Your Best Prospects Are Already Doing Laundry Somewhere Else
Here's an uncomfortable truth: the customers most likely to visit your laundromat are currently visiting your competitors.
They already have the habit. They already allocate time for laundry. They already live or work near laundry facilities. The only thing preventing them from choosing you is awareness and a reason to switch.
Competitor conquest targeting solves both problems simultaneously.
Why Conquest Targeting Works
Finding people who need laundry service is hard. Finding people who are actively using laundry service is easy—they're walking into competitor locations right now.
| Traditional Targeting | Conquest Targeting |
|---|---|
| Find people who might need service | Find people already using service |
| Hope they remember you later | Reach them when in "laundry mode" |
| Compete with all advertisers | Compete only for consideration |
| Long conversion timeline | Compressed decision window |
Step 1: Map Your Competitive Landscape
Before building geofences, document your market:
Direct Competitors: Other self-service laundromats within 3-5 miles. Prioritize by proximity to your locations.
Indirect Competitors: Laundromats with different service models (wash-dry-fold only), apartment complexes with shared laundry.
Adjacent Businesses: Dry cleaners (customers may need both), convenience stores near competitors.
Step 2: Build Strategic Geofences
Not all competitor locations deserve equal targeting investment:
| Competitor Type | Priority | Radius |
|---|---|---|
| Direct rival, closest to you | Highest | 75-100 feet |
| Direct rival, different trade area | Medium | 50-75 feet |
| Indirect competitor | Lower | 100-150 feet |
| Adjacent business | Supplemental | 150-200 feet |
Critical rule: Your geofences should capture customers, not employees. Smaller radii with dwell-time requirements (minimum 5-10 minutes in zone) filter out pass-through traffic.
Step 3: Tier Your Targeting Strategy
Tier 1: Primary Conquest (50-60% of budget)
Direct competitors. Aggressive messaging: "Looking for better machines?" Serve ads within 24-48 hours of competitor visit.
Tier 2: Secondary Conquest (25-30% of budget)
Indirect competitors. Educational messaging: "Full-size machines available." Serve within 72 hours of visit.
Tier 3: Adjacent Capture (15-20% of budget)
Related businesses. Awareness messaging: "Laundromat nearby." Serve within 1 week of visit.
Step 4: Craft Conquest-Specific Creative
What Works:
- "Tired of waiting for machines?"
- "Newer equipment, same neighborhood"
- "Free WiFi. Free parking. Clean machines."
- "First visit? Get $5 off wash-dry-fold"
What Doesn't Work:
- Generic brand awareness ads
- Messaging that assumes no current solution
- Price-only positioning (attracts serial switchers)
- Negative competitor mentions (appears petty)
Real Campaign Data: Conquest Performance
From actual GPS-verified campaigns:
Mark 24/7 Pensacola - Conquest Results:
- Competitor-targeted visits: ~640 of 3,192 total (20%)
- Conquest CPV: $2.85 (vs $1.57 campaign average)
- Higher initial cost, but strong repeat behavior
Mark 24/7 Alabama - Conquest Results:
- Competitor-targeted visits: ~387 of 1,935 total (20%)
- Conquest CPV: $3.45 (vs $2.58 campaign average)
- Smaller competitor pool limited conquest volume
Key insight: Conquest targeting typically costs 50-80% more per visit than first-party targeting, but delivers net-new customers that expand your addressable market.
The Conquest-to-Loyalty Pipeline
The ultimate goal: convert conquest-acquired customers into first-party data assets.
- Week 1-4: Customer visits from conquest targeting
- Week 4-8: Capture customer data (loyalty program, email, phone)
- Week 8+: Customer enters first-party audience at $0.22-$0.64 CPV
A customer acquired at $3.50 conquest CPV who converts to a $0.40 first-party CPV represents an 88% reduction in ongoing marketing cost. This is how conquest targeting builds long-term value.