Successful Product Launches Can Require Extensive Pre-Planning

A successful product launch can require extensive pre-planning before you ever make your first sale of the product.

First, is this a physical product or a digital product? Let’s go with a digital product for this article – a product that is delivered via the Internet as soon as it is paid for.

Second, we have to consider whether we are going to launch this product from our own website or from an existing site that sells numerous digital products. For this article we’ll go with our own website.

Third, is this the first product we’ll be selling off our site or is our shopping cart already set up? Let’s assume that we have already been selling products off our site.

Now we’re ready to figure out the marketing campaign for this product.

First we consider whether we want to have affiliates selling this product when it first launches. Or perhaps we want to first offer it as an exclusive to our email marketing list. Once these customers/fans have first crack, we can open up the sales to affiliates.

Do we want to first sell the product at an “introductory” price, then raise the price after one day or one week to its full amount?

Or when we first introduce the product, do we want to bundle it with an existing product that we sell off our site? If so, how much off the combined price of the two products do we take to come up with our bundled offer price?

Do we want to launch the product as a scarce commodity? For example, when there have been 100 digital downloads the product will no longer be available? (This might be the strategy for a software product where you don’t want too many people to be using the same software.) Or the product may only be available for a limited time.

What day of the week would be best to launch this type of product? What time in the month? Which month? Is there a natural tie-in to a holiday that will create more interest in the product?

Will we send out the product to reviewers ahead of the launch? Or wait until launch day so that no one has a look before the product launches?

Will we create a separate page on our website about the product launch? Or will we describe the product launch on an existing website page?

Is it the kind of product that we can give people a sample of the product in order to encourage them to buy the whole product? If so, will we put that sample only on our website or use article directories and other online marketing strategies to distribute the sample?

Will we use free social media marketing to announce the product launch or will we also do a PPC (pay per click) campaign?

What will be our refund policy?

The above questions are meant to stimulate thinking about the kinds of considerations that go into the pre-planning of a product launch. While not all the questions are relevant for every launch, it’s a good idea to consider numerous pieces of a launch strategy beforehand.

And then after the launch, it can be a good idea to record what lessons have been learned in order to prepare for the next successful product launch. — P.Z.M.
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Phyllis Zimbler Miller is a National Internet Business Examiner at www.InternetBizBlogger.com as well as a book author, and her company www.MillerMosaicLLC.com combines traditional marketing principles with the power of Internet marketing strategies to promote your business more effectively.