Competitor Ads Monitor – Meta + Google + TikTok

What does Competitor Ads Monitor do?

Competitor Ads Monitor is an Apify Actor that tracks competitor advertisements across Meta Ads Library (Facebook/Instagram), Google Ads Transparency Center, and TikTok Creative Center. This Actor extracts ad creatives, copy, CTAs, offers, and longevity signals from public ad transparency libraries, giving you comprehensive insights into what your competitors are advertising.

Simply provide brand names, keywords, or domains, and the Actor will search across multiple platforms to find matching ads. The Actor automatically extracts and normalizes offer information, detects marketing angles, and calculates longevity scores to help you identify winning creatives.

Visit the Meta Ads Library, Google Ads Transparency Center, and TikTok Creative Center to see the data sources this Actor monitors.

Why use Competitor Ads Monitor?

Business Use Cases

• Performance Marketers: Track competitor ad launches, identify successful offers, and discover new creative angles
• Agencies: Monitor client competitors across multiple platforms, track domain-based campaigns, and generate competitive intelligence reports
• DTC Founders: Research offers and angles in your category, identify long-running successful creatives, and detect ad fatigue signals
• Growth Teams: Monitor competitor strategies, analyze CTA patterns, and benchmark creative performance

Platform Advantages

This Actor leverages the Apify platform to provide:

• Automated Monitoring: Schedule runs to track competitors continuously
• API Access: Integrate competitor data into your workflows via REST API
• Proxy Rotation: Built-in residential proxy support to avoid blocks
• Scalable Infrastructure: Handle large-scale monitoring without infrastructure management
• Data Export: Download results in JSON, CSV, Excel, or HTML formats
• Webhook Integration: Get notified when new ads are detected
• Integration Ready: Connect to Zapier, Make, or custom workflows

What can Competitor Ads Monitor extract?

The Actor extracts comprehensive data from ad transparency libraries:

Data Field	Description	Example
Ad Creative	Image or video URL	https://...
Ad Copy	Full text of the advertisement	"Get 20% off today!"
Headline	Ad headline text	"Special Sale"
CTA	Call-to-action (normalized)	shop_now, learn_more
Landing Page	Destination URL	https://brand.com/sale
Advertiser	Brand/advertiser name	"Nike"
Offer Type	Detected offer classification	discount_percent, free_shipping
Offer Details	Structured offer data	{percentOff: 20}
Longevity Score	Days active score (0-100)	85
Marketing Angles	Detected angles	["scarcity", "urgency"]
Geo Targets	Targeted countries	["US", "GB"]
Status	Ad status	active, inactive
First/Last Seen	Monitoring timestamps	2024-01-15T10:00:00Z

How to scrape competitor ads with Competitor Ads Monitor

Step-by-Step Tutorial

1. Sign up for Apify (if you haven't already) - Create a free account at apify.com

2. Open the Actor - Navigate to the Competitor Ads Monitor Actor page

3. Configure Input - Click on the Input tab and set:

   • Platforms: Select Meta, Google, and/or TikTok
   • Search Mode: Choose advertiser, keyword, or domain mode
   • Queries: Enter brand names, keywords, or domains to search
   • Geographic Targets: Select country codes (e.g., US, GB)

4. Run the Actor - Click "Start" to begin monitoring

5. View Results - Once complete, check the Output tab for:

   • Overview of all ads
   • New ads detected
   • Ads grouped by platform
   • Offers and CTAs analysis
   • Longevity analysis

6. Export Data - Download results in your preferred format (JSON, CSV, Excel)

Video Tutorial

How much does it cost to monitor competitor ads?

Competitor Ads Monitor uses consumption-based pricing (Compute Units). The cost depends on:

• Number of queries: Each query searches across selected platforms
• Results per query: More results require more processing
• Platforms selected: Meta, Google, and TikTok each require separate requests
• Proxy usage: Residential proxies (recommended) consume additional CUs

Pricing Estimates

• Free Plan: Test with 1-2 queries and limited results
• Small Run (1-5 queries, 1 platform): ~$0.10 - $0.50
• Medium Run (5-20 queries, 2-3 platforms): ~$0.50 - $2.00
• Large Run (20+ queries, all platforms): ~$2.00 - $10.00+

Tip: Start with a small test run to estimate costs for your use case. Use the maxResultsPerQuery setting to control result volume.

