Marketing before you open: a 60-day plan so the business opens with customers

Many owners spend everything on renovation, equipment and rent. Marketing is planned for "after we open". So the doors open, the space looks great, staff are hired — and there are no customers. The first months go on rent and salaries, nothing is left for ads, and the business gets off to a hard start. If marketing begins 1–2 months before opening, you can open with customers from day one. This article sets out a practical 60-day plan.

The core rule: marketing is part of the investment

In the business plan, marketing should be its own line — for the pre-opening period and the first 2–3 months. Planning it "from whatever's left" is risky: renovation always costs more than planned, and marketing is the first thing cut.

Illustrative example: an opening budget

Item	Share
Renovation, equipment, rent (including deposit)	75%
Working capital for the first 2–3 months	15%
Marketing: before opening and the first 3 months	10%

(Illustrative example.) The exact share depends on the industry and location, but marketing shouldn't be zero — planning a marketing budget.

The 60-day plan

60–45 days out: foundations

Validate the idea: is there demand, who are the competitors, where are prices — validate a business idea.
Positioning: who you're for and how you differ.
Name and visual identity — how to name a business, visual identity.
Prices and the core offer — these should be settled before you open.

45–30 days out: visibility

Instagram profile and Telegram channel — bio, highlights, contacts — Instagram profile that sells.
Get on the maps — Yandex, Google, 2GIS — add your business to maps.
"Before we open" content: the renovation, the team, the product, "how we're getting ready". People love watching a process unfold, and they start looking forward to the opening.

30–15 days out: the waiting list

Open a waiting list: "sign up to be first to know about the opening and get a special offer". A Telegram bot or a simple form is enough.
Prepare the launch offer: concrete and valuable for the first days — it can be added value rather than a discount.
Partners: neighbouring businesses, local pages, small bloggers — influencer advertising.

15–0 days out: warm-up and invitations

Switch on ads: targeted by location (the area around the business), with the launch offer.
Remind the waiting list: date, time, offer.
Plan the opening day: what will happen and why people should come.
Prepare the team: who answers leads, which script, who does what on opening day.

"Before we open" content: 8 topics

Choosing the location: why this area.
The renovation — "before" shots.
Meet the team: who will welcome you.
How the product or service is prepared.
An answer to a question customers often ask.
Prices and the core offer.
The opening date and the launch offer.
"We open tomorrow" — the final preparations.

Turn each topic into a Reel or Stories, and end each one with an invitation to join the waiting list — Instagram content plan.

Opening day

welcome and photograph the first customers (with permission);
a QR code and a request to leave a review;
collect contacts in exchange for a bonus on the next visit;
live Stories — so people who didn't come can see it too.

The first 30 days

Opening is a beginning, not the end. In the first month:

collect reviews — the first reviews on maps and Instagram become the main source of trust for the next customers — online reputation and reviews;
start bringing people back — give your first customers a reason to return;
record the numbers: leads, visits, purchases, sources — this is your point A;
find what works, and steer the budget there.

Examples by industry

Restaurant and café: a menu tasting before opening, local pages, maps — marketing a restaurant or café.
Beauty salon: stylists' portfolios, an advance booking list — marketing a beauty salon.
Education centre: free trial lessons and a level test before opening.
Shop: an opening bundle or a gift for the first customers.

Common mistakes

Starting marketing after opening.
Spending the whole budget on opening day and not planning the months after.
Creating the profile and map listing on opening day — with no content or reviews yet.
Building a waiting list and never messaging it.
Not recording first-month numbers.

Questions and answers

How much should I set aside for marketing?

It depends on the industry and location. What matters is setting aside a separate amount for the pre-opening period and the first 2–3 months, and not "lending" it to the renovation.

Is there any point advertising before opening, with nothing to sell yet?

Yes. Before opening, the job of ads isn't to sell but to build the waiting list and awareness. On opening day those people become your first customers.

Which channel should come first?

For a local business — maps and Instagram. For an online business — Instagram, Telegram and ads.

Do I need an opening discount?

Not necessarily. Added value (a gift, a bonus, a special service) often works better than a discount and doesn't lower your price.

Conclusion

Start marketing 60 days before opening, and the business opens with customers from day one: positioning, profile and maps, "before we open" content, a waiting list, a launch offer and reviews in the first month. Most important of all is building the marketing budget into the investment plan up front. Level Marketing draws up a pre-opening marketing plan with you: from the brief and point A through opening day to the first month's results.