You believe you have built an exceptional product that surely will amaze your prospects. Still, there are thousands of new solutions appear every day and all their creators have the same assumption. With such a big diversity it becomes difficult to stand out and be noticed, but well-prepared launch campaign has the power to make your product shine and grab people's attention.

Here, I would like to share the lesson I've learned based on my personal experience and to present the points one should consider while launching a product:

Phase 1 – Building and improving a product

Get the feedback from your prospects before you have even started

Many companies tend to think about their product “If I build it, customers will come”. In general, it doesn’t work this way, as the product ends up being “good to have” instead of “urged to have”. Make sure you are building a painkiller and people are willing to pay for it.

So, collect opinions from your potential customers in advance and see if building and launching your product won’t be just a waste of money.

Sell before launching





Maybe you've got the feedback that people are willing to pay. That’s great! But don’t rely on someone else's promise. Try to sell your product upfront before you complete and launch it. You may be surprised how many people are eager to prepay and wait to get something they are excited about. If no buyers knock your door, don't waste your time and change either a product or a strategy.

"Get the customers first, then build the tech. Not the other way aroud." - Lauris Liberts, Draugier Group, Co-founder

Think of the further perspectives

Changes touch everything including customers behavior, so whatever you sell today might not be relevant tomorrow. See first if your product has a potential for advancing and can be adjusted to the alternating customers' needs. By the time you are done with the product its features may not be relevant anymore, so always think of a flexible long-term plan.

Ask how your product suits the big picture of your business? It has to complement the range of your product/services e and strengthen your position on the market.

Phase 2 – Pre-Launch campaign

Get enough hype

Tell the world what are you doing and build up suspense through a series of regular communications with your potential customers. Just like in movie launching. First, we see just a mention of something is coming soon with first shots after comes a short teaser or two, and much later the trailer comes out. So, by the time of release, the audience is ready to see something fantastic.

Provide the guidance on what your prospects should be doing/thinking about next, after each of your iterations with them.

Use the right messaging

Pay attention to the form of communication and the message. Find the best hook: tell the story, use proper visuals, make a video or just write a catchy headline in the right place. Your goal is to convert the anticipation into a willingness to buy.

To select the right message answer yourself questions: Why clients and customers should care? Why is this product a game changer?

Don't do early preannouncement

Preannouncement of the full product in advance adds complexity as you can't always be sure about the final look of the product and its features.

Nevertheless, preannouncement can be a smart go if you are launching a uniquely innovative product and want to outrun your competitors, who work on a similar idea. Even then, try to stay as close as possible to the launch date.

Have references

How often do you check reviews before making a purchase? Nowadays they have a huge significance in generating new clients and closing sales. Even before the product is ready prospects need beta feedback.

Ask your beta users to evaluate your product and leave public feedback. If your users are influencers that's even better. Make sure they had a good experience and are willing to share it across their network.

Remember also, that negative feedback can be also turned into your advantage. The fact your product isn't perfected and you don't afraid to share it builds the trust.

Set up a strict deadline for the launch

Sometimes it is a good strategy to delay until you are fully prepared, but that might take too much time and have greater cost and effort. Set up a deadline for your launch. Plan it for a day before an important trip or event. It often helps you focus and to speed up to deliver it on time.

P.S. This advice will apply mostly to smaller companies and startups. Big corporations or governmental companies tend to delay as a small mistake might lead to adverse consequences.

Phase 3 – Launch/ past launch





Launch time and message

Select the right day & time that best suits your audience. Pick a short and catchy headline like: 'It’s finally here", "Here we are", etc. If you did well with your pre-launch campaign, prospects will be ready to buy without much additional communication from your side.

Be ready to deal with many difficulties

I came across many cases when companies couldn’t deal with underestimated demand. Ask yourself if your solution can sustain fast growth? Do you have enough resources and budget to deal with a huge flow of clients? Are your servers and software strong enough?

Train your sales team

Usually, companies don't pay much attention to their sales team as they are too busy with the launch, but actually, they should. Reassure all of your salespeople were trained well and can tell the right story. And remember, they have to be fully prepared IN ADVANCE for the launch and should be able to handle the great flow of clients.

Create an urgency to buy

The fact your prospects remember about your offer today might not be valid tomorrow. Incentivize them with bonuses for being first buyers and create an offer they can hardly stand off.

You can go even further and prompt them to spread the word by making a gamification system.

Update your product after the launch

The part you may don't even think of is what may happen in just a few days after the launch. Launching a product itself takes plenty of time and effort, but don't stop there. It is not yet a good time for taking rest. NO launches are going perfectly, so you will definitely have something to improve. Look at the first feedback and see what changes can be done on the go to create a better experience for your clients.

Do also share stories of happy customers that already bought from you and ask them to spread the word. They will agree, just ask.

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Hopefully, following those points, you can make your launch a success. Feel free to leave the comment below and share what I missed. Feel free to connect, I'm always open for a discussion and new ideas.