1.
Spy On Your PPC Competition
#thinkppc
Cutting-Edge Tactics To
& HOSTED BY:

2.
#thinkppc
Presenters
• David Black
– Customer Success Director at SEMrush
– @theguyatsemrush
• Cassie Oumedian
– Senior Digital Specialist at Hanapin
Marketing.
– @cass_oumedian

3.
#thinkppc
Join the conversation
• Include the hashtag #thinkppc in your
Twitter tweets.
Or use the webinar question box to send
us questions.

4.
Inc. 5000 Competitive Research Study
• 4 out of 5 companies on the Inc 5000 list
spend money on PPC advertising
• The IT Services industry also spends the
#thinkppc
most on PPC
• The Advertising and Marketing Industry
spends the largest percentage of its
revenue on PPC

5.
#thinkppc
Live Poll Question #1
How long have you been in PPC?
#thinkppc
A. Less than 1 year
B. 1-3 years
C. 3-5 years
D. 5+ years

6.
#thinkppc
Live Poll Question #2
How do you manage your account(s)?
#thinkppc
a) I manage it myself.
b) I’m part of a team that manages it.
c) I outsource my account management.
d) I’m rethinking how my account is managed.

7.
Competitive Research and Analysis
• Start with researching the competitive PPC landscape.
• Analyze competitor’s keywords, budget, ads and trends.
• Competitive research tools make this MUCH easier
#thinkppc
 AdWords Auction Insights
 Google Trends
 SEMrush

8.
Competitive Research and Analysis
#thinkppc
Once you’ve done
the research, create
a SWOT analysis.
Understand your
place in the market
and create a plan of
attack on how to
approach competition
in the PPC space.

9.
Don’t have a budget of 5.2 Million dollars to
spend on PPC like your GoDaddy.com
competitor??
#thinkppc

10.
Remarketing Lists for Search Ads
Strategy Tip: Use RLSA to
bid on expensive generic
terms your competitors bid
on that are too expensive
to bid on solely on Search
network.
#thinkppc
Have an AdWords Remarketing Tag pixel
on your page?
“Tirendo, a European online tire retailer, saw a 161% conversion rate increase with
remarketing lists for search ads, leading to a 22% overall sales increase” - Google

11.
#thinkppc
Ad Scheduling
• Time of Day
• Day of Week
• Geo-location

12.
#thinkppc
Ad Scheduling
• Time of Day, Day of Week

13.
#thinkppc
Ad Scheduling
• Geo-location

14.
Bidding on competitor terms is generally accepted in the US and typically Google
will not investigate as long as trademark terms are not used in the creative.
#thinkppc
Bid on Competitor Brand Terms
• Competitor Name
• Competitor Product Name
• Competitor Name + Product/service you also provide
Bid on competitor terms cautiously and be
sure to read up on Google’s trademark
policies to make sure you are not in
violation!
Don’t Use “Competitor Name”
Don’t pay high prices for “Competitor
Name” Use “Your Brand” for Free!
www.yourbrand.com
“Product/Service” - 10% off
Use this coupon code & get 10% off
“Product/Service” of “Your Brand”
www.yourbrand.com

15.
#thinkppc
Competitor Performance
Pros:
• Lower volume but higher conversion rates – 11X Higher CVR
• Typically lower CPA – 21% Lower CPA
Cons:
• CpCs more expensive – 10X higher CPCs
• Low Quality Scores due to lack of keyword/ ad/ landing page relevancy

16.
#thinkppc
Competitor Performance
#1 Rule For Bidding on Competitor Terms….
NEVER USE DKI (Dynamic Keyword Insertion)!!

17.
#thinkppc
Gmail Sponsored Ads
• Target users in their gmail accounts by targeting specific
domains… competitor domains or other competitive keywords.
** May not be available in all verticals. Check with your Google rep.

18.
#thinkppc
Gmail Sponsored Ads Results

19.
#thinkppc
Live Poll Question #3
Where does competitor analysis fit into
your Marketing plan?
a.) I’ve done it in the past but not right now.
b.) I am actively conducting competitor analysis.
c.) I haven’t yet. But, I will now!
d.) No plans in the foreseeable future.

20.
Programmatic Analysis Techniques
#thinkppc
SEMrush
Our Data Collection and Analysis
All these data are great but you need to know everything about your sample in
order to account for variables and draw accurate conclusions.
Our total keyword database = Over 100m keywords worldwide
Infographic is based on the top 40m keywords in Google US
Analyzing millions of SERPs everyday
Analysis applied to top 20 organic/ads positions in each SERP

21.
#thinkppc
Where Do These Data Fit In?
Application
Who can utilize these data?
(Search Engine) Marketing intelligence data has a number of different
applications within and outside of the direct industry.
Small Business Owners – DIY’ers
SEO and PPC consultants – The one man band
Digital Marketing Agencies of any size
Enterprise-level in-house marketing departments
Investors

22.
#thinkppc
Got the Data – Now What?
Organic Search Marketing
Improving your visibility in natural search results
The keyword/domain connection is an excellent way to enhance your keyword
research.
On-site optimization: Titles, tags, URL’s, Navigation, Sitemaps, etc.
“Not Provided” got ya down? SEMrush = “Provided” 
Content development and Semantic core improvement
Proactively or reactively fight algorithmic penalties

23.
#thinkppc
Got the Data – Now What?
Paid Search Marketing
Minimize Risk & Maximize ROI
Optimize existing search network AdWords and display network campaigns OR
create beautifully crafted campaigns from the get-go. Don’t go in blind!
Know which keywords drive traffic and convert
Write copy that attracts for better CTR
Figure out what works and (sometimes) more importantly, what
doesn’t work!

24.
The Method: Competitor Analysis
#thinkppc

25.
#thinkppc
Your Competitors Keywords
%

26.
#thinkppc
Analyze Historical Data

27.
Recognizing Patterns & Behavior
#thinkppc

28.
Would you like help with your PPC accounts
and management? I’m interested in:
#thinkppc
Live Poll Question #4
a.) FREE Account Assessment from Hanapin
(for accounts spending more than 20K/mo)
b.) Free One Month Trial of SEMrush
c.) No Thanks
d.) Both

29.
#thinkppc
Live Q&A Time!

30.
#thinkppc
Have more questions?
Thank you for attending our webinar! #thinkppc
• Contact us Directly:
» Hanapin Feedback: marketing@hanapinmarketing.com
SEMrush Feedback: mail@semrush.com / david_black@semrush.com