Is a competitor bidding on your brand name? Here is how to detect and respond effectively

Brand bidding can increase the cost per click (CPC) by up to 20% and affect one in three brands in competitive industries.

Competitors frequently target your customer base by placing bids on your trademark on pay-per-click (PPC) advertising platforms. Organizations that pursue brand-name PPC bidding risk jeopardizing their potential audience base, weakening their brand visibility, and incurring additional marketing expenses.

According to a 2024 WordStream report, brand bidding can increase the cost per click (CPC) by up to 20%, affecting one in three brands in competitive industries.

The answer to your question about whether competitors target your brand name with bids through pay-per-click advertising is here.

This guide demonstrates how to detect competitor bidding, provides tools to track branded keywords, and outlines actionable steps you can take.

What is competitor bidding on brand names?

Competitor bidding occurs when rival companies select brand names as keywords within their PPC advertising efforts on Google Ads or Bing Ads.

The search for your brand through ads results in competitors placing their advertisements above and below the natural search results, thus stealing potential visitors from your site.

Utilizing your well-established brand reputation enables you to enhance your business presence.

According to reports, more than 50% of marketing professionals employ competitor bidding strategies to enhance brand exposure.

The reported data demonstrates that modern digital business competition has elevated this practice to become a prevalent strategy.

Why competitor brand bidding happens: PPC strategies explained

Identifying what drives competitors to place bids helps companies develop successful reactions to such actions. When competitors choose to target your brand name, your company faces four (4) main challenges.

1. Increased brand exposure: When your competitors place bids on your brand name, they succeed in getting their ads displayed closely next to yours, benefiting from your established visibility.

Such bidding helps new brands stand out among their target audience, even when they may not be familiar to them.

2. Customer acquisition: Searchers who start looking for your products are redirected to competitor listings as the target of their bidding efforts.

The advertising effort should be strong enough for prospective buyers to choose your brand over others.

3. Redirecting traffic: The main objective involves moving website visitors from your site to theirs.

Such newly acquired searchers become part of their marketing funnel regardless of their conversion status.

4. Disrupting your marketing strategy: Some competitors bid on your brand name to increase the costs of your PPC advertising.

Raising your bid prices for brand protection results in a decreased advertising budget, giving the competitor a strategic benefit.

Best tools to detect competitor brand bidding in Google Ads

Detecting competitor brand bidding in Google Ads is crucial to protect your brand’s visibility and ad spend efficiency.

When competitors bid on your branded keywords, they can siphon traffic from your potential customers.

Here are some of the best tools to help you detect and monitor this:

1. BrandVerity: A brand monitoring and trademark protection with key features that include:

• Alerts when competitors bid on your branded terms
• Tracks usage of your brand in ad copy and keywords
• Provides screenshot evidence of violations
• It operates 24/7 and provides you with legally compliant documentation.

2. SEMrush (Advertising Research Tool): A competitive analysis and PPC monitoring with key features including:

• Shows paid keywords that your competitors are targeting
• Reveals if your brand name is in their keyword list
• Tracks ad copy and positioning
• It is easy to compare domains side-by-side to see overlap in branded terms.

3. SpyFu: A PPC and SEO competitor insights. Key features include:

• Allows you to see if anyone is bidding on your branded keywords
• Tracks change in ad strategies over time
• Historical data available
• A budget-friendly option with historical trends.

4. Adthena: AI-powered competitive intelligence. Key features are:

• Detects brand infringement in real-time
• Offers complete visibility into the search landscape
• Daily alerts and custom reports
• Highly visual dashboard with granular detail.

5. iSpionage: Competitor keyword monitoring. Key features:

• Tracks keywords competitors bid on
• Monitors landing pages and ad copy
• Detects brand bidding attempts
• iSpionage combines both PPC and landing page intelligence.

6. Google Ads Auction Insights: Built-in Google Ads tool for competitor tracking. Key features:

• Shows which advertisers appear for your branded terms
• Compare impression share, position, and overlap
• Free if you are already running Google Ads.

How to respond if competitors are bidding on your brand name

Discovering competitive bidding is only half the problem; now, you should act on it.

The following are five (5) suitable methods of protecting your brand and reclaiming your search territory.

1. Bid on your brand name: The easiest defense is to launch a PPC campaign for your brand name.

Google Ads tends to give brand owners a lower CPC rate for their keywords due to higher relevance scores.

Bidding on your brand allows you to take up the top ad spot and push competitors down the page.

2. Optimize your SEO strategy: A strong organic presence can help reduce your reliance on paid advertising.

Invest in search engine optimization (SEO) and ensure your site ranks #1 for your brand name. This means:

• Creating high-quality, keyword-filled content about your brand.
• Building authoritative links to your site.
• Organic optimization of on-page elements like title tags, meta descriptions, and headers using your brand name.

3. Report trademark infringement: If a competitor steps over the line from bidding on your brand name to including it in their ad copy (e.g., “Better than [Your Brand]”), you have grounds for a trademark complaint.

File a report via Google Ads’ Trademark Complaint Form with proof of your trademark registration. Google will check and, if necessary, remove the offending ads.

4. Contact the competitor: Sometimes, though, diplomacy is the solution. Contact the competitor directly by phone or e-mail and courteously outline your concerns.

Many companies are unaware of the ethical implications of brand bidding and will stop doing it if politely requested.

5. Enhance your ad quality score: Google prefers high-score ads based on relevance, click-through rate (CTR), and landing page quality. To be more prominent and less expensive than rivals:

• Write compelling, brand-specific ad copy.
• Link to a well-designed landing page relevant to your brand.
• Utilize ad extensions (e.g., site links, callouts) to increase visibility.

Protecting your brand in a competitive industry

Your brand name faces real competition through bidding from competitors, which is a significant concern in digital marketing today.

You can protect your online presence by manually checking for competitors while utilizing Google Ads Auction Insights with SpyFu and SEMrush, actively bidding on your brand, or optimizing search engine optimization.

Your brand’s visibility, trust, and dominance will remain unchanged regardless of the strategic competitive moves your competitors launch.

FAQs

Q.1 Can competitors legally place offers on company brand names?

The practice of competitor bidding on brand names through keyword tags remains legal in U.S. jurisdictions and most other locations. A trademarked name used without permission within advertisement statements might lead to trademark infringement.

Q. 2 What procedures do I need to stop competitors from placing bids on my brand name?

While you cannot ban rival bidding on your brand name, you can win the fight against them by placing bids for your brand name, reporting trademark violations, and developing stronger SEO to take top search result positions.

Q. 3 Does Google allow competitor bidding?

The Google platform allows competitor bidding ads when these ads both comply with user protection regulations and adhere to trademark guidelines. PPC advertising allows this practice, which most advertisers adopt.

Q. 4 Does allocating my advertising budget to my brand name hold any value?

Absolutely. You can secure the top search result by placing a bid on your brand name, protect your client traffic, and benefit from a low cost per click due to high search relevance.

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