When launching a new product or service, you can’t just click “publish” and expect it to be an instant hit. There are a lot of steps that go into a successful launch. Failing to plan for that moment could hurt your business, so don’t forget to plan ahead.
Sequencing a successful launch starts with understanding the basics. Then, it’s time to come up with a plan for the days leading up to the launch. Let’s take a look at some essential aspects of a launch to ensure you’re prepared.
Understanding Exclusives vs. Embargoes
Exclusives and embargoes are two terms thrown around the PR world a lot. Some people confuse them, sometimes assuming they’re synonyms. However, since both are important aspects of marketing, it’s a good idea to know what they mean.
- Exclusive: An exclusive is when only one journalist or editor publishes a story at first.
- Embargo: An embargo is an agreement for news to launch at a specific day and time. The story can be offered to multiple journalists in this situation.
Both exclusives and embargoes are important parts of a launch. An exclusive allows you to get coverage from your dream publication, giving the journalist the benefit of receiving the news first. An embargo allows you to work with several journalists, strategically rolling out the publish dates at different times.
Step-By-Step: Sequencing Launches
Now that you know what the difference between an exclusive and embargo is, you can use that information to help you prepare for your launch. Sequencing a launch involves strategically planning when things will happen. It’s up to you to decide if you want this process to start one week or several weeks before the launch.
Step 1: Write Out Your Story
In today’s competitive market, describing your product or service isn’t enough to gain attention. You need to share a story behind what you’re offering. Consider how your product will target real concerns and trends in the world today.
Write down the story you want to portray with your marketing. This doesn’t necessarily need to be text that you’ll directly publish, but it’s good to have your ideas written out so you can more easily pitch and advertise your item.
Step 2: Start Your Press Outreach
Getting some press coverage can help grow your brand, especially when you’re about to release something new. Decide if you want to go for exclusive coverage or stick with embargo. Then, email the journalists that you want to cover your launch. Ideally, these should be journalists who have covered similar topics.
Keep the email brief and include a compelling subject line that clearly states the subject. Mention if it’s an embargo, and if so, state when you’d like the announcement published. To better appeal to journalists, acknowledge their work directly in the first sentence so they know you’re not sending the same email to everyone.
Step 3: Plan an Email and Social Media Schedule
As your launch date approaches, create a schedule for when you want certain events to occur. You can schedule emails and social media posts, allowing you to space out your announcements. Most campaigns include a teaser and announcement prior to the launch.
Step 4: Make Sure Your Landing Page is Ready
Before your launch, make sure your audience has somewhere to go to view your new product or service. Set up a direct landing page that you can easily link to once you launch. Create a landing page that’s visually appealing and easy to navigate.
Step 5: Create Necessary Assets
Think about the ways you want to advertise your upcoming launch. Do you need videos, images, and GIFs? Create anything you might need well in advance so you can easily share it through emails, social media, and other sources. Many brands also write an article to post on their own website.
Step 6: Follow Up on Press Outreach
If you haven’t heard from any of the journalists you reached out to, follow up after a few days. Add a little more information about your launch to pique their interest, emphasizing why it’s an interesting topic for their readers.
Ideally, you’ll want to have some media coverage shortly before, the day of, or right after your launch. If you don’t follow up with journalists, your story might get lost among all their emails.
Step 7: Launch Your Product/Service
With all those preparations in place, you’ll be in a good spot for your launch day. Once you’ve launched your product or service, do everything you can to market it. Announce your launch through social media and emails, engage with people on social media, and reach out to influencers to help share your launch further.
Sequencing your launch is a great way to get attention ahead of time, but you still need to keep marketing your product afterwards to extend your reach further.
Turn to a Communications Specialist
Whenever a brand launches something, there are a lot of steps to get their launch noticed. Working with a marketing agency can help companies follow the best approach for their brand without missing out on big opportunities.
Contact Avenue Z today to see how we can help your brand shine amid product launches.
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