Guides

October 24, 2025

Marketing a Second Location: How to Launch Your Expansion Successfully

Building awareness in a new market without starting from scratch

Table of Contents

You've done the hard part. You built a successful business. Now you're ready to expand.

But here's the paradox: your new location starts at zero. No one in the new market knows you. No word of mouth. No reputation. No loyal customers walking through the door.

You need to fast-track awareness, and that's exactly where TV advertising becomes your expansion accelerator. With geographic targeting, you can reach your new service area specifically, building recognition in weeks instead of months.

This guide walks you through marketing your second location successfully, from pre-opening buzz to sustained growth.

The New Location Marketing Timeline

Successful expansion marketing follows a clear timeline. Start too late, and you're playing catch-up. Plan ahead, and you open with momentum.

4-6 weeks before opening: Build awareness

Start introducing yourself to the new market. People need to see your brand multiple times before they recognize it.

• Launch TV campaigns targeting your new service area

• "Coming soon to [Location]" messaging

• Begin local social media presence

• Set up Google My Business for the new location

2 weeks before: Grand opening buzz

Shift to anticipation mode. Make the opening an event people want to attend.

• "Opening [Date]" specific messaging

• Special opening promotions announced

• Local media outreach

• Community partnerships and local influencers

Opening week: Full push

Your biggest marketing moment. Go all-in.

• Heaviest TV schedule of the campaign

• Grand opening event

• Opening day promotions

• All channels promoting simultaneously

First 90 days: Sustained presence

Keep the momentum going. New location awareness takes time to compound.

• Consistent TV presence (don't go dark after opening)

• Customer acquisition focused messaging

• Build reviews and social proof

• Nurture new customer relationships

Back to Table of Contents

Leveraging Your Existing Brand

You're not starting completely from scratch. Your existing business has assets you can transfer to the new market.

What transfers:

• Your brand identity and messaging

• Professional creative assets (photos, videos, logos)

• Proven offers and promotions that work

• Customer testimonials (with permission)

• Your operational excellence and service standards

What needs to be built fresh:

• Local awareness and recognition

• Community relationships

• Local reviews and social proof

• Word-of-mouth referral networks

• Search presence for the new area

Using social proof from location one:

"Voted Best [Category] in [City 1]" carries weight even in a new market. It signals quality and success. Feature awards, review ratings, and testimonials from your established location prominently in new market advertising.

Back to Table of Contents

TV Advertising for New Locations

TV is particularly powerful for new location launches because of geographic targeting.

Geographic targeting precision: Unlike other advertising, CTV advertising lets you set a radius around your new location. You're not paying to reach people who live too far away. Every impression goes to a potential customer.

"Now open" messaging: Clear, simple, effective. "Now open in [Neighborhood/City]" tells viewers exactly what they need to know.

Building recognition fast: TV accelerates the timeline from "never heard of you" to "I recognize that name." What takes years through word of mouth can happen in weeks with consistent TV presence.

Premium credibility: Appearing on TV signals legitimacy. For a new location, this is crucial. People are more likely to try a new business they've seen on TV because it suggests stability and success.

Back to Table of Contents

The Grand Opening Campaign

Your grand opening is a once-in-a-location-lifetime opportunity. Plan it carefully.

Pre-opening teasers (2-4 weeks out):

• "Coming soon" TV spots

• Behind-the-scenes on social media

• "Get ready" email to existing customers in the new area

• Countdown on website and social

Opening week promotions:

• Grand opening special (discount, free item, bonus service)

• First customers get special treatment

• Giveaways or drawings

• Family-friendly activities (if appropriate to your business)

Local community engagement:

• Partner with nearby businesses for cross-promotion

• Chamber of commerce involvement

• Local charity tie-in

• Neighborhood-specific messaging

Media and influencer outreach:

• Press release to local media

• Invite local food/business bloggers

• Social media influencer partnerships

• Local newspaper and event calendars

Back to Table of Contents

Multi-Channel Launch Strategy

TV builds awareness, but the strongest launches use multiple channels together.

TV for awareness: This is your foundation. TV puts your brand in front of thousands of potential customers in your new service area, on the most trusted screen in the home.

Digital for targeting: Retarget website visitors. Run geo-targeted social ads. Capture people who searched for your category. Digital complements TV by reaching people ready to act.

Local SEO from day one: Set up Google My Business before you open. Start building citations. Have your website's location page live and optimized. When people search after seeing your TV ad, be there.

Social media community building: Start a local social presence for the new location. Join local Facebook groups. Engage with the community. Make it personal.

The amplification effect: When TV, digital, SEO, and social all work together, each channel amplifies the others. Someone sees your TV ad, searches for you on Google, finds your social media, and converts. That's the multi-channel magic.

Back to Table of Contents

Budget Planning for Expansion

How much should you spend marketing a new location?

Industry rule of thumb: Plan for marketing to be 10-15% of projected first-year revenue for a new location. This is higher than an established location because you're building awareness from scratch.

Front-load vs. sustain: Front-loading (spending more early) makes sense for launches. Plan 40-50% of your first-year marketing budget for the first 90 days. Then sustain presence with the remainder.

Budget example for a new location:

• First year projected revenue: $500,000

• Marketing budget (12%): $60,000

• First 90 days (45%): $27,000 (~$9,000/month)

• Remaining 9 months (55%): $33,000 (~$3,700/month)

TV budget allocation:

With Adwave's $50 minimum, you can test TV without committing your entire budget. A typical new location TV strategy might be:

• Pre-opening: $500-1,000 (awareness building)

• Opening week: $1,000-2,000 (full push)

• First 90 days: $500-1,000/month (sustained presence)

That's $3,500-6,000 for TV in the critical first 90 days, a fraction of your total marketing budget for significant awareness-building impact.

Back to Table of Contents

Measuring New Location Success

How do you know your expansion marketing is working?

Customer acquisition metrics:

• New customers per week/month

• Customer acquisition cost (marketing spend ÷ new customers)

• First-time vs. repeat visitor ratio

• Source of customers ("How did you hear about us?")

Brand awareness indicators:

• Direct traffic to location-specific website pages

• Branded search volume in the new market

• Social media following growth

• "I saw your ad" customer mentions

Business performance:

• Revenue trajectory vs. projection

• Break-even timeline

• Comparison to location one's early performance

• Review volume and rating

Adjust based on data: If customer acquisition is slower than expected, increase marketing. If a specific channel is outperforming, shift budget there. Launch marketing is iterative.

Back to Table of Contents

Launch Your New Location with TV

Expansion is exciting, but building awareness in a new market takes intentional effort. TV advertising gives you the fastest path to recognition, reaching your new service area specifically with the credibility that comes from appearing on the biggest screen in the home.

Don't let your new location struggle for months to build awareness. Start your new location TV campaign today and give your expansion the visibility it needs to succeed.

With geographic targeting, you reach exactly the customers who can visit your new location. With campaigns starting at $50, you can test what works before scaling up.

Your new market is waiting. Make sure they know you've arrived.