How Your First Product Launch Should Look In 2020 And Beyond

Are you working on your first product launch event? Getting back to business after surviving COVID-19 and the Coronavirus lockdown? Here is a new product launch checklist so you can ace it the first time out...

Your First Product Launch And New Product Launch Strategy Quick Guide

Business owners who have been waiting impatiently for months should be able to get back to business soon. Companies that have been working hard behind the scenes, to launch their very first product of 2020, will be so excited to finally present it to the world.

However, after such a long wait, customers, general consumers, the media, industry experts, and the world at large, will not be taking any hiccups lightly. You’ve had time to make this event special, create a comprehensive demonstration, and an engaging presentation on stage.

Whether you’re going to be showcasing your new product at a large venue hall, via live stream from your offices, or both, you have to make a critically acclaimed first impression. This is how your first product launch should look in 2020 and beyond...

Let Then Know You're Coming

Due to the Coronavirus lockdown for three or more months, depending on where you are, businesses have dropped their usual mist and mirrors approach. Companies like Apple and Samsung are known to be secretive about their product reveals because they want the commotion around their release to build and build.

Nobody cares about that now after surviving COVID-19 concerns. They just want to be first, front and center, presenting directly to customers. So, you need to let them know you’re making a live event reveal.

YouTube ads are the best way to market your live event because you will be live streaming on the platform anyway. Thus, you should strike up a partnership with YouTube to host the event. YouTube could give you contacts within the live event industry, so you can hire the best:

• Venue
• Lighting experts
• Cameras
• Director
• Organizer

All within your budget.

You should also market your launch event using the usual channels, such as:

• PPC
• SEO
• Content marketing
• Social media
• Email marketing

This way you have all bases covered and you maximize your potential exposure.

Get The Right Equipment For Presenters

Your top marketing employees will be on stage, communicating with the audience and the viewers at home. You need to give them the best equipment possible, so they know where they are at any point, and they have all the information in front of them. 

Consider an iPad rental service that has been designed specifically for business owners. The minimum they require is 5 per rental, which means your:

• Host
• Presenters
• Keynote speakers
• Social media managers

That will all be on camera, have one iPad each to guide them through the event. These iPads are also great for:

• Product demonstrations
• Business conferences
• Live events

Any business owner wants to host.

A headset microphone is essential for your hosts. This keeps their hands free, so they can use expressive hand gestures while they’re speaking. They can also demonstrate the product on stage without having a large microphone in their hands.

Prepare Your FAQs Beforehand

You know your customers better than anybody. So it is easy to think of some FAQs to have ready to answer during your product launch event.

Your marketing team needs to conduct research into what kind of things your customers are most looking forward to from the product. This should coincide with your marketing strategy.

Give your customers a couple of weeks to absorb the product or perhaps react to your press releases, so you truly understand concerns and curiosities from the market.

Connect With Influencers And Bloggers For Your First Product Launch

The influencer is a marketing tool that holds the sway of power in today’s world. So many people from ordinary backgrounds can connect with their millions of readers and subscribers, better than almost any other marketing method.

This is why you need to partner with influencers on YouTube and the blogosphere. Do you want them to be part of the pre-event or post-event marketing strategy? An early video or blog review will hype the product and prime the public for your live event.

Start by searching for content creators in your niche. If you make smartphones you would look to work with smartphone review channels like MKBHD, Unbox Therapy, LinusTech, etc.

YouTube’s marketing policies require they will need to be upfront about the product, so they should not be biased, as it poses a risk of polarizing their fans. Provide them with the most important information so they understand your product and convey the right message. 

Influencers and Bloggers should also be sent the product, so they can write about it and use their affiliate marketing strategies to make money working with you. Or, they can simply give you a positive review if that’s all what to offer.

Social Media Q&A Session

If you have watched any large live streaming event, you will know that fan interaction is one of the best ways to promote your product launch. That’s why you need to:

• Have an enthusiastic host
• The best customer queries
• Questions easily accessible via social media

You will be hosting the live event on:

• Twitter
• Facebook
• Instagram

And potentially other social channels and websites. So any comments you receive on your page while the event is ongoing should be answered live, on air.

Have a social media Q&A session, where the host and the relevant employees from your company demonstrate the product in the way questions are asked. Let’s say you’re launching a smart speaker...

During the social media Q&A section, a customer online might ask:

“Does it connect to Bixby, because I want to use it with my Samsung smartphone?”

Your host and an employee from the research and development department can then demonstrate how you do this live on the air. Do this and you will be flooded with questions from customers all wanting to be part of your launch event.

Summing It Up

A product launch event is something that is very exciting but can be full of apprehensions for the business owner. But, 2020 has gotten off to a very rocky start, and there is no more time to waste.

Just deliver a solid product launch with no secrecy or rumor, and you will garner large interest.