What does the Spends on ads chip mean?

Where you see it

Open a lead and look at the bottom of the Detected Problems section. The chip reads 💰 Spends on ads · has budget, already buys marketing. Hover over it to see what it is based on:

• Seen paying for Google Ads on this exact search: the business's name matched one of the paid Google ads shown for your keywords and location.
• Google Ads tag detected on their website: the website carries Google's ad conversion tag, which advertisers use to track the results of their Google Ads.

How each one is found

Ads on your search

When Legiit Leads checks Google's results page for your search (the same check that gives leads their #N rank badge), it also reads the paid ads. Any business in your list whose name matches one of those ads gets the chip.

The tag on their website

The audit looks through the website's code for the Google Ads conversion tag. When Google's PageSpeed test loads the site, a tag that only appears after the page loads is picked up too. That test runs automatically after a search completes, on up to 25 leads with unconfirmed findings, and you can run it yourself with ⚡ Get Google's Official Score, so the chip can appear after you first open a lead.

Why it matters

A business that already pays for ads knows marketing costs money and is used to spending it. You are not selling the idea of marketing, only a better return on money it already spends.

Good to know

• The chip is a buying signal, not a problem. It does not change the opportunity score, and it never appears in AI emails or on the proof page.
• It shows only inside the lead drawer, not in the results table.
• A business seen in the Google ads can still show No paid ads under Detected Problems, because that problem only looks at the tags on the website: no Meta pixel and no Google Ads tag.
• No chip does not prove a business never advertises. It may advertise on other searches, or load its tag in a way the audit could not see.