Agency new business
How to audit a prospect's Google Ads: by hand or with Ad Prophet
A hand-built audit gives you full control. A read from the domain gives you a first draft in minutes.
The direct answer
Before a pitch you can only audit what is public: the website, the offer, competitors, and visible ads. You can do that by hand with the ad library and a checklist, or start from Ad Prophet's Free Growth Read, which reads a prospect's domain in about 5 minutes. Spend and settings stay unknown until the prospect shares access.
At a glance
| Manual prospect audit | Ad Prophet Free Growth Read | |
|---|---|---|
| Best job | A custom view of one prospect you already know well | A first read of any prospect before the first meeting |
| Starts from | The prospect's site, public ads, and your own notes | The prospect's domain |
| Needs account access? | No | No for the Free Growth Read. Yes for the connected audit. |
| What you get | Whatever you choose to look at and write up | A read of the business, buyer, market, competitors, and a first campaign opportunity |
| Effort | Your team's time for each prospect | About 5 minutes to run the read, then your review |
| Changes the account? | No | No. Ad Prophet reads and recommends. |
Competitor facts come from each company's own public pages, checked on October 13, 2026. Check their pricing pages for current prices.
When to use each
Job 1: build the audit by hand
When the prospect is a strategic win, a hand-built view can be worth the time.
Manual prospect audit
Work through the prospect's site, offer, and visible ads against a checklist, then write up your own point of view. You choose what to look at and how to frame it.
Job 2: get a first read fast, for every prospect
When you pitch many prospects, time per prospect is the limit.
Ad Prophet
The Free Growth Read starts from the prospect's domain and returns a read of the business, buyer, market, competitors, and a first campaign opportunity in about 5 minutes. The agency subscription includes 10 client-ready reads a month.
Manual prospect audit
Add your own notes and your view on the prospect's category on top of the first read.
What each tool does well
Manual prospect audit
Gives you full control over what you look at and how you frame it for one prospect.
Fits best: A small number of high-value prospects where your team already knows the category.
Ad Prophet
Reads a prospect from its domain before you have access, then gives you a point of view to bring to the first meeting.
Fits best: Agencies that pitch new business often and want a source-backed first draft. Ad Prophet reads and recommends. It does not run campaigns.
Source: Ad Prophet: Free Growth Read for agenciesAd Prophet: pricing and agency subscription
Common questions
How do you audit a prospect's Google Ads without access?
Use public evidence: the website and landing pages, the offer, competitors, and the ads that show in public ad libraries. You can see how they present themselves. You cannot see spend, conversions, or account settings until the prospect shares access.
What should a pre-pitch audit include?
A read of the business and buyer, the competitors, the landing pages the ads would send people to, and one first campaign idea. Label what you saw and what you assumed.
Does Ad Prophet need access to the prospect's Google Ads account?
No. The Free Growth Read starts from the prospect's domain. The connected audit needs account access, and gives first insights in under 2 hours and a full analysis within 48 hours.
Sources and method
Each fact about another company comes from that company's own public page. We left out anything we could not check. Products change, so check each site before you buy.
- Ad Prophet: Google Ads audit checklist (checked on )
- Ad Prophet: Free Growth Read for agencies (checked on )
- Ad Prophet: pricing and agency subscription (checked on )