STRATEGIC MARKET EXPANSION

Marketing for Brands Entering New Markets

Opening a new location in the same market looks a lot different than opening a location in a new market. The customers you've successfully reached in one market may think differently, shop differently, seek care differently, or make decisions differently than customers in the next. What drove growth in one market isn't guaranteed to work in another.

For more than 20 years, Brandience has helped restaurant, retail, healthcare, and franchise brands successfully enter new markets, market new locations, and grow across regions.

With a retail mindset and approach to marketing, we excel at combining local consumer insights, scalable strategic planning, and creative execution to help brands succeed location by location.

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The team at Brandience did an amazing job. They did customized plans for each store, and the great thing is, the results went through the roof.

Brett C., VP Field Marketing

Tropical Smoothie Cafe

The team at Brandience did an amazing job. They got to know our local markets, our three-to-five-mile radius. They did customized plans for each store, and the great thing is, the results went through the roof. The new stores were above average unit volume, which then helped us to sell even more franchises. I would highly recommend him and use them again without hesitation.

Brett C., VP Field Marketing

Tropical Smoothie Cafe

MARKET RESEARCH & INSIGHTS

Growth Starts with Understanding the Market

If you’re wondering how to enter a new market, the answer isn’t a bigger version of your current media plan. A new market has different competitors, different media costs, different commuting patterns and, frequently, a different reason for buying in your category at all. The brands that treat a new DMA like a copy-paste of the home market usually spend the first-year learning this lesson the expensive way.

Successful market expansion strategies start with market research: understanding the people already there, what influences their decisions, and how your brand fits into their world. At the same time, your marketing needs to remain scalable, measurable and consistent enough to support growth across all your markets.

Four important questions to ask when entering a new market are:‍

  1. How consumers make decisions in the market
  2. What motivates them to choose one brand over another‍
  3. Which competitors are influencing them
  4. What local behaviors should shape messaging and media strategies

BRAND POSITIONING

Position the Brand Before Promoting It

Before launching advertising campaigns in a new market, it's important to understand not only the people you're trying to reach, but also the choices they'll encounter.

Different competitors and local market dynamics can influence which of your brand messages resonate depending on what gaps exist in the marketplace and where opportunities for differentiation emerge.

Your brand's core promise shouldn't change from market to market, but the context around it often does. By understanding the local nuance, brands can establish stronger relevance and connections with local audiences while maintaining a consistent brand experience across locations.

This challenge is especially important for growing franchise systems, where brands must maintain a consistent brand experience while adapting to local market dynamics.

AUDIENCE INTELLIGENCE

Understand the Local Audience Before You Invest

Developing a marketing strategy for a new market often means making important decisions with limited information about your audience.

Will messaging resonate with this audience? How do consumers in this market currently perceive the category? What motivates them to take action?

Before investing in creative development, media spend or large-scale activation, it helps to know what is likely to resonate with your audience. That's why Brandience developed SMRT™ Study, our synthetic research solution designed to help brands gather audience feedback early on and at a lower cost than traditional research.

The result is greater confidence in your strategy and a clearer understanding of how consumers in a new market may respond.

Learn about SMRT Study™

A PHASED APPROACH TO GROWTH

Tactics for Entering New Markets

No two markets are the same. What works in Cincinnati may look very different from what works in Dallas. Our three-phase framework allows for strategic consistency while allowing room for customization to local audiences, competitors, and budgets.

Whether launching a dozen new sites in one market or across multiple, Brandience develops customized grand opening strategies that build awareness before opening, drive traffic during launch, and sustain growth long after opening day.

Pre-Open

Before opening in a new market, the focus is on creating visibility and building a foundation for long-term success. This is the time to establish a local presence, generate awareness and begin connecting with the community you'll serve.

Tactics may include:

  • Claiming and optimizing local listings
  • Building location pages
  • Starting review generation
  • Awareness media campaigns
  • Community partnerships
  • Hiring campaigns that double as brand exposure
Open

As a location launches, the focus shifts to turning awareness into action. The goal is to create excitement, drive traffic to the location, and deliver a positive first impression that encourages consumers to come back.

Tactics may include:

  • Conversion-focused media
  • Promotional offer testing
  • Campaign optimization based on performance
  • Market-specific messaging and activation
Post-Open

Opening day is only the beginning. Long-term success depends on maintaining momentum, building customer loyalty, and continuing to learn what resonates in the market.

Tactics may include:

  • Shifting budget toward retention and frequency
  • Ongoing campaign optimization
  • Measuring incrementality and long-term impact
  • Identifying opportunities for continued market growth

Learn more about our approach to Grand Opening Marketing.

Depending on the business and market, success is measured through customer acquisition, appointments, visits, and sales. It’s important to look at reporting at the location level because here brands gain a clearer understanding of what's working and where opportunities exist individually, and which markets may require a different approach.

Frequently Asked Questions About New Market Strategy

View all FAQs
View all FAQs
How long does it take a new market to reach mature-market performance?

Most locations need 12 to 24 months to reach the volume of an established market, with healthcare and service categories on the longer end. Awareness typically builds faster than trial, so expect a gap between people knowing you and people choosing you.

How much should we budget for market expansion marketing?

Plan for around 5% of projected first-year revenue in the new market, roughly double a mature market's rate. The premium covers awareness building that established markets already paid for years ago.

Should national creative be reused in a new market?

Keep 70 to 80 percent of the creative system consistent and localize the rest, usually offers, proof points and imagery. Consistency builds recognition across markets while local details make the brand feel present rather than parachuted in.

What is the most common mistake in new market entry?

Underfunding the first 90 days is the mistake we see most, often because budget was modeled on mature-market ratios. A thin launch forces a second, more expensive relaunch about a year later.

YOUR NEXT MARKET STARTS HERE

Marketing in a New Market?

Market growth is easier when you have the right strategy and the right marketing partner for opening locations in a new market, like Brandience. Whether you're opening a new location in a new DMA or scaling a multi-location brand, Brandience helps you create a growth strategy that drives awareness, demand, and long-term growth.

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