When Should a New Business Get a Virtual Tour?
Before or after opening? Shooting too early risks an empty-looking space, while shooting too late means losing customers in the first months. What is the right timing?
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When Should a New Business Get a Virtual Tour?
The biggest problem for a newly opened business is a lack of track record. It has no reviews, few photos, and nobody knows about it yet.
A customer searches on Google and sees two options: a familiar place with 500 reviews and a new place they know nothing about. The natural choice is the familiar one.
A virtual tour fills exactly this gap: even if you have no reviews yet, your space can still be seen.
The right timing: the space is ready, but the doors are not open yet
The best moment for the shoot is when the business is fully ready but has not yet started welcoming customers.
At this point:
- All furniture and equipment are in place
- Lighting has been installed and adjusted
- The decoration is finished
- No traces of construction, boxes or packaging are left
- There are no customers or staff in the frame, which is how every shoot works anyway
So a few days before opening is ideal. The space is ready to come alive, but it has not yet seen any wear.
Why is waiting harmful?
The "let's settle in first and get it shot later" approach is common, but it turns out to be expensive.
A new business's first months are also its most critical period on Google. The profile has just been created, Google is trying to get to know the business, and the first customers are leaving the first reviews.
If there is a virtual tour during this period, two things happen: the profile looks more complete, and searchers are offered an option that sparks their curiosity. If there isn't, every month lost is gone for good.
Don't shoot while construction is still ongoing
The opposite mistake exists too: getting the shoot done before the space is finished.
An unfinished space leaves customers with a negative impression, and the tour becomes outdated the moment it goes live. The result: the cost of a second shoot.
The test is simple: if someone who opens the tour can say "I'd go there", the space is ready.
The right setup order
For new businesses, no time is lost if the digital setup follows this order:
- Create the Google Business Profile: verification takes a few days, so start it first
- Finish the space: furniture, lighting, decoration
- Shoot the virtual tour: a few days before opening
- Connect the tour to the profile and publish it
- Embed it on the website and add QR codes to printed materials
- Open the doors: with your digital assets already in place
The first step is the one most often skipped. If the profile is not verified, the tour cannot be connected, so after the shoot you have to wait. We explain the process in our guide on how to get a virtual tour.
Signage and exterior
The exterior scene includes the sign. If the sign has not been put up yet, there are two options:
- Wait until the sign is installed
- Shoot the interior first and add the exterior later
The second option is more practical in most cases: the interior tour goes live right away, and the exterior is added later.
Opening promotion
A method new businesses often use: placing the opening promotion inside the tour as an info card.
When the promotion ends, the card is removed. No reshoot is needed, because the hotspot layer is independent of the panorama. You can find the details in our hotspots and info cards guide.
Does the number of scenes change?
No. The number of scenes is determined by the size of the space and the number of sections; the business being new makes no difference. For a mid-sized space, 5-8 scenes are usually enough.
The calculation logic is explained in our virtual tour pricing guide.
In summary
For a new business, a virtual tour is a trust tool that stands in for the track record it does not have yet. The right time is the first day the space is ready: not earlier, and certainly not much later.
Our archive includes tours of 1,600+ businesses across 55+ provinces and 200+ districts. Newly opened venues are a regular part of this list.
Frequently Asked Questions
The ideal time is right before opening, once the space is fully ready. All the furniture is in place and the lighting is installed, but the business has not yet started welcoming customers.
Yes, but the profile must be verified. Verification usually takes a few days, so it is best to start it before the shoot.
The first months are the most critical period, so waiting means losing out. If the space is ready, the shoot can be done in the opening week.
It does. Customers do not appear in the tour anyway; an empty but fully set-up space is photographed. For new businesses, a tour is a powerful tool that makes up for a lack of track record.
Since the exterior scene includes the sign, it is better to wait. The interior can be shot first and the exterior added later.
The number of scenes depends on the type of business and the number of sections; being new does not change it. A mid-sized space usually needs 5-8 scenes.
Yes. The promotion is placed as an info card or a link and removed once the promotion ends.
No. An unfinished space leaves customers with a negative impression. The shoot is done once the space is fully ready.
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