What is a product launch?
It’s a step-by-step, repeatable process, that you can implement whenever you want to launch a brand-new product or program, or re-launch a current product or previous program.
It’s much harder to sell something simply by sticking it out there and hoping people will buy it; when you have a launch system in place you will make more sales.
Make sure you’re solving a problem that your target market wants solved! You’ll be well on your way to a successful launch.
The three stages of a successful product launch are:
1. Pre-Launch
This is actually the major stage of your product launch sequence – this is where you do all the planning and strategizing. You want to allow several weeks for your pre-launch stage as it’s during this stage that you’ll be:
- Writing the sales page and creating the back-office systems
- Setting up your affiliates to help you with your launch
- Creating a sub-list of eager buyers
- Hosting a free preview teleclass to officially launch your product or program (optional, but a worthwhile strategy)
- Doing any final research to make sure that your product or program really provides the solution to your target market’s problems.
2. During the Launch
This is actually a very short-time frame, say about two weeks. During this stage you will have officially launched your product or program to your target market, and may be doing additional promotional work to encourage early purchases. This could take the form of additional solo emails, or joint venturing with other business owners to get the word out.
You may also be offering time-sensitive bonuses or discounts, and doing ‘last chance’ announcements.
3. Post-Launch
Once the initial launch phase is over, you want to ensure that you continue to get more sales, especially if it’s for a product that will be available over the long-term.
You also want to put in place strategies to ‘make the sale stick’, i.e. you want people to use your new product, or participate in your new program. If you’ve offered a guarantee, you want to make sure they don’t come back to you asking for their money back because you haven’t done your job in ensuring that they’re happy with their investment.
During this stage you want to:
- Create a sequence of follow-up emails that checks in with your customer to make sure they are happy with their purchase.
- Offer ongoing support so that they get the most out of their investment.
- Send any ‘surprise’ or unannounced bonuses.
You also want to go into normal promotion mode so that you encourage sales for the long-term. This means adding details of your product or program to you website, blog, and making it a regular feature in your ezine.
