Competitors Clicking Your Google Ads: Should You Be Worried?

Google advertisers often worry about the costs associated with competitors clicking on their Google Ads. We've even spoken to business owners that are reluctant about advertising in Google because of this concern.

And yes, competitors do click on ads in the belief that this will frustrate their competitors advertising efforts by adding cost to their AdWords campaigns.

From our experience and looking across our customer base of advertisers, we see approximately 5 – 10% of campaign clicks as being invalid.

How Does Google Protect Advertisers?

Google AdWords incorporates a fraudulent click filter that identifies invalid click activity. These invalid clicks are automatically credited each month against your account so you don't pay for them.

These “invalid clicks” are identified using comprehensive algorithms, which examine user behaviour patterns, click timings, duplicate IP addresses, and other signals to catch unusual activity.

So our advice is not to worry about those competitors that have nothing better to do than click your ads. Their activity is very unlikely to be damaging your campaign and adding additional cost.

What Else Can I Do To Protect My Business?

IP Filtering: If you are still concerned, it's possible to set up an IP address filter in AdWords campaigns that exclude IP addresses. So if you can identify the IP addresses of offending clickers, these can then be filtered out so they won't see your ads.

Third-Party Tracking Tools: Unfortunately Google Analytics doesn't report website visitor activity at an IP address level. You could install a program like Clicky which would provide this level of detail for you.

Regular Campaign Reviews: Have your Google Ads campaigns managed by professionals who regularly review click patterns, campaign analytics, and invalid click reports.

If you’re worried about click fraud or want to get the most out of your online advertising, our experienced team at Adhesion can help. Contact us for a free, no-obligation chat about your Google Ads strategy.