# Your first 30 days: the recommended set-up order

> The 11 milestones a new customer follows, in order, from the pre-installation checklist to reviewing insights — who does each and roughly how long it takes.

How-to guide · Getting Started · Last updated 25 September 2026

URL: https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/getting-started/your-first-30-days-the-recommended-set-up-order/

By the end of these 11 milestones you will have Personalisation Hub running in your own AWS account, your stores and displays registered, a first campaign playing in store, and the in-store features your business needs switched on. Milestones 1 to 7 are the minimum for a first campaign on screen; milestones 8 to 11 follow as staff are onboarded and devices are rolled out.

**You need:** an AWS account, an IT or AWS administrator for milestones 1, 2, 5, 6 and 10, an HQ marketing owner for the rest, and at least 1 store manager for the tablet features.

## The milestones at a glance

| # | Milestone | Who | Rough time |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | Work through the pre-installation checklist | IT or AWS administrator, with marketing | 1 meeting |
| 2 | Install the platform from AWS Marketplace | IT or AWS administrator | About 1 hour, mostly unattended |
| 3 | First login and platform set-up | Master Admin, then an HQ Admin | About 5 minutes, plus email verification |
| 4 | Add your stores | HQ Admin | Seconds per store |
| 5 | Enable IP restrictions | IT or AWS administrator | Minutes |
| 6 | Register displays and create display types | HQ Admin and IT | Depends on the number of screens |
| 7 | Launch your first campaign | HQ marketing, with IT for the AI provider keys | Minutes to a first play |
| 8 | Localise and personalise | HQ marketing, store managers | Ongoing |
| 9 | Enable queueing, appointments and mobile store sites as needed | HQ Admin, store managers | About 15 minutes per feature, plus staff onboarding |
| 10 | Connect integrations | IT, with marketing | Varies by integration |
| 11 | Review insights | HQ marketing | Weekly |

> **Important:** 3 decisions made in milestones 1 and 2 are permanent: the AWS Region, the `ResourcePrefix` and the platform domain. Agree them before anyone selects **Launch** in AWS Marketplace.

## 1. Work through the pre-installation checklist

Agree the permanent decisions — AWS Region, `ResourcePrefix`, platform domain on your primary domain — and gather the shared Master Admin mailbox, Google Maps API key, platform email address, logos and store list. Everything is listed in [Pre-installation checklist](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/getting-started/pre-installation-checklist/).

## 2. Install the platform from AWS Marketplace

Subscribe, create the CloudFormation stack (about 4 minutes), run the Installation Wizard (about 1 hour) and add the 2 CNAME records within 3 days. Follow [Install Personalisation Hub from AWS Marketplace](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/platform-installation/install-personalisation-hub-from-aws-marketplace/), which links to Steps 1 to 3.

## 3. First login and platform set-up

Sign in, set a strong password, verify the **Platform Email address (AWS SES Email)** with AWS, and invite your Admin, Marketing and Helpdesk users. Then confirm the brand name and business category, upload logos for dark and light backgrounds, and upload your brand guidelines PDF for the AI agents ([Upload your brand guidelines for the AI agents](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/company-set-up-and-users/upload-your-brand-guidelines-for-the-ai-agents/)). See [Step 4 — First login and platform set-up](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/platform-installation/step-4-first-login-and-platform-set-up/), [Add HQ Admin, Marketing and Helpdesk users](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/company-set-up-and-users/add-hq-admin-marketing-and-helpdesk-users/) and [Step 5 — Upload your brand, logos and icons](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/platform-installation/step-5-upload-your-brand-logos-and-icons/).

## 4. Add your stores

Under **Stores / Branches**, add each store from Google Places, shorten the name to the store name, and give it a unique **Store Code**. Store codes link staff and displays to their store, so get them right now. See [Step 6 — Add your stores from Google Places](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/platform-installation/step-6-add-your-stores-from-google-places/) and [Add a store](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/stores-and-retail-data/add-a-store/).

## 5. Enable IP restrictions

Under **Platform Admin → Security (IP Restrictions)**, add your current IP address first, then offices, stores and partners — or place the platform behind your CDN. See [Step 7 — Restrict platform access by IP address](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/platform-installation/step-7-restrict-platform-access-by-ip-address/).

