Short answer
- Before you open: name, phone, domain, website, Google Business Profile and a way to collect customer contacts.
- Days 1–30: tell everyone you already know, get your first reviews, and make the business visible on the street and on Maps.
- Days 31–60: turn first customers into repeat customers and referrals; test one small paid channel.
- Days 61–90: keep what brought people in, cut the rest, and plan the next quarter.
Before opening day
These take a few days and save a lot of trouble later:
- Lock the basics: business name, one phone number, one email, and the same address written the same way everywhere.
- Register your domain and get an email on it. It looks more established than a free email address.
- Build a simple website: what you do, where, prices or price ranges, hours, photos and one clear way to contact or book.
- Create your Google Business Profile. Verification can take time, so start early. Choose the most specific category, add services and photos. Google explains the process on its Business Profile help pages.
- Claim your name on the social platforms your customers use, even if you won't post much yet.
- Set up a way to collect contacts with permission: a sign-up form, a booking system or a simple list at the counter.
Days 1–30: get seen, get reviewed
Your first customers mostly come from people who already know you and people who physically pass by. Lean into both.
- Personal outreach: message friends, family, former colleagues and past clients individually. Ask them to try you and tell one person.
- Opening offer: one clear reason to come in during the first weeks, with an end date.
- Street visibility: a clear sign, an "opening" banner, and for mobile businesses, branding on the vehicle.
- Neighbors: introduce yourself to nearby businesses. Cross-referrals often start with a conversation.
- Reviews from real customers: ask every happy customer, with a direct link or QR code. Don't ask friends who haven't been customers, and don't offer anything in exchange. Google's policies prohibit fake and incentivized reviews (policy).
- Photos: add new real photos to your Google profile every week; a new profile with only a logo looks empty.
Why reviews come first: a new business is an unknown. A handful of genuine, recent reviews does more to convince a stranger than any ad, and it makes every later ad work better.
Days 31–60: bring them back
By now you have some customers. The cheapest growth is getting them to return and bring others.
- Follow up: a thank-you message, a rebooking reminder or a "how did it go?" check-in.
- Referral ask: a simple card or message: "If you know someone who'd like this, here's a link."
- Fix what customers tell you: confusing prices, hard-to-find parking, slow replies. Early feedback is gold.
- Test one paid channel, small: a local Facebook and Instagram ad or Google search ads, aimed at a tight area with one offer. Decide in advance what result would make it worth continuing.
- Ask "how did you hear about us?" every time and write it down.
Days 61–90: double down
| Look at | Then |
|---|---|
| Which source brought the most customers? | Put more time or money there |
| Which source brought none? | Stop it, at least for now |
| How many reviews do you have, and how recent? | Keep the review habit going weekly |
| Which services or products sell best? | Feature them on your website and profile |
| Where do people drop off? | Fix that step: website, replies, pricing or booking |
Then write a one-page plan for the next quarter. My Marketing plan template is built for exactly this moment.
What to skip in the first 90 days
- Expensive long-term contracts for SEO, directories or advertising before you know what works.
- Being on every platform. Two channels done well beat six done occasionally.
- A big launch party with no follow-up plan. Attention fades fast if nobody captures contacts.
- Deep discounting. It can attract bargain hunters who never return at full price.
- Buying followers or reviews. It breaks platform rules and can get your profile restricted.
What I'd do
Get the pre-opening list done properly, then spend the first month almost entirely on reviews and personal outreach. My Website design package covers the website plus Google Business Profile setup and a review kit in one go, so a new business opens with the basics in place.