Input

Competitor Ads Monitor has the following input options. Click on the Input tab for more information.

Required Fields

• Platforms: Select one or more platforms (meta, google, tiktok)
• Search Mode: Choose advertiser, keyword, or domain mode
• Queries: Enter brand names, keywords, or domains to search

Recommended Settings

• Max Results Per Query: 100-200 for most use cases
• Geographic Targets: Country codes (e.g., ["US"], ["US", "GB"])
• Date Range: 30 days for recent monitoring, 60-90 for broader research
• Use Apify Proxy: Enable for production use (highly recommended)
• Slow Mode: Enable to avoid blocks

Search Modes Explained

1. Advertiser Mode: Search by brand names, advertiser IDs, or page names

   • Example queries: ["Nike", "Adidas"]
   • Best for: Tracking specific competitors

2. Keyword Mode: Search by keywords in ad copy, landing pages, or advertiser names

   • Example queries: ["skincare", "anti-aging"]
   • Best for: Category research

3. Domain Mode: Search by domain names

   • Example queries: ["example.com", "brand.com"]
   • Best for: Agencies tracking client competitors

Output

You can download the dataset extracted by Competitor Ads Monitor in various formats such as JSON, HTML, CSV, or Excel.

Output Views

The Actor provides multiple views of the data:

• Overview: Complete view of all ads with key information
• New Ads: Ads seen for the first time in this run
• By Platform: Ads grouped by platform (Meta, Google, TikTok)
• Offers & CTAs: Ads with detected offers and normalized CTAs
• Longevity Analysis: Ads sorted by longevity score

Output Example

{
  "platform": "meta",
  "adLibraryUrl": "https://www.facebook.com/ads/library/?active_status=all&ad_type=all&country=US&q=Nike",
  "adId": "123456789",
  "advertiserName": "Nike",
  "advertiserId": "789012345",
  "geoTargets": ["US"],
  "language": "en",
  "adCopy": "Just Do It. Get 20% off select styles. Limited time offer. Shop now!",
  "headline": "Nike Sale - 20% Off",
  "ctaRaw": "Shop Now",
  "ctaNormalized": "shop_now",
  "landingPageUrl": "https://www.nike.com/sale",
  "creativeType": "image",
  "creativeUrls": ["https://static.nike.com/a/images/..."],
  "thumbnailUrl": "https://static.nike.com/a/images/...",
  "firstSeenAt": "2024-01-15T10:00:00Z",
  "lastSeenAt": "2024-01-20T10:00:00Z",
  "platformStartDate": "2024-01-10",
  "platformEndDate": null,
  "status": "active",
  "offerType": "discount_percent",
  "offerDetails": {
    "percentOff": 20
  },
  "offerParseConfidence": 0.8,
  "angleTags": ["scarcity", "urgency"],
  "angleConfidence": 0.7,
  "daysActive": 5,
  "longevityScore": 20,
  "fingerprint": "meta:123456789",
  "runId": "abc123xyz",
  "scrapedAt": "2024-01-20T10:00:00Z",
  "dataQuality": "full",
  "isNew": true,
  "notes": ""
}

Tips and Advanced Options

Optimizing Performance

• Use Residential Proxies: Enable useApifyProxy: true with proxyGroups: ["RESIDENTIAL"] for best results
• Enable Slow Mode: Set slowMode: true to reduce block risk
• Limit Concurrency: Start with maxConcurrency: 3, reduce to 1-2 if you encounter blocks
• Adjust Date Range: Shorter ranges (7-14 days) are faster and cheaper

Monitoring Workflows

• Schedule Regular Runs: Use Apify Scheduler to monitor competitors daily or weekly
• Track Only New Ads: Set onlyNewSinceLastRun: true to get alerts for new campaigns
• Use Webhooks: Get notified when new ads are detected
• Export to Google Sheets: Use Apify integrations to automatically update spreadsheets

Getting Better Results

• Use Specific Queries: More specific brand names yield better results than generic keywords
• Combine Platforms: Search across all platforms for comprehensive coverage
• Monitor Multiple Geos: Track competitors in different markets
• Enable Offer Extraction: Get structured offer data for analysis

Is it legal to scrape competitor ads?

