Picture this: You’re SO excited to launch that new service that you’ve been planning and building and refining.
You’ve spent a ton of time and energy designing it to suit the needs of your ideal customers, and now you’re gearing up to start promoting and selling it.
Obviously, your main goal is to be successful. If it wasn’t, what would be the point of all that hard work?
But now that the big day is fast approaching, you remember that launches can get incredibly overwhelming and pull you in many different directions.
You’re getting pulled.
You’re getting stressed.
You’re worried that, even with help from your amazing team, you might drown in all that work.
So, how do you launch a new service without losing your mind in the process? Lots of careful planning, but also a clear picture of what needs doing and delegating.
Luckily, I can help with both! Keep reading to find my 7-step plan to an easy and successful service launch.
7 Simple Steps to a Successful Launch
STEP 1: Plan early.
You’ve likely given some thought to your marketing and promotional efforts as you built out the service itself, but long before the actual launch day you need to dig into the details and make a solid, strategic plan.
In addition to the usual activities like creating Facebook ads and building a funnel, your plan should include reaching out to people who can help you promote your service and building relationships with them, so it will need to go into effect several months in advance.
STEP 2: Identify influencers.
Step two is about actual partnerships; colleagues who will team up with you to promote your service because doing so will benefit THEM, too.
You also need to find and cozy up to some key influencers who can use their platforms to discuss your new offering. Allow them to try out your service for free before the launch, and ask for their input and suggestions.
Then, once the service is fully live to the public, ask them to plug it on their own social channels.
STEP 3: Get clear on the purpose of your service.
I know, I know, this sounds like something you would have done AGES before launch. But you’d be surprised how many smart entrepreneurs lose sight of the purposes their new offerings are meant to serve!
Go back to your first few steps and review the “why” behind this service. What prompted you to build it in the first place? Now that it’s done, does it still fill that same niche? If not, what’s changed?
Create an updated statement that captures the purpose of this service in a single sentence. It’ll be absolutely priceless once you launch and start promoting!
STEP 4: Get clear of the differentiators.
How does this service differ from competitors? What makes it unique, and uniquely yours?
Consider how you’ll position yourself once you identify these differentiators. For instance, if your service is cheaper than similar offerings, you might not want to lean on “cheap,” but you could allude to it by talking about “affordability” and “value.”
STEP 5: Do some strategic previewing.
Leak some sneak peeks in places that your ideal client frequents. This is a great way to plant the seeds subtly!
STEP 6: Don’t promise yourself the moon.
Make sure to have realistic expectations for sales, feedback, every aspect of the launch.
Rome wasn’t built in a day, and your service won’t bring you seven figures in a week either. (Well, it may. If it does, reach out because I’d love to know how you did it.)
STEP 7: Set your product apart.
Find creative ways to stand out from competitors during your launch. Get creative with your promos. If your professional person is super straight-laced, consider mixing it up and being a little goofy in a video.
Look at the incentives that others have offered, and make sure yours are more creative or generous.
Find ways to make this launch MEMORABLE so folks who don’t buy right away will remember this service, and be more likely to buy during the second round of promos.
I’m not saying that launching a new service won’t be hard and time-consuming. It absolutely will be. Launching a new service takes time, but that investment of time will be totally worth it in the long run, especially since successful services bring in recurring revenue later down the line.
So take my advice and follow these steps to make your launch less stressful and more successful. Do this, and you can’t go wrong!
xoxo
Melissa
PS. Not sure what your time is actually worth?, Click here to get access to my free calculator to find out what your time is really worth.
