Launching is something that any seasoned entrepreneur has likely been through. It’s the number one way to get a new offer out on the market and drive brand awareness. Yet, there is so much disdain and stress that surrounds it. There are very few business owners that I’ve met who have said to me, “I friggin’ love launching”. In fact, it’s getting to the point now where anytime I do meet someone who says they love launching, I just feel a breath of fresh air. The narrative is always focused on the stress of launching, the heartache, and the disappointment.

But get this, a well structured and planned launch can significantly drive more revenue in your business, generate more leads, and increase your cash flow for that month. And it absolutely doesn’t have to be as stressful as it comes across.

Trust me, I’ve been there. My very first official product launch, I was still filming, uploading and creating content for both the offer and the launch materials right up until 1am the night before open cart. My partner had to take full charge of our household chores and responsibilities as I locked myself up in my office to work away. It was pure adrenaline, fear and excitement. So, I’ve experienced truly stressful, nightmareish launches and I have to admit that it was only stressful because I let it be stressful. Fail to plan, means you plan to fail. And that’s kindaaaa what happened although fail is a bit extreme.

But, now, in this season of life, I absolutely love launching. I love that it gives me drive, motivation, a sense of structure. If anything, I actually prefer to be in launch mode than in my evergreen soft selling mode because I feel like launching really brings up some amazing emotions and conversations in the online space. With that being said, I definitely don’t want to ALWAYS be launching because I love taking the time to reconnect with the foundations as often as possible.

Since starting, I’ve been launching 1-2 times every quarter and it’s definitely played a huge role in the speed of my growth – both financially in terms of revenue but also my community growth. I’ve grown to 15,000 followers on Instagram, 2,000 on TikTok and my launch content helped with that significantly. People thrive and bounce off of the energy that is launching.

3 Phases of Launching

So, how do I do it?

There are essentially 3 phases to any launch. Pre-launch, launch, and post-launch. Simple, right? It really is.

And those 3 phases can be further segmented so that you’re left with a week by week, day by day plan.

Pre Launch

So, phase 1 – the pre launch.

This is your ramp up period. This is when you’re teasing to your audience that something is coming, you’re dropping breadcrumbs so they can get a taste for what’s coming, and you’re warming them up to the offer itself. Usually, you want to start prelaunch anywhere from 4 week to 8 weeks before open cart. Obviously you CAN do quicker launches, but they often require a more intensive version of this launch strategy and requires an already very warm audience to do so. In most cases, starting your prelaunch at least 4 weeks before open cart gives you sufficient time to warm up your audience and get them interested. The prelaunch is where you really want to start teaching them the what and the why. Educating them around the topic of your offer, sharing why it is so invaluable for them, and how it will help them overcome their problems.

So, with that being said, there are generally 4 different types of content you want to be sharing during the pre launch. This will help you plan your social media content, your emails, your long form content such as blogs or podcasts, and even ads if you plan on using paid marketing. The 4 types of content will help your audience move through the different buyer journey stages so that they can then essentially prequalify themselves for this offer. I truly believe in equipping our leads with the information and tools to make an empowered buying decision for themselves.

It’s not your job to have to convince them or persuade them. Not really. It’s your job to educate them and enlighten them to what is possible so that they feel good about the decision. People are more likely to commit and show up to an offer or program with good intentions if they felt positive about their purchase. Which is what we want. We want our clients to show up and do the work and feel so good about it because thats what gets results.

We don’t want to have to convince them into buying and then 24 hours later, they’re already filled with regret and shame around it. They then dread showing up, they build up resentment towards you and they’re less likely to make any progress or come back for more. So, creating content that educates them and moves through the buyer journey so they can make a confident decision is huge. This is a hill I am willing to die on.

So, what are the 4 types of content?

Unaware

First, we have the unaware segment of our audience. They don’t really know they have a problem or at least they’re not actively or consciously thinking about this problem as it relates to our offer. This segment makes up the largest part of our audience, usually. So, the first type of content you need to create at the start of your pre launch phase is content that raises awareness around the problem. You do this by talking about the pain points they might be experiencing, sharing your story of where you were BEFORE you overcame it so that they can start to relate to that obstacle, showing how this problem is actually holding them back.

You need to articulate what the problem feels like for them. The emotions of it, the way it presents itself in their life, how would they be able to recognise and self-diagnose themselves as having this problem. The theme here is that you’re doing this with empathy and from a place of understanding. People are far more likely to buy from someone who has first hand experience of the problem themselves than from someone who has never truly experienced what it’s like and are just talking about it from an outside perspective. So really share your story about how you KNOW what it’s like and that there’s a better way.

