The “Enemy” at the Gates (or the Rising Tide?)

Your marketing doesn’t exist in a vacuum. Every ad you show is competing for attention against your rivals.

The Competition Impact over Time chart isolates this specific external force. It uses the statistical model to strip away your ads, seasonality, and trend to answer one specific question: “How much did my competitor’s activity influence my sales?”

How to Read the Chart

  • X-Axis (Time): The timeline of your analysis.
  • Y-Axis (Decomposition): The monetary value (or conversion count) of your sales attributed to this competitor variable.
  • The Line: The fluctuation shows the intensity of their impact week by week.

The Two Scenarios: Headwinds vs. Tailwinds

The most confusing part of this chart for new users is often the direction of the impact. You must look at whether the values are Positive (above zero) or Negative (below zero).

Scenario A: The “Category Effect” (Positive Impact)

  • Visual: The line is above zero (like in the example image).
  • What it means: When your competitor sells more, you sell more.
  • The Logic: This is common in growing industries. High competitor activity usually signals high category demand. Their ads might be educating the market about the product type, creating a “halo effect” that lifts your sales too.
  • The Takeaway: You are riding the same wave. Focus on capturing a larger share of this growing pie.

Scenario B: The “Cannibalization Effect” (Negative Impact)

  • Visual: The line is below zero.
  • What it means: When your competitor activity spikes, your sales drop.
  • The Logic: This is a zero-sum game. Every customer they win is a customer you lose.
  • The Takeaway: You are in a direct dogfight. You need to identify when these spikes happen (e.g., their Black Friday promo) and plan defensive strategies (like counter-offers) during those specific weeks.

Strategic Analysis for the Pilot

Use this chart to validate your market reality:

  1. Check the Magnitude: Look at the Y-Axis values. If the numbers are huge (e.g., driving €1M of your sales), your business is heavily dependent on market dynamics rather than just your own ads.
  2. Spot the Pattern: Does the line spike periodically?
    • If yes, your competitor likely runs a “flighted” strategy (heavy bursts of activity).
    • You can use this to predict their next move and pre-emptively block them.
  3. The “Share of Voice” War: Compare this chart to your own Paid Media Decomposition chart. If their impact line is rising while your media line is falling, you are slowly losing the “Share of Voice” battle, even if your total sales look stable.