A common search ad strategy is to run ads on your competitor's brand name. Let's say you're a better version of Canva, if you used a 'competitor brand campaign', you'd set up your search ads to show up on the term "canva". Many teams do this, but there's more.

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Explanation

People often miss "competitor brand" + "alternatives". These two keywords intercept the same search audience but are often more qualified buyers because they are trying to switch products or haven't purchased yet and looking for options. Implementing a 'competitor brand alternatives campaign' you might add keywords like:

• "canva alternative"
• "canva competitor"

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What everyone misses is the longtail keywords that can work in this strategy. These keywords often have lower search volume and are sometimes uncontested simply because nobody thought about targeting them. Consider running specific ad groups targeting longtail keywords like this:

• "canva app alternative"
• "canva reviews"
• "canva g2 reviews"
• "canva ai competitor free"
• "alternative to canva"

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Simple solution: Create a search campaign that targets "alternatives" and "longtail alternatives".

This should be very simple if you already have a competitor campaign running. If not:

• Use the keyword planner to determine what "alternatives' and "longtail alternatives" exist for each competitor
• Create a "Competitor Alternatives" campaign.
• Use 1 ad group for each competitor, and add the keywords!

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Both "brand" and "brand alternative" competitor campaigns, are more expensive when compared to other keyword targeting methods, but often provide high-intent users who are ready to buy.