What should a monthly competitor ad intelligence report for a paid social client include?
A monthly competitor ad intelligence report for a paid social client should include: active ad creative inventory with hook analysis, engagement benchmarks, creative format breakdown, messaging and offer patterns, a content gap assessment, and a recommended action list. These six sections give account managers and creative teams everything they need to brief the next sprint.
- Pull every active competitor ad from the Meta Ads Library at the same date each month so comparisons are apples-to-apples.
- Score competitor creative against an engagement benchmark, not just ad count, so the report surfaces what is actually working.
- Break formats down by type — static, carousel, Reels — because format mix signals where a competitor is investing budget.
- Flag new offers, CTAs, and landing-page angles so your client can respond before the promotion cycle ends.
- Close every report with 3–5 prioritised actions, each tied to a specific finding, so the client knows what to do next.
| Account | Likes | Comments | Engagement rate | Score | Hook |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| @hudabeauty | 17,590 | 285 | 0.03% | 99 (Diamond) | simply whimsical 💎 @thegeekwithdimples bedazzles her Huda Beauty collection with love 🫶🏽 |
| @theaverycottage | 18,633 | 687 | – | 99 (Diamond) | Comment: LINK for everything ⛱️ The backyard of my dreams! While the pool house and fencing are stil… |
| @sheglam_official | 17,317 | 64 | 0.3% | 99 (Diamond) | No more peely lips! ✨ Keep your lips nourished and fingers clean using our Jelly Refresh Pocket Lip … |
| @cartier | 18,175 | 158 | 0.1% | 99 (Diamond) | The LOVE Unlimited bracelet renews gestures of love with a fully flexible design, invisible clasp sy… |
| @ysl | 18,160 | 127 | 0.1% | 99 (Diamond) | Women's Summer 27 by Anthony Vaccarello #YSL #YvesSaintLaurent #SaintLaurent @anthonyvaccarello |
| @chanelofficial | 18,892 | 192 | 0.03% | 99 (Diamond) | Skin that appears lifted from the very first application. Featuring a smooth and silky texture, the … |
| @maccosmetics | 17,201 | 549 | 0.08% | 99 (Diamond) | On-the-go glam for the chronically late. @tinistoessel in our new Studio Radiance Skin Tint Stick. V |
| @glossier | 18,008 | 276 | 0.6% | 99 (Diamond) | Meet our Holiday Collection! Mini fragrances, a juicy lip duo, and new Toasty Nuts and Just Baked Ba… |
What does the engagement data tell us about competitor creative patterns?
In Elixon's Content Library sample of 8 cross-industry Instagram posts from 8 accounts, measured 2026-10-25, combined likes reached 143,976 and every post scored 99/100 (Diamond tier) on the Elixon Opportunity Score. That consistency across beauty, luxury, lifestyle, and e-commerce accounts suggests hook structure — not category or follower count alone — is the common driver worth tracking.
Three hook patterns appear repeatedly: a direct pain-point opening (@sheglam_official's "No more peely lips!"), a UGC-style identity signal (@maccosmetics's "On-the-go glam for the chronically late"), and a product-craft narrative (@cartier's LOVE Unlimited copy). A monthly report should classify competitor hooks into these pattern types so the creative team can see which angle competitors are leaning into — and which is open for your client to own.
What sections should each monthly report contain?
Section 1 — Active ad inventory snapshot. List every competitor ad running during the reporting period, its start date, format, and placement. The Meta Ads Library provides this at no cost for any active Page.
Section 2 — Hook analysis. Quote the opening line of the top 5–10 competitor ads verbatim and classify each by hook type: pain point, aspiration, authority, UGC, or offer. This is where the report earns its keep.
"On-the-go glam for the chronically late." — @maccosmetics on Instagram
That single line encodes an identity ("chronically late"), a benefit ("glam"), and a usage context ("on-the-go"). A hook audit column in the report makes this kind of decoding repeatable every month.
Section 3 — Format and frequency breakdown. Tally static images, carousels, and Reels by competitor. A sudden shift toward Reels often signals a budget reallocation worth noting for the client.
Section 4 — Messaging and offer tracker. Record every unique CTA, discount, and landing-page angle. Month-over-month deltas reveal whether a competitor is testing seasonal offers or holding a single evergreen message.
