semrush-paid-search-intelligence

name	semrush-paid-search-intelligence
description	Analyze paid search keywords, ad copy, ad history, PLA keywords, PLA copies, and paid competitors with the semrush CLI. Use when the user asks for PPC competitor research, Google Ads intelligence, ad copy examples, paid keyword opportunities, shopping ad or PLA analysis, CPC-informed content strategy, or paid-vs-organic search overlap using Semrush CLI data.

Semrush Paid Search Intelligence

Use Semrush CLI paid search reports to understand competitor bidding themes, ad messages, landing-page angles, PLA activity, and paid keyword opportunity.

Prerequisites

Confirm API auth and use JSON output:

semrush account auth status --output json --quiet
semrush domain paid competitor.com --database us --dry-run --output json --quiet

Paid reports can consume more units than simple overview reports. Run --dry-run before large limits or multiple competitors.

Workflow

1. Identify competitors, target geography, product category, and whether the focus is search ads, shopping ads, or both.
2. Pull paid keywords and paid competitors for each domain.
3. Pull ad copies and ad history for message and persistence analysis.
4. Pull keyword-level paid results for priority terms.
5. Use PLA reports for ecommerce or shopping-heavy categories.
6. Summarize themes, tested offers, exclusions, and organic content implications.

Core Commands

Domain paid search:

semrush domain paid competitor.com --database us --limit 100 --sort "traffic desc" --output json --quiet
semrush domain competitors paid competitor.com --database us --limit 50 --output json --quiet
semrush domain ads-copies competitor.com --database us --limit 100 --output json --quiet
semrush domain ad-history competitor.com --database us --limit 100 --output json --quiet

Keyword paid search:

semrush keyword paid "crm software" --database us --limit 20 --output json --quiet
semrush keyword ad-history "crm software" --database us --output json --quiet
semrush keyword overview "crm software" --database us --output json --quiet

Shopping and PLA:

semrush domain pla-keywords competitor.com --database us --limit 100 --output json --quiet
semrush domain pla-copies competitor.com --database us --limit 100 --output json --quiet
semrush domain pla-competitors competitor.com --database us --limit 50 --output json --quiet

Organic overlap check:

semrush domain organic competitor.com --database us --limit 100 --output json --quiet

Analysis Heuristics

Signal	Use
Repeated ad history	Suggests profitable or strategically important terms.
Many paid competitors	Indicates competitive auctions and strong commercial intent.
High CPC with moderate SEO difficulty	Candidate for organic content investment.
Ad copy repetition	Extract offer, pain point, proof, urgency, and CTA patterns.
PLA coverage	Prioritize product feed, category pages, price positioning, and shopping SERP analysis.

Avoid assuming spend or ROI unless the CLI output contains those metrics. Treat paid presence as a competitive signal, not proof of profitability.

Output Format

Return:

1. Competitor paid landscape: domains, databases, and commands run.
2. Keyword themes: repeated clusters, CPC signals, and paid difficulty proxies.
3. Message map: hooks, offers, claims, CTAs, and landing-page implications.
4. PLA insights when relevant: product categories, competitors, and feed/page recommendations.
5. Action plan: test in ads, build SEO page, refresh landing page, monitor, or exclude.

Related Skills

• Use semrush-keyword-research for organic expansion around high-CPC terms.
• Use semrush-competitor-research for organic gaps from the same competitors.
• Use semrush-traffic-trends to validate whether paid or search channels dominate the market.