VidTao Alternatives
Which YouTube Ad Spy Tool is Best for You?
VidTao used to be a free YouTube ad spy tool, but since they started charging a lot of people have been wondering about a VidTao Alternative. The only other YouTube Ad Library with similar functionality that is worth considering is Video Ad Vault by TubeSift.
Video Ad Vault by TubeSift is another YouTube ad spy tool (or ad library) that allows you to track ads that are running on YouTube across a variety of markets.
In this article we will break down the differences between the two ad spy tools to help you determine which YouTube ad library is right for you.
VidTao vs. Video Ad Vault
VidTao vs. Video Ad Vault Basic Overview
VidTao and Video Ad Vault are both functional YouTube Ad Spy Tools designed to give YouTube advertisers a competitive edge in their markets.
There are some similar functionalities between the two but there are also some significant differences that may affect your searchability and make or break your competitive edge.
Let’s start with the comparisons most likely to impact your level of competitive intelligence.
Who has more ads?
When you do the same keyword search in VidTao and Video Ad Vault you will notice that Video Ad Vault happens to find more ads than VidTao.
One thing that Shash Singh, former CEO of Linx Digital, noticed in his tests of both softwares is that Video Ad Vault finds a “higher number of ads results.”
He also discovered that Video Ad Vault finds all the ads under a specific keyword, while VidTao’s search functionality does not capture all of the ads.
Search Results Comparison
When you do a search for the ads by the online ergonomic pillow advertiser, Pillow Cube, you can see that Video Ad Vault found more ads from this advertiser than VidTao did.
VidTao Search Results for Pillow Cube
Video Ad Vault Search Results for Pillow Cube
Search Functions
After looking at the side by side comparison from above, you will notice that VidTao returns limited search results, and Video Ad Vault returns more ads.
VidTao’s search feature has basic functionality to search for general keywords but Video Ad Vault has advanced search categories and advanced exclusion filters.
VidTao Search Feature
VidTao has limited search functionality and you cannot search ads by specific criteria to help you narrow in on the market segment you want.
Video Ad Vault Search Feature
Video ad vault allows you to search specific categories to narrow in on the market segment you want to.
VidTao works to find a few of the ads running under specific search terms or advertiser names while Video Ad Vault finds all the ads running under those search terms.
Landing Page Finder
Seeing the ads is one thing, but being able to see the landing page the ad pushes traffic to is a crucial part of researching successful sales funnels.
Landing pages are where the conversions for any specific offer happens anyway.
As of right now, VidTao does not find the landing pages associated with the ad.
Video Ad Vault by TubeSift finds the landing pages associated with each ad and allows you to click a link to view the page.
Site Search
Searching YouTube ads by a website URL or domain name is a helpful feature when you want to see all the ads being run for a specific website.
VidTao does not have a site search feature and only lets you search by a single keyword.
Video Ad Vault allows you to search YouTube ads for a specific website.
Video Ad Vault has a site search feature where you can search ads for a specific website, and even modify their ads by a specific keyword.
Keyword Modifiers
YouTube channels that run a bunch of ads can be difficult to filter the ads down by a specific keyword that may be related to an offer or ad angle you want to see.
Being able to modify your search results by finding all the ads by a certain YouTube channel or website that also relate to a specific keyword is one of the advanced search features that Video Ad Vault has, but VidTao does not.
Watched Channels
A watched channels feature allows you to track advertisers of your choosing.
Currently VidTao does not have a feature that allows you to do this.
Video Ad Vault has a built in Watched Channels Feature that allows you to track any advertiser’s Youtube Channel.
Video Ad Vault has a Watched channels feature where you can track any advertiser’s YouTube channel that you want. VidTao does not have this feature.
Email Alerts
A lot of YouTube advertisers like to get automatic updates when new ads are published by advertisers they want to follow.
Getting automatic updates from the top advertisers you want to track simplifies the process of gathering competitive intelligence around your YouTube ad campaigns.
There is no way to currently get automatic updates with VidTao, but Video Ad Vault has a feature where you can turn on email alerts for channels you want to watch.
Video Ad Vault lets you set up email alerts for when advertisers you want to follow publish new ads.
Advanced Search Tactics Training
An important consideration of every decision in your choice of ad spy software is the quality of the features training in the software.
VidTao offers an overview training of YouTube advertising with a basic rundown of how to use the ad spy tool.
The Video Ad Training Inside VidTao
Video Ad Vault offers individual video modules for each of its specific features.
Video Ad Vault offers individual video modules for each of its specific features.
Since it has more robust functionality than VidTao when it comes to ad spy features, it does a good job demonstrating how to use each feature to your best advantage.
Advanced Search Tactics Training inside Video Ad Vault
VidTao vs. Video Ad Vault Review from Ad Agency Owner
Shash Singh, former CEO of Linx Digital, reviewed his experiences using VidTao and Video Ad Vault for his ad agency.
Pricing Comparison
VidTao: Free (15 minutes search time per month) or $49/Month
Video Ad Vault by TubeSift: $97/month or $997/year
One difference to note is that VidTao offers a free plan, but your search time is limited to only 15 minutes per month, which is not enough to gather all the market intelligence you need.
If most ads are between 1-3 minutes (or sometimes longer), that will burn your free search time up fast.
Having unlimited searches is crucial if you really want to know what is working in your niche on YouTube.