
  "currentState": {
    "rating": 4.5,
    "reviewCount": 156,
    "photoCount": 42,
    "lastPost": "2024-12-25",
    "category": "Plumber",
    "website": "https://bobsplumbing.com"
  },
  "rankings": {
    "plumber dallas": { "position": 3, "inLocalPack": true },
    "emergency plumber": { "position": 7, "inLocalPack": false }
  },
  "googleAds": {
    "detected": true,
    "adCopy": "24/7 Emergency Plumbing - Call Now!"
  },
  "socialProfiles": {
    "facebook": "https://facebook.com/bobsplumbing",
    "instagram": "https://instagram.com/bobsplumbing"
  },
  "changes": [
    {
      "type": "new_review",
      "importance": "medium",
      "details": {
        "rating": 5,
        "snippet": "Great service, highly recommend!"
      }
    }
  ],
  "comparison": {
    "ratingDiff": -0.2,
    "reviewCountDiff": 14,
    "advantage": "You have more photos, they have more reviews"
  }
}

AI Strategic Analysis Output

When AI analysis is enabled, a separate dataset item is pushed:

{
  "type": "ai_strategic_analysis",
  "overallScore": 72,
  "strategicSummary": "Your competitive position is moderately strong. Key threats include Bob's Plumbing's aggressive review acquisition and Quick Fix's Google Ads presence. Opportunities exist in social media engagement and emergency service positioning.",
  "threats": [
    {
      "competitor": "Bob's Plumbing",
      "threat": "Gaining reviews 3x faster than you",
      "priority": "high",
      "recommendation": "Implement post-service review request automation"
    },
    {
      "competitor": "Quick Fix Plumbers",
      "threat": "Running Google Ads on your brand keywords",
      "priority": "medium",
      "recommendation": "Consider defensive brand bidding or SEO optimization"
    }
  ],
  "opportunities": [
    {
      "area": "Social Media",
      "insight": "Competitors have minimal Instagram presence",
      "action": "Establish Instagram with before/after project photos"
    },
    {
      "area": "Emergency Services",
      "insight": "No competitor ranks for '24 hour plumber'",
      "action": "Create dedicated landing page for emergency services"
    }
  ],
  "recommendedActions": [
    "Set up automated review request system (high impact)",
    "Create Instagram business profile with project portfolio",
    "Optimize for 'emergency plumber' and '24 hour plumber' keywords",
    "Add more service area photos to GBP profile"
  ],
  "analyzedAt": "2024-12-26T12:00:00.000Z",
  "competitorsAnalyzed": 5
}

Change Types & Importance

Change Type	Low	Medium	High
New Review	Any	1-2 star	Multiple negatives
Rating Change	<0.1	0.1-0.3	>0.3
New Post	Regular update	Offer/Event	Major announcement
Profile Update	Minor	Hours/Phone	Name/Category
New Photos	1-2	5-10	10+
Ranking Change	1-2 positions	3-5 positions	>5 or local pack

Integration (Zapier, Make, n8n)

This actor supports webhook notifications for easy integration:

Zapier

1. Create a new Zap with "Webhooks by Zapier" as the trigger
2. Select "Catch Hook" and copy the webhook URL
3. Paste the URL into the webhookUrl input parameter
4. Run the actor to send data to your Zap

Make (Integromat)

1. Create a new scenario with "Webhooks" module
2. Add "Custom webhook" trigger and copy the URL
3. Paste the URL into the webhookUrl input parameter

n8n

1. Add a "Webhook" node to your workflow
2. Copy the production webhook URL
3. Paste the URL into the webhookUrl input parameter

Pricing

This actor uses pay-per-event pricing:

Event	Description	Price
apify-actor-start	Base cost per run	$0.10
competitor_analyzed	Per competitor monitored	$0.03
review_analyzed	Per review analyzed	$0.02
AI Analysis	Uses your own Anthropic API key	$0.00

Example costs:

• 5 competitors basic: $0.10 + (5 × $0.03) = $0.25
• 10 competitors with reviews + AI: $0.10 + (10 × $0.03) + (10 × $0.02) = $0.60 + your Anthropic API usage

Use Cases

1. Local SEO Agencies - Monitor client competitors at scale
2. Multi-Location Businesses - Track competitors in each market
3. Franchise Operations - Competitive intelligence across territories
4. Strategy Planning - Data-driven competitive positioning

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Keywords

competitor monitoring, competitor analysis, competitive intelligence, ai analysis, claude ai, byok, bring your own key, market tracking, local seo competitor analysis, google ads detection, social media monitoring, keyword rankings, zapier integration, make integration, n8n integration

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Part of the Local SEO Automation Suite - 50+ Apify actors for automating local search optimization.