This 40-location auto services franchise was losing market share to a well-funded competitor that had opened locations near several existing franchise territories. Rather than competing on price, we designed a geo-fencing conquest campaign that targeted mobile users at competitor locations with differentiated value messaging. Over 90 days, the campaign captured 340 attributed new customers from competitor locations at a cost of $28 per customer acquisition, well under their $65 CPA target.
Campaign Architecture
We set up geo-fences around 85 competitor locations within 5 miles of our 40 franchise locations. Geo-fences were configured at the building/parking lot level (100 to 200 foot radius) to capture only users who actually visited competitor locations, not nearby businesses. When a user's mobile device entered a competitor geo-fence, they became part of a 30-day target audience. We served them mobile display and social ads with messaging focused on the franchise's differentiators: certified technicians, transparent pricing with no hidden fees, and a satisfaction guarantee.
Creative and Messaging Strategy
We A/B tested three creative approaches: direct comparison ads (highlighting specific service advantages), value-focused ads (promoting introductory offers), and social proof ads (featuring 5-star review content and customer testimonials). Social proof creative won convincingly, generating 2.3 times higher click-through rates than direct comparison. The winning creative combination: a customer testimonial quote, the franchise's 4.8-star Google rating, and a first-visit offer. We deliberately avoided mentioning competitors by name (ethical and legal best practice) and focused on positive differentiation.
Results: 340 New Customers in 90 Days
At 90 days: the geo-fencing campaign served ads to 42,000 unique users captured at competitor locations. Click-through rate averaged 1.2% (above the 0.7% display benchmark). 340 new customers were attributed to the geo-fencing campaign through unique promo codes and landing page tracking. Cost per acquired customer was $28 (well below the $65 CPA target). 68% of geo-fencing-acquired customers made a second purchase within 60 days (indicating genuine switching behavior, not just one-time trial). Estimated first-year revenue from 340 captured customers: $136K (at $400 average annual customer value).
Key Takeaways
- Building-level geo-fences (100 to 200 foot radius) capture genuine competitor visitors
- Social proof creative outperformed direct comparison and offer-based creative
- 340 competitor customers captured at $28 CPA versus $65 CPA target
- 68% repeat purchase rate confirmed genuine customer switching behavior
- Avoid naming competitors directly; focus on positive differentiation
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