🖼️ SEE THE BIG PICTURE 🖼️
1. Make sure that your product or service has a clear value proposition.
IMPORTANT. Answer these questions honestly and well before anything:
● Do you have the right team in place?
● Who is the target market?
● How would you describe your product or service in a quick elevator pitch?
● What do customers receive when exchanging money for your offer?
● What is your USP? (USP means “ unique selling proposition ” and refers to the one thing that distinguishes your offering from all others.)
● Why should people pay attention to what you are selling?
2. Decide on bonuses, incentives, or rewards for early buyers. How will they be rewarded for taking action?
3. Take into consideration that you are not just selling, you are building a brand. How should your brand be perceived? (make sure you set and communicate clearly you values, mission and purpose)
4. Set a clear communication guide (tone of voice, visual elements) for you product or service brand. If you already have an established brand make sure that they align and not clash with each other.
💳 GET READY TO SELL 💳
5. Have you built anticipation into the launch? What is your plan to achieve this?
6. Have you built urgency, not the false kind but a real reason for timeliness, into the launch?
7. Have you made the launch fun somehow?
(Remember to think about non-buyers as well as buyers. If people don’t want to buy, will they still enjoy hearing or reading about the launch?)
8. Announce the time, location and date of the launch in advance.
(If it’s online, some people will be camped out on the site an hour before, hitting the refresh button every few minutes).
9. If your launch is online, have you recorded a video or audio message to complement the written copy?
10. Proofread all sales materials multiple times … and get someone else to review them as well.
11. If this is an online product, is it properly set up in your shopping cart or linked with payment options (PayPal, Visa, MasterCard, Google Pay, Apple Pay, Amazon)?
12. Check all Web links in your shopping cart or payment processor, and then double-check them from a different computer with different browsers.
13. Test every step of the order process repeatedly. Whenever you change any variable (price, order components, text, etc.), test it again. Also try to send it to others to test it out.
14. Have you registered all the domains associated with your product?
(Pro tip: Domains are cheap; you might as well get the .com, .net, .org, and any very similar name if available.)
15. Make sure your clients buying experience (online and offline) is one that fits both him and your products brand.
16. Review the order page carefully for errors or easy to make improvements.
17. Have all promotional materials done (based on needs: brochure, banner ads, website, social media channels, presentation video), in a professional fashion in a way that best communicates to the target market.
18. Read important communications (launch message, order page, sales page, website, banners) out loud. You’ll probably notice a mistake or a poorly phrased sentence you missed while reading it in your head.
19. Have you created any custom graphics for the offer, including any needed ads for affiliates or partners?
💵 MONEY MATTERS (Have a budget and a clear goal) 💵
20. Set a clear monetary goal for the launch. How many sales do you want to see, how much do you want to invest in the launch, and how much net income? (In other words, what will success look like?)
21. Create a backup plan for incoming funds if necessary (get an additional merchant account, plan to switch all payments to PayPal, etc.).
22. Can you add another payment option for anyone who has trouble placing an order?
(Pro tip: make life as easy as possible when it comes to access to your product for potential clients)
23. For a high-priced product, can you offer a payment plan?
(Pro tip: It’s common to offer a slight discount for customers paying in full.)
⌚ THE DAY BEFORE ⌚
24. Clear as much email as possible in addition to any other online tasks so you can focus on the big day tomorrow.
25. Write a strong launch message to your lists of readers, newsletter group, customers, influencers and/or affiliates. Get your message out there as much as possible!
26. Prepare a blog post and any needed social media posts.
27. Ensure that you’re wide awake and available at least one hour before the scheduled launch.
📆 THE BIG DAY 📆
28. Schedule your launch time to suit your target market, not you. It’s usually best to launch early in the morning, but based on the geographical location and target it can vary.
29. Soft launch at least ten minutes early to make sure everything is working. It’s better for you and your team to find the problems than to have your customers find them!
30. Write the first 3–5 buyers to say thanks and ask, “Did everything go OK with the order?”
(Pro tip: These buyers are probably your biggest fans anyway, so they’ll appreciate it even more.)
31. As long as it’s possible send an automated thank you message.
(If it’s not possible every time, do it as often as you can.)
👁️🗨️ PROMO (What can you do before the launch) 👁️🗨️
32. IMPORTANT : Ask for help spreading the word. Many readers, friends, family, and acquaintances will help by telling their friends and followers, but you have to ask them.
33. Write to affiliates and partners with a reminder about the new offering.
34. Write to journalists, media outlets, bloggers, influencers or media contacts, if appropriate.
(Pro tip: try contacting local TV, Radio and media outlets and invite them to the launch if possible or offer interviews. Sending an official press release is also a great idea.)
35. Try to send if possible early your product or service to key influencers in your market. These reviews and buzz will help build anticipation and awareness.
36. Post on YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and any other social networks you already participate in.
(Pro tip: It’s always a good idea to join a new network just to promote to a new audience.)
🕵️ FOLLOW-UP (Do this ahead of time) 🕵️
37. Write the general thank you message that all buyers will receive after purchasing.
38. Offer free swag(shirts, stickers, pins) to a certain number of first buyers. This way you will reward and convert your clients into brand ambassadors.
39. Have a post launch content plan for future communication and schedule it after you recover from the launch and the initial high period cools down.
40. Have a system to gather all mentions and centralize the general perception and reviews of your products brand.
🏃♀️ GO THE EXTRA MILE 🏃♀️
41. Make sure you take these 2 questions into consideration:
● How can you overdeliver and surprise your customers with this product?
● Can you include additional deliverables or some kind of unadvertised benefit?
42. Is there anything special you can do to thank your customers?
(For a high-price launch, send also something as a bonus to each buyer; for something extra, call a few of your customers on the phone.)
43. Keep communication open and going with you clients and potential clients.
(Pro tip: Social media is key for this)
44. Try to keep your product or service in the client’s mind, by having a constant presence.
IMPORTANT: Make sure you are not intrusive and you offer value back via your contents.
🏁 ALMOST DONE 🏁
45. Don’t forget to celebrate. Go out to your favorite restaurant, have a glass of wine, buy something you’ve had your eye on for a while, or otherwise do something as a personal reward.
You’ve earned it.
🏆 ONE LAST THING 🏆
46. Start thinking about the next launch. What can you build on from this one?
What did you learn that can help you create something even better next time?
It’s much easier to sell to an existing customer than to a new one, so work hard to overdeliver and plan ahead for the next project.
(For example, when promising a 45 step checklist, throw in an extra step.)
Give us a follow for more digital marketing strategy help or feel free to send us an email at hello@subsign.co for collaborations or help with your brands presence online.
