4 Tips on Competitor Geofencing Advertising

Geofencing advertising is a break-through digital advertising strategy that allows you to target audiences by their physical location.

Remember, the places people go is the strongest indicator of their buying intent.  An example, someone at a car dealership is most likely actively looking to buy a car.

Geo Conquesting

Competitor geofencing advertising, known as geo conquesting, is the strategy of placing geofences around competitor locations and building audiences of people attending those locations.

An example is a restaurant geofencing several nearby restaurants.  Geofencing advertising campaigns build active audiences of people who go out to eat in the local area.  Now, the restaurant can send ads featuring specials and discounts to this targeted audience.

Campaigns like these can dramatically increase walk ins.  This strategy can effectively get consumers to choose your business over the competition.

Here is another quick example.  Imagine you are walking down the street and see two flyers posted on a pole for bars.  Bar A, which is right by the pole advertises friendly staff and a warm atmosphere.  Bar B, which is 2 blocks away, offers a $1 beer if you take a photo of the flier and show it when you order.

Which offer do you think most people will choose?

When used correctly, geo-conquesting is a great way to attract people to visit your business over competitors in the area.

In the prior example, people who saw the flyers would most likely choose bar B because of a $1 beer.  That’s a great deal!  Even though Bar A is very close, customers are willing to walk a little further for a $1 beer.

4 Geofencing Advertising Tips for Geo Conquesting

If you think your business could benefit by getting in front of audiences at competitor locations, here are 4 things to take into consideration.

Tip #1: Know Your Audience

Make sure you understand your target audience and what motivates them.  This will help with messaging in your advertising.

A couple of questions to ask about your target audience:

• Are they male? Female? Both?
• Where do they live?
• What is their average household income?
• Are they married?
• Do they have children?

Any demographic information will help significantly when drafting your advertisements.  The messaging in your ads need to appeal to your audience.

Tip #2: Know Your Competitors

Gathering insight into your competition will increase understanding of your audience.  Why are they attending a competitor’s location?

Researching competitors increases awareness and understanding your market.  It also is an opportunity to review your products and services.  What can you offer that your competitor does not have? You can feature unique benefits in your advertisements that appeal to your local market and get customers in the door.

Make sure to focus on competitors that are very close by.  The closer a competitor location, the more effective the geofencing advertising campaign.

Tip #3: Identify the Need or Problem of Your Targeted Audience

Your objective is to get people at competitor locations to come in and try your product or service.  The long-term objective is to turn them into loyal customers.  Target a need or problem your target audience has and address it in your advertising.

A very common strategy is to offer a discount.  Remember the example above where a customer can get a $1 beer by showing a picture of the flyer? Very effective.

Tip #4: Mark Your Own Business as a Conversion Zone

Competitor Geofencing Advertising can track people who receive ads and physically visit your place of business.  This provides insight on how your campaigns are working and gives you a precise ROI.

Other marketing channels can’t provide detailed performance.  Take full advantage of the precise feedback geofence campaigns provide.  From footfall attribution to click thru rates, geofence campaign reporting is powerful.

In Summary

Geofencing builds a very targeted audience.  Physically visiting a location is the strongest indicator of buying intent.

For more information, check out these videos on geofencing.