Where to start promotion: the first 90 days
The most expensive mistake at the start is doing everything at once and a little of each. Three months later the money is spent and there is no way to tell what actually worked. Below is an order in which each step answers a specific question and prepares the next one.
Month one is measurement and maps: analytics, directory listings, site speed. Month two is queries and service pages, with advertising switched on alongside for the first requests. Month three is content and links. That order matters: first what pays off in weeks, then what accumulates over months.
In this article8 sections
Why exactly 90 days
A month is too short: in search, nothing happens in that time beyond new pages being indexed. A year is too long to hold attention and to notice in time that money is going the wrong way.
Three months is the shortest stretch that shows all three kinds of result: the immediate one from advertising, the medium one from maps, and the first signs from search. By the end of it you will have enough facts to decide what to continue and what to close.
Weeks 1–2: work out where you are now
Before changing anything you have to record the starting point. Otherwise, three months later you will not be able to prove to yourself or to your contractor that things improved — and the argument will run on impressions.
- How many enquiries come in now and from where — roughly at least, from calls and messages.
- What one customer costs, if you already pay for advertising.
- What is visible for your business in search and on maps: are you there at all and in what position.
- What the competitors above you show: what is on their site, how many reviews, what prices.
- How many people reach the form and how many submit it.
If you have no analytics set up, that is the first thing to do, before any investment in traffic. Working without numbers means paying blind and then arguing about results in words.
Check the phone separately. Call yourself as a customer, at different times of day. It regularly turns out that some calls are lost at this stage, and no amount of marketing will fix that.
Weeks 2–4: fix the foundation
There is no point driving people to a site they leave. At this stage we touch only what is blocking enquiries right now — no big redesign.
- SpeedThe site should open in 1.5–2 seconds on a phone over ordinary mobile internet. Longer and part of your audience leaves before it appears. Heavy images and unnecessary scripts are usually to blame.
- Mobile versionMore than half of visits come from phones. Check that nothing runs off the screen, that text is readable without zooming, and that buttons can be hit with a finger rather than a fingernail.
- Enquiry formMinimum fields: a name and a phone number are enough. A visible button and a clear promise — what happens after sending and when someone will be in touch.
- ContactsThe phone number is tappable, the address matches what is on the maps, and the messengers actually work rather than leading to an empty account.
- PricesAt least «from» and an order of magnitude. A page without a single figure loses everyone who is not willing to call just to ask the cost.
Month 1: cover the fast channels
While the slow work on search is under way, something has to bring enquiries now. Usually that is maps and narrow advertising.
- Fill in the listings in Google Maps, Yandex Business and 2GIS: services, prices, opening hours, real photos rather than stock ones.
- Verify ownership of the listings — many features are closed without verification.
- Set up review collection as a process rather than a one-off request: a short link, the moment to ask, a person responsible.
- Switch on advertising for the highest-value queries, not for everything.
- Make sure every enquiry is recorded with its source.
By the end of month one it is normal to have the first enquiries from advertising and the first calls from maps. If there are none at all, the problem is almost always either the offer, the price, or enquiries being lost on the way.
Month 2: scale what worked
By now the first data has appeared. You can see which queries bring enquiries and which only bring clicks. This is where the real work starts: not «do more» but «do it more precisely».
- Switch off what spends budget without producing enquiries. There is almost always something, and it is the fastest way to lower the cost per enquiry.
- Expand what brings customers: similar queries, neighbouring phrasings, additional placements.
- Start building pages for the queries that proved profitable in advertising — that is SEO built on facts rather than guesses.
- Review the first call recordings: how many enquiries are lost after the person has already phoned.
- Answer every review — the good ones and especially the bad ones.
A very common finding in month two: traffic grew, enquiries grew, sales did not. Almost always the issue is not marketing but how enquiries are handled: called back a day later, no reply in the messenger, unable to quote a price.
Month 3: the first results from search
Usually by the end of month three the first movement appears in organic results: pages that were nowhere start showing up, and traffic arrives from queries you do not pay for.
This is not a flow yet. It is confirmation that the direction is right and the work is happening. A full result from search is a 6–12 month horizon, and it matters not to mistake the first signs for the finish: this is exactly the stage where many either celebrate too early or give up too early.
What is worth doing in month three:
- Pull together all the statistics for the quarter and calculate the cost of a customer per channel.
- Compare with the first week — on the same metrics.
- Decide on each channel: expand, keep, or close.
- Draw up a plan for the next quarter based on figures rather than impressions.
What counts as normal and what is a warning sign
| Point in time | Normal | Worrying |
|---|---|---|
| Month 1 | Enquiries from ads and maps, source tracking in place | Not a single enquiry and no explanation why |
| Month 2 | Cost per enquiry falling, working queries identified | A report exists but says only «work performed» |
| Month 3 | First positions in search, traffic growth, a clear plan | Positions have not moved on a single query |
What not to do in the first 90 days
- Rebuild the site completely if the old one works. First measure where people are lost, then decide. A redesign without data often lowers conversion.
- Spread the budget over five channels at once. None reaches a working volume and you will not know what was tested.
- Change contractor after a month. Nothing happens in search in a month, and you simply reset what was started.
- Chase positions instead of enquiries. First place for a query nobody types brings no money.
- Stay quiet about problems. If enquiries are not handled or the price is above market, say so. The contractor cannot see your internal kitchen.
Frequent questions
How soon will the first enquiries come?
From advertising, within days. From maps, in 2–4 weeks. From search, usually in month three. If someone promises organic enquiries in two weeks, it is either a very quiet niche or untrue.
Can we start without rebuilding the site?
Often yes. If the site is fast and people submit enquiries from it, that is enough to start. A rebuild is needed once you have measured and seen that it loses people.
How much money is needed to start?
It depends on the niche and city. As a guide from our own pricing: an audit with strategy from $190, a package with ongoing work from $390 a month, with the ad budget calculated separately and kept by you.
What if there is no result after 90 days?
Investigate the facts rather than changing everything at once. The cause is usually one of three: the wrong work was done, the niche is harder than it looked, or enquiries arrive but are lost inside the company.
Should advertising be paused while search work is under way?
No. These channels differ in speed: advertising feeds the business now, search builds the future. Stopping ads before organic starts producing enquiries is a reliable way to end up with no flow at all.
Who on our side should run the project?
One person with authority to decide — usually the owner or a marketer. When a contractor has to agree every edit with three people the work stalls, and the contractor gets the blame.
The materials answer general questions. We will look at your specific case — free and without obligation.