## 6. Register displays and create display types

Turn on **Enable Digital Signage** in Platform Admin and the **Digital Signage** toggle on each store, connect players to your platform domain, and register each device from **Unassigned Devices** with a name, store and display type. See [Enable digital signage](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/digital-signage/enable-digital-signage/), [Create a display type and playlist](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/digital-signage/create-a-display-type-and-playlist/) and [Register a new display or device](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/digital-signage/register-a-new-display-or-device/).

## 7. Launch your first campaign

Define target audiences and campaign objectives once. To have the AI assistant write the brief and generate the creative, first register your OpenAI, Google Gen AI and Veo 3.1 or LTX 2.5 API keys under **Platform Admin → AI Models / Integrations**. Then select **Launch a New Campaign** and either describe the campaign to the assistant, by typing or speaking, or write the brief yourself. Add creative for the playlist, generated or uploaded, and activate it. See [Define target audiences and campaign objectives](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/company-set-up-and-users/define-target-audiences-and-campaign-objectives/), [Connect AI models and providers](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/personalisation-and-ai/connect-ai-models-and-providers/), [Launch a new campaign](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/launching-campaigns/launch-a-new-campaign/) and [Add a campaign to play on a digital signage display](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/launching-campaigns/add-a-campaign-to-play-on-a-digital-signage-display/).

## 8. Localise and personalise

Create store segments and display tags, then target campaigns with them; schedule by time of day or opening hours. Store managers switch variable segments from the tablet. See [Localise campaigns with store segments](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/launching-campaigns/localise-campaigns-with-store-segments/), [Target campaigns at specific displays with display tags](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/launching-campaigns/target-campaigns-at-specific-displays-with-display-tags/) and [Schedule a campaign](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/launching-campaigns/schedule-a-campaign/).

## 9. Enable queueing, appointments and mobile store sites as needed

Turn each feature on in Platform Admin and per store, add reason-for-visit categories, upload Retail Admin users or connect SAML, and define the default mobile site template. See [Enable virtual store queueing](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/queue-management/enable-virtual-store-queueing/), [Enable appointment bookings](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/appointment-bookings/enable-appointment-bookings/) and [Define your default mobile site template](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/mobile-store-sites/define-your-default-mobile-site-template/).

## 10. Connect integrations

Synchronise store data with Google Business Profile, issue API tokens for your CDP or app to call the Visitor API, add any AI model providers you did not register in milestone 7, and connect MIST if you use proximity. See [Connect the platform to Google Business Profile](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/integrations-and-3rd-party-guides/connect-the-platform-to-google-business-profile/), [Create API authentication credentials for an integration](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/integrations-and-3rd-party-guides/create-api-authentication-credentials-for-an-integration/), [Connect AI models and providers](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/personalisation-and-ai/connect-ai-models-and-providers/) and [Enable proximity personalisation with MIST](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/personalisation-and-ai/enable-proximity-personalisation-with-mist/).

## 11. Review insights

Open **Insights / Analytics** to read campaign performance, visitor and store stats and upcoming appointment capacity, and download the reports for your own analysis. See [Review campaign performance in Insights / Analytics](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/launching-campaigns/review-campaign-performance-in-insights-analytics/).

## What you built

A self-hosted Personalisation Hub instance at your platform domain, with HQ users invited, every store on the **Stores / Branches** list with a unique store code, registered displays showing a green status dot on **Displays & Devices**, at least 1 campaign with status **Live**, and — where enabled — store staff signed in to Retail Admin taking visitors from the queue.

## Next steps

- [How campaigns work: playback strategies, touch-points and status](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/launching-campaigns/how-campaigns-work-playback-strategies-touch-points-and-status/) — understand playback strategies before you scale up campaigns.
- [Get notified when a display goes offline](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/digital-signage/get-notified-when-a-display-goes-offline/) — make sure someone hears when a screen goes dark.
- [How do I get support?](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/getting-started/how-do-i-get-support/) — how to contact support when you are stuck.

## Related

- [Pre-installation checklist](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/getting-started/pre-installation-checklist/)
- [Install Personalisation Hub from AWS Marketplace](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/platform-installation/install-personalisation-hub-from-aws-marketplace/)
- [About Personalisation Hub](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/getting-started/about-personalisation-hub/)
- [Company Settings and Platform Admin explained](https://personalisationhub.com/support-centre/company-set-up-and-users/company-settings-and-platform-admin-explained/)