Paid ads · Runs on a schedule
Research competitor ads every week
Every Monday, Tolstoy shows the Meta and TikTok ads your competitors run, how long each has run, the angles nobody covers, and up to three decisions for the week.
What you need
- A connected Meta Ads account
- The competitor brands to track, from your brand context or named during setup
- Your top-selling product categories, read from your store, so gap concepts suggest products you sell
What you get
- Decisions this week: up to 3, each with why it is urgent and a deadline
- A competitor grid: best ad thumbnail, days running, hook, format and the structural idea worth using
- Up to 3 gap angles, each with a draft concept
- A watch list: up to 3 signals and the threshold that should trigger action
How it runs
Tolstoy runs this playbook in 5 steps.
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Load last week
The routine reads last week’s report, so this run shows only what is new or speeding up, and pulls your top-selling product categories.
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Research each competitor
One research agent per competitor reads their Meta ads from the last 14 days, searches TikTok ads by category, and checks their Instagram or TikTok posts.
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Use ad age as signal
Ads that have run 30+ days and are still active count as likely profitable. The routine never estimates spend, impressions or CTR.
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Find the gaps
It names up to three angles that no competitor runs, each with a hook, format and suggested product, and can add a visual for the top one.
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Put decisions first
The report opens with up to three decisions for the week, then the competitor grid, the gaps and up to three signals to watch.
Check the result
- Look up two or three ads from the grid in the Meta Ad Library: the days running and the hook match what you see there.
- Each gap names a product you sell and an angle that does not appear anywhere in the grid.
- Every decision has a reason and a deadline you can act on this week.
Know the limits
- Only Meta Ads must be connected. TikTok ads and Instagram or TikTok posts come from public sources.
- It does not make finished ads. At most, the top gap gets one visual concept.
- Competitors with no new ads that week are left out of the grid.
When to use this playbook
Use it when competitor research happens only when someone remembers to open the ad library, or ends as a folder of screenshots that nobody acts on. The routine runs the same research every Monday and turns it into a short list of decisions, gaps and signals to watch. To turn those gaps into clean tests, read our Meta ads strategy for ecommerce brands.
Get better results
- Turn on the 5 Fresh Ads Daily routine as well. It reads the latest pulse report and turns its angles into new ads each day.
- Act on the decisions section first. It is capped at three items so the report stays a to-do list.
- Ask the setup chat to send the report to a Slack channel if your team plans the week there.
Schedule
Every Monday at 9:00 in your time zone; you can change the time. “Set up this routine” opens the routine in Tolstoy, where you check its connections and time. Nothing runs until you save it.
FAQ
How does it know which competitor ads work?
It does not see their results. Ad libraries show no spend, so the routine uses how long an ad has run: 30+ days and still active counts as likely profitable. It never estimates impressions, spend or CTR.
Does it copy competitor ads?
No. It reports patterns, such as the hook, the format and the structure, and you build your own version. The "what to steal" line names the structural idea, not the creative.
Which competitors does it track?
The brands in your brand context, or the ones you name when you set up the routine. Pick brands that sell to the same shopper at a similar price. A list of the biggest names in your category gives a long grid and few gaps you can use.
Run it on your own catalog
Start free, connect your store, and Tolstoy opens this playbook for you. You review every result before anything goes live.