Our Actor is ethical and only accesses public ad transparency libraries provided by Meta, Google, and TikTok. These libraries are specifically designed to provide transparency into advertising, and we do not extract any private user data.

The Actor:

• ✅ Only accesses publicly available ad library data
• ✅ Does not require login credentials
• ✅ Does not bypass any authentication
• ✅ Respects platform rate limits
• ✅ Uses official transparency library interfaces

However, you should be aware that:

• Ad library data may contain public information about advertisers
• You should comply with terms of service of the platforms
• Use the data ethically and in compliance with applicable laws
• Consult legal counsel if you're unsure about your use case

You can read more about the legality of web scraping in our blog post.

FAQ

How accurate is the offer extraction?

The Actor uses pattern matching to detect offers with confidence scores (0-1). Higher confidence scores indicate more reliable detections. The Actor detects:

• Discount percentages (e.g., "20% off")
• Flat discounts (e.g., "$10 off")
• Free shipping, BOGO, bundles, trials, and more

Can I monitor ads in multiple countries?

Yes! Use the geo parameter to specify multiple country codes. Example: ["US", "GB", "CA", "AU"]

How does delta tracking work?

The Actor maintains state between runs using ad fingerprints. On subsequent runs, it identifies:

• New ads: First seen in this run
• Ended ads: Previously active but no longer running
• Updated ads: Ads with changed copy or creatives

What if I get blocked?

If you encounter blocks:

1. Enable residential proxies (useApifyProxy: true, proxyGroups: ["RESIDENTIAL"])
2. Enable slow mode (slowMode: true)
3. Reduce concurrency (maxConcurrency: 1-2)
4. Increase retries (maxRetries: 5)

Can I download creative assets?

Yes! Set downloadCreatives: true to download images and videos to the Key-Value store. Note: This increases storage usage and processing time.

How do I track competitors over time?

1. Schedule regular runs using Apify Scheduler
2. Set onlyNewSinceLastRun: true to focus on new ads
3. Use webhooks to get notified of new campaigns
4. Export data to your analytics platform

What's the difference between this and official APIs?

This Actor provides:

• Multi-platform monitoring: Meta, Google, and TikTok in one tool
• Intelligence layer: Automatic offer extraction, CTA normalization, angle detection
• Longevity scoring: Identify winning creatives
• Delta tracking: Know what's new or ended
• No API keys required: Works with public libraries

Can I customize the Actor?

Yes! The Actor is open-source and can be customized. You can:

• Modify offer extraction patterns
• Add new platforms
• Customize output schema
• Integrate with your tools

For custom solutions, contact us through the Issues tab.

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Problem: No results returned

• Solution: Check that queries match actual advertiser names. Try broader keywords or different search modes.

Problem: Rate limiting or blocks

• Solution: Enable residential proxies, slow mode, and reduce concurrency. See "Tips and Advanced Options" above.

Problem: Missing offer data

• Solution: Offer extraction works best with clear offer language. Some ads may not contain detectable offers.

Problem: Platform structure changed

• Solution: Ad library interfaces may change. Check the Issues tab for updates or report the issue.

Getting Help

• Issues Tab: Report bugs or request features
• Apify Support: Contact Apify support for platform issues
• Documentation: Check the input schema for detailed parameter descriptions

Changelog

v1.0.0 (Initial Release)

• ✅ Support for Meta Ads Library
• ✅ Support for Google Ads Transparency Center
• ✅ Support for TikTok Creative Center
• ✅ Offer extraction and CTA normalization
• ✅ Longevity scoring
• ✅ Delta tracking (new/ended ads)
• ✅ Multiple output views
• ✅ Proxy and anti-block support

Related Actors

Looking for more competitive intelligence tools? Check out:

• Web Scraper - General web scraping
• Instagram Scraper - Instagram content scraping
• Google Search Scraper - Google search results

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Ready to start monitoring your competitors? Click "Start" to run the Actor, or check out the Input tab to configure your first monitoring run!