Opening a restaurant is a sequence of deadlines, and marketing usually gets the leftovers of your attention two weeks before the doors open. That is the wrong order. The cheapest customers you will ever get are the ones who hear about you before you open, and the most expensive mistake is a launch nobody notices. This guide is the marketing timeline for a new restaurant: what to do in the three months before opening, during launch week, and in the first 90 days, in the order that actually matters.
Three months before opening: build the audience you will open to
Claim every listing while the name is still yours
Register the business name on Google Business Profile, Apple Maps, Yelp, TripAdvisor and the reservation platform you plan to use, plus Instagram and Facebook handles. Google lets you set an opening date and mark the listing as “opening soon”, so the profile starts collecting followers and search visibility weeks before service. Use the exact same name, address and phone format everywhere; mismatches confuse both customers and search engines.
One page website, not a big one
A single page with the concept, the neighbourhood, the planned opening month, a few honest build-progress photos and an email sign-up box is enough. Its job is to collect the pre-opening list. A reservation link can be added later; a “coming soon” page with a form converts better than a beautiful site with no reason to leave your email.
Document the build
People care about a restaurant before it exists if they see it being made. The chef testing the menu, the sign going up, the first delivery, the staff training: this is a month of social content that costs nothing and gives the launch a story. Post two or three times a week from the moment you have a handle.
Meet the neighbours
Walk to every business within five minutes and introduce yourself. Offices, gyms, hotels, shops and other restaurants send people to each other constantly. Ask what their customers ask for at lunch; that conversation is market research and a partnership in one.
One month before: soft launch and the press list
Friends-and-family nights are marketing, not just training
Run two or three soft-launch services for invited guests: neighbours, local business owners, your suppliers, the people on your email list. Charge a reduced price or nothing, ask for honest feedback and, at the end of the meal, ask them to follow the Instagram account and to leave a review the day you officially open. This is how a restaurant opens with thirty reviews instead of none.
Local media and local creators
Local newspapers, city blogs and neighbourhood newsletters run “opening this month” pieces constantly and need material. Send a short note with the concept, the opening date, three good photos and the chef’s background. Invite a handful of local food creators to a soft launch; choose people whose followers actually live within reach of your door, not the biggest accounts.
Finish the Google listing properly
Photos of the room, the food and the exterior, correct hours, the menu (as a link, not a PDF), attributes such as outdoor seating or vegetarian options, and a booking link. A complete listing on opening day is the difference between appearing for “restaurants near me” and not appearing at all. The full checklist is in Google Business Profile for restaurants.
Launch week: capacity, not hype
The goal of opening week is not the biggest crowd. It is a full room every service with a kitchen that can cope, and guests who leave wanting to return. Over-promotion in week one produces long waits, rushed food and a burst of two-star reviews that will sit on your listing for years.
- Announce the opening date to the email list first, a day before social media. The list should always hear first; that is why people join it.
- Open reservations rather than walk-in only for the first week if you can, so you control the pace.
- Post daily during the week, showing real plates and real guests (with permission). Reply to every comment.
- Ask every table for a review with a card or a QR code. Google’s rules do not allow paying or rewarding reviews, but asking is fine and works.
- Keep a notebook of what guests ask about: parking, kids’ options, gluten-free dishes. Each question is a future post and a future website line.
The first 90 days: turn first visits into regulars
Weeks 1 to 4: fix and reply
Read every review and every comment and reply to all of them, including the bad ones. Fix operational problems before spending a cent on promotion. Publish the “what to expect” content: menu highlights, how to book, the story of two dishes.
Weeks 5 to 8: identify the weak service
By now you know which service is soft, usually weekday lunch or an early-week dinner. Aim your first real offer at it: a lunch set for nearby offices, a mid-week fixed menu, a neighbourhood night. Promote it through the list and the Google listing before touching ads.
Weeks 9 to 12: start the loyalty loop
Launch a simple loyalty scheme (a stamp card or a digital equivalent) and an email cadence of one message every two weeks. Consider a small geotargeted ad test, a few dollars a day aimed at people within a short drive during the weak service hours, only after photos and reviews are in good shape.
The month-by-month structure for everything after the launch is in the 12-month restaurant marketing plan template.
Mistakes new restaurants make in the first year
- Spending on a big website before a complete Google listing.
- Running discount offers on Friday and Saturday, which were full anyway, instead of on the empty Tuesday.
- Posting only food photos. Rooms, staff and guests are what make people choose one restaurant over another with similar food.
- Ignoring reviews for the first months and then trying to “fix the rating” later.
- Treating the email list as optional. It is the only audience that no platform can take away or charge you to reach.
If you are opening soon and want the whole sequence taught step by step, from the listing to loyalty to your first ad, the restaurant marketing course is built for owner-operators: 38 lessons, one-time $89, lifetime access, certificate on completion and a 14-day money-back guarantee.
Frequently asked questions
When should a new restaurant start marketing?
The day the name and location are decided. Listings, handles and an email sign-up page take an afternoon and give you months of audience-building before opening.
Is a grand opening event worth it?
A soft launch for invited guests is worth it; a public grand opening that fills the room beyond what the kitchen can handle usually is not. Reviews from a chaotic first night last longer than the buzz.
How much should a new restaurant spend on marketing in the first three months?
Very little in cash if you do the free channels well. Prioritise photography and a complete Google listing; test small paid ads only after the first month of reviews.
