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Date:
February 13, 2020

Author:
Ashlyn Carter

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Let's get you a message so tight you can bounce a quarter off of it. Around here, we serve up science-based storytelling strategies the creative set.  Even while raking in more than 1.26M in agency work since I've been at it, I firmly believe working from a place of rest (not hustle) IS possible—and I want the same for you. Words matter. Best be sure they work (and oui, with math) ... and know how to party while they're at it. 

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Reading time: 7 min.

If you’ve been around here for a while, you’ve probably heard me say it—“if you’re not in launch, you’re in pre-launch” … and today’s post is all about how I use that pre-launch period to build buzz for an upcoming launch.

I’m a BIG believer in the value of a pre-launch—it plays a significant role in how people are going to understand or come to know your offer, your service, or your product before they get it in their hands.

‘Tis the pep rally to your big game. 😉

This is exactly why I am sharing 5 pre-launch strategies to build buzz during your next big marketing campaign.

 Let’s jump in—and be sure to download my Launch Copy + Content Checklist freebie while you’re here!




No. 1 | Build buzz and plant seeds with an editorial calendar

Lately, I’ve talked a ~lot~ on my channel about your overall marketing campaigns and your editorial calendar—this is a big ol’ part of your launch.

You may be interested in: How to Create a REALISTIC Marketing Plan & Editorial Calendar

Me: *hops on coaching client call*

Lovely client: “I have this great product that I’m launching. I want to pick your brain all about it … ”

Me: “UGH, It sounds WONDERFUL! I’m obsessed. Killer offer, the world needs that. How have you been serving your people the past few months?”

Lovely client: *awkward pause*

If there’s been no sort of priming going on and you’re still planning on putting something out there, let’s pause. I’d rather see you push the launch back and spend time developing a *really* good pre-launch strategy. As you market during pre-launch, you’ll increase curiosity around your new or updated offer. 

Rule of thumb, you’re going to need about 2 weeks, at minimum, for your offer to be in pre-launch mode. This can vary depending on your offer (I dig into this a little bit more inside my Primed to Launch™ program).

To help you get started, I gathered 6 ideas worthy of a sneak peek in your content and editorial calendar:

  • Share a captivating module title of your new program
  • Ask your audience to help you come up with the content ideas for it or co-create it with you. (Hey-o questions feature on IG! It’s so great for this—let them tell you what they want to see)
  • Showcase an image that shows part of your new product or website
  • Tease out testimonials from beta clients or testers
  • Share any new imagery you’re creating for the offer
  • Share audio or video clips of behind-the-scenes work

 

^^ and all this?

I’ve learned this the hard way … TOTALLY didn’t used to do this.

Last year, my third year of business, was the first time I really teased an offer. 🤷‍♀️I called it by name, talked about the curriculum I was building, and really shouted it out.

The offer was well received and people were ~so~ excited about it.

Contrast that with the first time I launched The Art of Efficiency™ program. I talked about it jussssstt a little bit online, but I focused on building the different pre-launch content pieces for it—more on that in the next step—so what I left out here was really talking about the offer by name and talking about what they were going to learn … whoopsadaisy.

Lesson? Learn from my mistakes and chat up what you’re building. I promise cross my heart you’ll not be annoying, it almost takes you to feel like you’re talking about it TOO much for it to be just a normal, inside-voice level announcement to all your audience.


No. 2 | Begin tackling objections during your pre-launch

Start to forecast what your clients’ objections to purchasing or working with you will be and see how you can make those null and void.

Give each objection a good one-two punch.

Think: How can you start to convince someone’s rational thinking? Why is this just a logical decision for them? Why does it ONLY make sense to work with you in this next capacity?

Example: You’re launching an online course for artists specifically (Psst— to my student out there doing this … you know who you are!)

Idea: Can part of your pre-launch content be how artists with high-converting websites typically sell more direct-to-customer volume? Can you dig up research about how artists with websites can up their commission pricing by 50%? <<< totally making these stats up, but see what I’m doing? I want to make it a LOGICAL/smart decision for them.

Example: You’re launching a sustainable clothing fashion pop up shop

Idea: Can you put out pre-launch content that educates me on why ethical fashion purchasing SHOULD matter to me.  If I’m the type to think “what’s the big deal, why does it matter who makes my clothes anyway” … how can you talk me into understanding why this matters? Why this aligns with my values, I may just didn’t realize it yet? 

