How to Legally Target Competitor Brand Names on Google Ads

You can legally target your competitors' brand names on Google.

We've been doing this for 40+ e-commerce accounts. Here's how it works.

The best targets are fast-growing brands that focus on social but don't protect their brand terms on search.

They're building awareness. You're capturing the demand.

We look for brands with 2,000+ monthly branded searches and 2-5x growth in the last year. These are the ones pouring budget into Instagram and TikTok but ignoring Google entirely.

Two campaign types work here:

Search: Target their brand name plus variations. Show your ad when someone searches for them.

PMax: Use their brand names, keywords, and URLs as audience signals. Google finds similar buyers.

The key is your landing page.

Don't just send them to a product page. Build a "us vs. them" comparison page. Side-by-side feature table. Honest breakdown.

We see 20-40% higher conversion on comparison pages vs. standard product pages.

Why does this work?

Because someone searching for a competitor is already in buying mode. They're not browsing. They're comparing.

Give them the comparison they were already looking for.

One client went from $0 to $47k/month in revenue just from competitor campaigns. 4.3x ROAS. It's now their second-highest performing channel.

Is this legal? 100%.

SaaS companies have done this for years. No trademark violations. No false claims. Just advertising on keywords that happen to be brand names.

The brands focused on social are building demand for you to capture.