Takeaways from launch week
Wait, a launch WEEK? As in, let’s launch everything for 2019 in one week....sounded a bit crazy and definitely against all the launch “rules”. But our goals for 2019 are huge! We wanted to start the year getting everyone excited about PRESSED and our offerings. We wanted to let everyone know we listened to your requests in 2018. A few revamped products, new services, freebies, and an upcoming new project all that seamlessly worked together and spoke to our diverse clientele.
So was it successful? YES, we had our biggest month to date! Would we do it again? Portions for sure, but most likely not as intense as we did this year.
Here's what worked:
1.) We revamped some of our current products. This was an easy transition since it wasn’t brand spanking new. With the help and feedback of our clients, we were able to tweak areas that made more sense for both us and our clients. Win win and didn't require a lot of back end work for the week.
2.) We gave back with freebies and giveaways so the excitement and energy levels were awesome! The buzz about our launch week reached new prospects and reconnected us with former clients.
3.) We planned and planned and planned. We started with the launch week schedule and worked backwards. Thanks to a wonderful guideline from The Aesthetic Way. We knew when to contact people who would be involved in our giveaway (everything arrived in time and parties had all their info well before launch week started). I would say every launch will take a different amount of time to plan and prepare. So work backwards from the launch date to help you determine if you need two months or six months to get everything in order. Taking the time to plan ahead gave us so much peace and extra time during the launch. We weren't wasting our time working on back end items and had time to respond to DMs and emails!
4.) We created a "week of" schedule. I hope you all were able to see this break down on IG a few weeks ago. Basically, we created a spreadsheet with each day of the launch that listed about all the details for that particular day. We hosted a live every day and launched a product every day. Having all the things (think: posts, stories, content, and giveaway winners) printed out in an organized form was a life saver! This also freed up brain space so we could connect with clients more and not worry about "what's next" or "did we forget to mention this..."
5.) We outsourced a big piece of our workflow. We didn’t realize at first but hiring Annie McCarty @efficientlyannie was at the perfect timing. We needed help streamlining our workflows so we could have quicker turnaround times. Launch week created a huge demand for that particular area but thankfully we sought out help before it launched. A great reminder that it takes a tribe, a supportive community to do all the things, you don't have to go-it-alone.
What we’d change:
1.) Too many giveaways...honestly we LOVE giving away gifts! It's really just the time it took to execute that many gifts when orders are rolling in. Next time, maybe just a couple less :)
2.) Too many IG lives...same with the giveaways, going live takes a lot of energy (energy we could have used to fill orders or write proposals). By the end of the week, you had heard 90% of what we wanted to communicate with you anyway so maybe just a couple less next time.
3.) We had probably three pieces launch that were “big” and take a lot of time. Next time we would only have one big introduction and smaller complimentary items. Or if you are launching multiple big items, maybe one doesn't take a lot of "after" work. That way you are giving them the attention they need both before and after the launch.
4.) I'd set boundaries. Specifically with time. This is one thing I'm working on for improved work life balance anyway but during launch week it is especially important. Next time, I will set a time where I need to step away from my phone and computer for the day. When I take time to regroup so I'm not completely out of steam come Friday.
5.) I won't schedule launch week during a week where I have a prior commitment. Okay, sounds obvious but even something as small as grocery shopping or making a meal was out of the question. Trust me, if you are launching your entire year's collection or one piece, you won't want to break up the excitement and attention to run to Publix!
All in all it was so successful and such a great learning experience. The outcome was better than we hoped but that was also a huge challenge and that's why we are hiring more team members. I hope this has helped with your future launch plans!
xox
Sharon