Planning a product launch can be dauting. To help you get started, here is what you need to know to nail a successful product launch.
What is a product launch?
A product launch is a coordinated marketing effort to launch a new item. Clever product launches engage existing customers, entice new ones, and create urgency. Any time you release a new product out into the market, it’s an opportunity to connect with people, whether they’re new to your brand or they’ve been loyal for years.
How to launch a product and build hype
As you set out to release a new product into the market, you’re essentially delaying gratification for your target audience. Instead of allowing them to purchase something new immediately, you’ll tease your launch through organic and paid advertisements, catchy copy, and assets that capture how amazing your new product is.
Set a launch date
Your launch date is what you’ll work toward as you develop your marketing copy and assets and establish a plan. It’s also what you’ll work back from and how you’ll know the deadlines you need to hit and when. Without a launch date, you risk losing any built-up hype, getting into a cycle where you keep pushing the launch out, or worse, not ever launching at all.
Determine your launch channels
The launch channels you use should be the ones you’re already most active on as a business. These are the channels where you’re already connecting and making sales, and where your target audience hangs out or expects you to be.
SMS
If SMS is a channel, you’re active on, its immediacy can cut through the noise of the many emails and social media posts your audience sees daily, especially for a new product launch. If you have a major launch, and you have a robust SMS list, this is a great opportunity to use it to send a message that you can be pretty certain your audience will see.
Email marketing
Email is an always-on owned channel that allows you to tell your product launch story directly to subscribers in a more long-form setting—especially if you have a substantial email list and high email engagement.
Though less immediate than SMS, email marketing still has the power to win customers over and catch their attention as you build up energy and excitement for a product launch.
Social media
Which social media channels are you most active on? Where does your audience expect updates from you? These are the places where you can do the best work to promote a new launch. You don’t need to invent or invest in any new channels at this point in time, only the ones where you’ve built a following or see the highest engagement.
In- person events
The best way to get your product in front of as many new people as possible could be through an in-person event. This might be as simple as renting a booth at your local farmers market or street fair, and it gives people the opportunity to try out your products in person and ask you questions directly.
Influencer marketing
Working with influencers extends your reach and builds trust with your target audience. It also gives people the opportunity to see your products styled in real life, which can eliminate barriers to purchase, like how big the item is, what color it is in natural light, and if the purchase is worth it. Because influencers already have the trust of their followers, it makes it easier for them to convince those people to purchase your product, especially if they give it a winning endorsement.
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