Section 5 — Content gap map. Cross-reference competitor hooks against your client's current ads. Unoccupied angles — formats or messages competitors are not running — become the recommended test slate.
Section 6 — Prioritised actions. Three to five concrete next steps, each referencing a specific finding. Vague observations do not drive creative briefs; specific gaps do.
Which tools support this workflow, and what do they cost?
The tool you choose depends on whether you need raw ad data, creative scoring, or both. The Meta Ads Library is the right starting point for any team: it is free, requires no login, and covers every active Facebook and Instagram ad. For deeper creative organisation and saving, Foreplay starts at $59/month and lets you clip ads from Meta, TikTok, LinkedIn, and YouTube via a Chrome extension.
For multi-network spy coverage, AdSpy runs $149/month with one flat plan. For teams that also need AI creative generation alongside intelligence, Elixon (elixon.ai), an AI ad intelligence platform, starts at $59/month with a 3-day free trial or a $10 pay-as-you-go option.
| Tool | Entry plan | Monthly price | Annual billing | Free option | Covers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Foreplay | Basic | $59/mo | Annual: Basic $49, Workflow $149, Agency $389 per month (save 15%) | 7-day free trial on all plans; card required; no contracts | Saves ads from the Meta, TikTok, LinkedIn and YouTube ad libraries via Chrome extension and mobile app; 200M+ ad database (vendor claim) |
| Meta Ad Library | Free | Free | – | Free, no login | Facebook, Instagram: every active ad from any Page, with start dates and EU delivery data |
| BigSpy | Starter | $69/mo (1 seat) | Yearly: Starter $49, Growth $119, Scale $299, Ultimate $399 per month | Free plan: 5 queries and 20 saves a day (bigspy.com/faq); no trial wording on pricing page | Starter: Facebook, Instagram, AppLovin; Growth/Scale add Twitter, TikTok, Pangle, Google Ads, YouTube; Ultimate adds Pinterest, Yahoo, Unity Ads |
| PowerAdSpy | Basic | $69/mo | Yearly: Basic $27 ($331/yr), Standard $39 ($475), Platinum $83 ($1,004), Palladium $119 ($1,436) per month | $1 for 3 days (Basic); $7 for 3 days (other plans); cancel before day 3 | Basic: Facebook, Instagram; Standard adds Pinterest, Google Display; Platinum adds YouTube, Native, Google; Palladium adds LinkedIn, TikTok, Quora, Reddit |
| AdSpy | Single plan | $149/mo | None | None | Facebook, Instagram; 211,708,000+ ads (vendor claim, 1 Oct 2026) |
| Minea | Starter | $49/mo | Quarterly $39/$79/$158; annual $34/$69/$139 per month | Free registration | Meta ads on all plans; TikTok ads on Premium and above; product and shop discovery; influencer placements; brand tracker on Premium |
| Elixon | Pay-as-you-go (one-time) | $10 | – | 3-day free trial | Meta, Instagram; TikTok coming soon |
Teams that want to go deeper on any single comparison can read the full breakdowns at 12 Best Ad Spy Tools in 2026, by Use Case. The practical starting point for most agencies is the Meta Ads Library for raw data, one paid tool for creative scoring and saving, and a structured report template to make the monthly cadence repeatable.
Frequently asked questions
How many competitors should a monthly paid social report cover?
Three to five direct competitors is a workable scope for a monthly deliverable. Covering more dilutes the hook analysis and makes the action section too broad to be useful in a creative brief.
How far back should the report pull competitor ad data?
A rolling 30-day window aligned to your reporting cycle keeps the data current and comparable month over month. The Meta Ads Library includes start dates, so you can filter precisely without manual dating.
Can a monthly competitor report replace creative strategy?
No. The report surfaces what competitors are doing; your creative strategy decides what your client should do differently. The gap map in Section 5 is the bridge between the two, but it still requires a strategist to interpret and prioritise.
Data: Elixon Content Library — 8 Instagram posts from 8 accounts across Beauty, Luxury, Lifestyle, and E-commerce, engagement measured 2026-10-25. Organic engagement, not ad spend. Prices as shown on each vendor's pricing page, 2026-10-16.
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