Put out content to knock over those dominoes—content that tackles some of your reader’s objections, corrects your reader’s wrong thinking, and helps your reader see why she needs your product or services. Part of your pre-launch is educating me about THAT.

👇I talk more about objection-tackling in this video below! 👇


No. 3 | Get them used to the pace of the email marketing

I don’t care HOW big your social media following is: before a launch I want you focused on building your audience through your email list. 

It’s simply easier to measure the statistics of how many people may purchase when you’re looking at open rates and click-through rates of your email list vs your social media engagement rates. It’s harder to predict a launch based off of social media conversions … to me, that’s sorts coldish-y-warm traffic … where as your email list, specifically the segment of your list that’s raised their hands as interested? That’s who you can really focus on selling to.

Emails typically have a median open rate of 17% and a click-through rate of 1.4%, which is wayyyyyyy higher than your social media rates. (Here’s a good article from ConvertKit on email metrics you should pay attention to.)

You don’t want to go from absolute crickets to popcorn conversation, but you ~should~ try ramping up your pace of emails. Let’s say you typically send 1 email a month, for SURE you’ll want to double or even triple that leading up to your big campaign. If you send 1 per week, a few weeks before a launch try sending 2 per week.

Get people into a rhythm of hearing from you. 🙂 


No. 4 | Pre-launch beta testing

I’m a big believer in beta testing because it gives you honest customer feedback which helps you build a better product and make adjustments before your product officially launches.

I looooove this article, “The Living Room Strategy”, by Tara Gentile, it was one thing that I really understood and took to heart before I did my first beta launch. The first time I ever really re-worked and beta tested Copywriting for Creatives™, I followed it to a T … 3 years and almost 1,000 students later? I’d say the beta test was worth the time it took. 🙂 

Those beta testers become ambassadors for your brand and that offer—treat them like the queens they are. 👑😉 Offer them exclusive benefits and thank them profusely—they’ve helped you shape what you’re doing.

Oh, and go ahead and set up a waitlist page as well. I say this because I’ve screwed up here—I didn’t always have waitlist pages when I needed to. Again, oops. 

EVEN IF you don’t have the infrastructur/nurture sequence in place to take care of people when they DO sign up for the waitlist to lead to this offer … 

… that’s okay—set up a waitlist page anyway! Go ahead and start collecting emails.

You may be interested in learning more about this here: 9 Strategic Ways to Send Better Emails to Your List


No. 5 | Set goals and metrics for your pre-launch

If you can’t measure something, you can’t improve it. 

In a recent video, I talked a lot about the value of setting your expectations before you go into a launch. Otherwise, you’ll get on the back end of it and say something like, “It just didn’t go as well as I thought.” <<< every time I hear someone say this, I want to ask “Okay, but what were you expecting?” 

It takes a WHOLE lot to pour into the top of a funnel or campaign to hit the numbers you may be hearing or dreaming about—that’s ok, we just need to be on the same page with what it takes.

So figure out what you want. 🙂

Here are some examples of specific metrics:

  • Sales: “We will have 70 new members in this program by the end of the next month.” Or “I will book myself for the nine 1-on-1 client spots that I have in Q2.”
  • Leads: “By the week after launch, I will have 200 new subscribers.”
  • Social Media: “By the day after our pop up event, we will have 500 new followers on Instagram.” (I have found every time that I launch or put something out there, one of the auxiliary benefits  is that your accounts just grow by default, so you are going to see a little bump there, too.)
  • Awareness: “Within a week of launch we will have 6 new shop reviews and 3000 new visits to our website.”
  • Kickoff calls: “By the end of the launch we will book 12 potential client inquiry calls.”

 

Remember: your pre-launch content needs to be committed to knocking over those dominoes—the objections that stand in the way between your offer, what you want to do, and the people you dream about working with.


Creating all of this stuff is a bear—I know I do it all of the time!! So click here or look down below and you get your hands on my free launch copy and content checklist. This is a multipage guide that can help you get ready and get prepped to go on your upcoming marketing campaign.

A pre-launch or launch can feel like a marathon, so stay with it and work the plan—you got this!

Now that you have these pre-launch ideas in hand, you may be interested in learning about my best quick and dirty copywriting tips that you can use for your upcoming launch—check it out here.


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Reading Time: 7 Minutes Reading time: 7 min. If you’ve been around here for a while, you’ve probably heard me say it—“if you’re not in launch, you’re in pre-launch” … and today’s post is all about how I use that pre-launch period to build buzz for an upcoming launch. I’m a BIG believer in the value of a pre-launch—it […]

2/13/20

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