Problem Aware

Then, we move into the problem aware segment. They now know they have a problem and they’re ready to find the solution. They have a million and one questions and they want to know what they have to do to get over this problem. You create content that educates them on the solution. You share simple, educational content that really enlightens them on what they need to do. This is where you essentially show the what, with your offer down the line being the how. You are starting to come into the picture as the guide and so they start to trust you. In simple terms, it’s proving you know what to do.

Solution Aware

The third type is our solution aware segment. They know they have a problem, they are aware of the solution but now they want proof that it is possible for them. A common question they have at this phase is how will I know that this will work for me. This is where you want to show results and the receipts. You create content that really highlights the transformation and the outcome. You show proof and build trust with social proof, testimonials, results as well as case studies, stories of how you went from X to Y, and give them the big picture transformation. This really is all about building authority and trust because they know what they need to do now, but they’re looking for the proof of how it is going to happen.

Product Aware

Lastly, the final type of content for the prelaunch phase it your product aware style content. This segment is for people who are very aware that there are offers and solutions out there, so they now can start shopping around for Mrs Right. The emphasis here is building a connection and showing WHY YOU. Why choose you over someone else. The type of content therefore is your relatable content. Content that highlights your values and your beliefs, the things that make you unique. Your framework, methodology or process for getting results for your clients. Your unpopular opinions. As well as describing who you want to work with too.

So, throughout the prelaunch, your content is moving through those 4 phases of content and as you get closer and closer to open cart, you are becoming more and more explicit about what the offer actually is. A big mistake people make is that they forget to actually talk about their offer before launch day and then they hear crickets. Guess what? Everyone goes through a consideration phase. Some quicker than others of course, but if you’re only JUST dropping the bomb of what the offer is, you’ve not given them time to move through the buyer journey and to start their consideration of this offer. The secret to getting an influx of sales on open cart day is because your audience have been primed to buy to the point they already know how much it is and they have their cards at the ready.

The final piece of the puzzle for your pre launch phase which connects into your launch phase is your use of a lead magnet. The most common example is a Masterclass which is then used to open up the cart at the end of the class and to welcome your warmest leads into the offer.

The biggest mistake or misconception about masterclasses is that they’re a tool JUST for selling. I want to shift your perspective here.

Instead, this is where you’re offering a sample of your paid offer to ensure your potential clients want to invest. The goal here is to empower your leads to invest in themselves and we do this by sharing the value of your offer, a taster of what they can expect from it, and to motivate them to feel good about this next step.

That means it’s no longer that sleazy webinar style where you drop no value and just use it as a honey trap for eyes on your offer.

Your leads should be able to walk away from the class feeling like they learned something but also feeling like they want more – like a good cliff-hanger. Cliff hangers only work when the story itself was actually good.

You can either do a live lead magnet or a digital download, such as a live masterclass or a prerecorded video.

Launch

This is all about pumping up the energy and driving sales. You want to be a beacon of motivation and inspiration this week. It’s typically around 5-10 days long, ideally 7 days.

It is crucial that you empower your marketing strategies with authentic urgency and scarcity. There are often tactics out there recommending to push urgency and scarcity, even if it doesn’t exist. Are there limited spots? Share that! Is the price going up? share that! This is the truth and you are just sharing that.

But if you’re pushing them to take action with fake urgency such as pressuring them to invest because otherwise they will be worse off if they don’t, then that isn’t empowered selling.

During launch week, you want to aim to share social proof for every new sale of the offer on your social media. For example, on Instagram, every time someone joins your offer, you can share it directly to your stories and bonus points if you are screaming it from the rooftops with excitement.

In addition, going live as often as you can during launch week is a powerful way to show up as an authority and to connect with your warmest leads. The experience of seeing you show up live and talk to them directly through a live session goes a long way for those tittering on the edge of investing.

You and your content should be addressing and answering objections daily and publicly. What this means is answering the most common questions your leads have right before investing. What do they want to know to help them take the step and invest.

Now this tip is easily my favourite. If you’re launching a high-ticket offer, one of the most powerful ways to attract a higher calibre of client who is ready and eager to work with you is by really speaking to their aspirational identity to encourage them to take that step for themselves.

Post-launch

This phase of launching is often skipped over the most because once it’s close cart, most people wipe their hands off and move on.

Here is where you wrap up and analyse your launch strategies, collect your resources that you used for the launch and file your data so that the next time you launch, you have an abundance of resources and data to get you started stronger.

In addition, why do we so often drop the ball and stop talking about our offer the minute doors close?

When you enter post-launch, your offer is either evergreen (meaning you continue to sell the offer but no longer at launch price) or the doors have closed until you relaunch it (meaning you are going to want a line of warm leads for the next round).

The best way to keep your audience warm is to keep talking about the offer by sharing behind the scenes of the offer, celebrating student/client wins publicly and talking about when it is coming back.

Want to know the full details? Make sure you listen to the episode!