Opening a new salon? Your online presence checklist from day one
The fit-out is done, the skills are there - but where do clients come from? A chronological checklist from the weeks before opening through the first three months, so you don't start with empty chairs.
On the to-do list around a salon opening, online presence often lands at the bottom - to be done after opening, time permitting. That's a costly mistake: your first months' revenue depends on whether anyone can find you online on opening day. The good news: most of the checklist below is free, and can be done in the waiting weeks before opening.
4-6 weeks before opening: the foundations
- 1Reserve your name: domain, Instagram and Facebook accounts - all under one consistent name
- 2Create your Google Business Profile: verification (a postcard by mail!) can take weeks, so start here
- 3Take baseline photos: the salon in progress, the team, your previous work
- 4Launch Instagram with "opening soon" content - the renovation story works surprisingly well
- 5Get your website built: services, prices, introduction, booking option
💡Google Business Profile verification is one of the slowest steps - up to 2-3 weeks. If you want to be on the map on opening day, you can't start the claim too early.
Opening week: every channel live
By opening week, every platform should be ready and pointing in one direction: the booking. The online calendar goes live on your website, the Business Profile has your website and booking links connected, the Instagram bio carries the link. An opening offer (e.g. -20% for the first two weeks) provides the push that brings in the first clients - and from them come your first reviews and referrals.
The first month: laying the review foundation
A new salon's biggest handicap is the trust gap: you have no reviews yet, no proof. So the first month's most important job is review collection: ask every satisfied client for a Google review, right there on the spot. The first 10-15 reviews matter disproportionately - they're what separates the "suspicious new place" impression from the "buzzy new salon" one.
- A QR code at the counter linking straight to the review form
- Photograph all your work - your portfolio is being built right now
- Post several times a week: algorithms boost new, active accounts
- Reply to every review - at this stage every client relationship counts
Months 2-3: starting the engine
The first clientele exists - now returns and referrals need a system. Introduce a simple loyalty element (a stamp card or "bring a friend" offer), and start advertising locally with a small budget: a modest weekly amount targeted at your area, with the promotional offer, pointing at your booking page. Ads are for new people - Instagram and the loyalty program are for the ones you have.
The most common online opening mistakes
- 1"I'll do the website after opening" - exactly when the most searchers would arrive
- 2Inconsistent naming: called one thing on Facebook, another on Google
- 3No price list anywhere - yet it's the first question of anyone curious about a new place
- 4The phone as the only booking channel - younger clients are lost this way
- 5Posting dies after the opening momentum - the algorithm and clients both forget
In summary: pre-opening online prep isn't an extra burden on top of everything else - it's the guarantee of your first months' revenue. Everything you finish before opening works for you from day one.