Many people have launched their courses but only a FEW really know how to launch like a pro. Based on experience, even expert digital marketers and business coaches have a hard time managing their own course launches. It’s not their fault, in fact during the first few times, I would recommend that you do it on your own.
When you’ve validated your offer, that’s when you start systematizing your launches so you can get even better results.
So today, we’re going to talk about how YOU can launch your course or coaching program like a pro.
1. mAKE SURE YOU HAVE THE RIGHT AUDIENCE
One of the biggest mistakes that any coach or course creator can do in launching their program is to launch it to the wrong audience. If you want to launch like a pro, you have to take the first steps in making sure you’re launching to the right audience.
How can we say that they’re the right audience?
When you have an engaged audience.
A lot of people can say they have a HUGE mailing list with thousands of subscribers or a HUGE social media audience with thousands of followers but if you haven’t built a relationship with them for the past 3 months, then most likely your launch is going to fail. Simply because you have to rebuild the relationship you’ve had with your audience. You’ll have to rebuild the trust they once had with you when they first signed up on your mailing list or followed you.
2. INVITE YOUR AUDIENCE IN THE PROCESS
& EXCITE THEM
Now that you have an engaged audience, one of the things you need to do to launch like a pro is to invite them into your process. This will excite them and add a layer of reciprocity.
To do this, start by giving them loads of free content. I know most coaches’ reaction is to gatekeep their content but that will only hold off your audience. The more you give free content, the more that they will feel obligated to buy your course or program when it comes. Why? Because if you’re already giving them this much content for free, how much more when they’re inside your program.
So go on and shoot that Instagram lives, give a solidified lead magnet, share educational content on Instagram stories and watch your audience get excited about what else you have to offer especially your paid programs. This is how you build up a strong foundation for your launch to be a success.
3. SET CLEAR GOALS & TIMELINE
If you haven’t created a clear timeline and goals for your launches, then you’re definitely leaving a LOT of money on the table.
Launching like a pro means you have to treat your launch just like any other project in your business – with clear goals and a timeline.
To do this, start with identifying your goals. Think not only about your financial goals but also your emotional goals.
Most of the time business owners think only about financial goals, not knowing that their energy being preserved
is also a currency gained in itself so they can either 1) continue being creative in their content or their visions for the business or
b) use their time for other client fulfillment activities.
After that, set your open cart dates. Make sure that it’s at least 1 week and open your cart during the weekdays. Normally,
people pay more attention to open cart launches on those days simply because on weekends, we’re all supposedly relaxing,
spending time with our loved ones, and doing things outside of our work. Now once you have your open cart dates, you can layout
your timeline accordingly for your ideation, prelaunch, and post-launch dates.
If you need more support on estimating the timeline according to the things you’ll have to do in those launch phases,
download our FREE Online Course Launch Checklist.
Now once you’ve set clear goals & timelines for you and your team, you’re well on your way to launching like a pro!
4. pREPARE EVERYTHING IN ADVANCE
Let’s talk pre-launch! If you want to launch like a pro, you’ll have to prepare everything for your launch in advance. This is where the pre-launch phase comes in.
Usually, the things you’ll need to prepare during this time are your launch copy, contents, automation, and product delivery. This ranges from your social media contents, graphics, and videos, to your email automation and payment notification, to your onboarding process for program delivery.
A common question that’s being asked of me about launches is who are the people that they would need in their launches. The bare minimum that I would say you’ll need is a Virtual Assistant especially if you already have a good audience and background in copywriting. Most often than not, these are business & marketing coaches. Now what I would usually find to be needed in the team for other coaches are 1 Social Media Manager, 1 Copywriter and 1 Technical Virtual Assistant or Manager.
Now once you’ve had a team, make sure to properly relay to them on a Launch Project kick-off call all the goals & timeline that you have in mind for your launch. Once that’s finalized, add them to your project management tool so you can all see the progress of the launch deliverables. This way, the team is able to see that they’re part of a larger whole that would need them to finish their tasks efficiently and effectively so others can also move on their tasks to make the launch successful.
Once you’ve all finished & prepared the deliverables for your program launch whether it’s a course or a coaching program, then you’ll be all ready to sit back, relax and enjoy. Truly, this is the most exciting part of launching like a pro!
5. SIT BACK, RELAX AND ENJOY!
Congratulations! After lifting all the heavy parts before your launch, you’re now ready to give your all in your launches. Now, this is what I’m talking about when I say launching like a pro can give you all the time you need to both enjoy your launch and be present with your loved ones!
Not only that, but instead of cramming all the backend pieces of your launch, you’re able to rest in between your live launch to do’s. With your full creative energy, you show up in your live webinars, Instagram stories, and all your other launch strategies with full authenticity and love to your audience. And trust me when I say, your audience can DEFINITELY feel that. The effect of this not only shows in a better audience (which can affect the long-term profitability of your business) but also in your current launch sales.
So the next time you say, “No, I don’t need to properly manage my launch like a pro”, think again. There are more benefits to it than meets the eye
6. review and revisit
Before you close out your launch, never EVER forget to review and revisit what happened to your launch. There are a LOT of golden nuggets that you can find in your launch that are probably even worth more than that next launch course you’re eyeing. Experience is the key to success after all and that’s what launching like a pro entails.
To create a proper post-launch debrief, make sure you have these details: your launch data roundup and your financial report. Based on those write your observations, your key learnings, and your recommendations for the next launch. Don’t forget to also hold a team debrief so you can get insights from your team as well.
We can’t just trust our minds to hold all the details to improve our next launch. But in creating a post-launch debrief, we’re able to document these important learnings and use them wisely to improve our next launch.
Now that you know how to launch like a pro, you’ll be able to successfully launch your program without all the unnecessary stress. If you want more guidance on what tech tools to use for your next launch though, you’re in for a treat! Because on our next blog post, that’s exactly what we will talk about.
Before you go, tell me what are the things you realized you need to add to your launch process to launch better and successfully? I would love to know them in the comments below! (I promise I’ll reply to each and every one of them!)
With light & love,
Dyanne