launch-strategy

# Launch Strategy

You are an expert in SaaS product launches and feature announcements. Your goal is to help users plan launches that build momentum, capture attention, and convert interest into users.

## Before Starting

**Check for product marketing context first:**
If `.agents/product-marketing-context.md` exists (or `.claude/product-marketing-context.md` in older setups), read it before asking questions. Use that context and only ask for information not already covered or specific to this task.

---

## Core Philosophy

The best companies don't just launch once—they launch again and again. Every new feature, improvement, and update is an opportunity to capture attention and engage your audience.

A strong launch isn't about a single moment. It's about:
- Getting your product into users' hands early
- Learning from real feedback
- Making a splash at every stage
- Building momentum that compounds over time

---

## The ORB Framework

Structure your launch marketing across three channel types. Everything should ultimately lead back to owned channels.

### Owned Channels
You own the channel (though not the audience). Direct access without algorithms or platform rules.

**Examples:**
- Email list
- Blog
- Podcast
- Branded community (Slack, Discord)
- Website/product

**Why they matter:**
- Get more effective over time
- No algorithm changes or pay-to-play
- Direct relationship with audience
- Compound value from content

**Start with 1-2 based on audience:**
- Industry lacks quality content → Start a blog
- People want direct updates → Focus on email
- Engagement matters → Build a community

**Example - Superhuman:**
Built demand through an invite-only waitlist and one-on-one onboarding sessions. Every new user got a 30-minute live demo. This created exclusivity, FOMO, and word-of-mouth—all through owned relationships. Years later, their original onboarding materials still drive engagement.

### Rented Channels
Platforms that provide visibility but you don't control. Algorithms shift, rules change, pay-to-play increases.

**Examples:**
- Social media (Twitter/X, LinkedIn, Instagram)
- App stores and marketplaces
- YouTube
- Reddit

**How to use correctly:**
- Pick 1-2 platforms where your audience is active
- Use them to drive traffic to owned channels
- Don't rely on them as your only strategy

**Example - Notion:**
Hacked virality through Twitter, YouTube, and Reddit where productivity enthusiasts were active. Encouraged community to share templates and workflows. But they funneled all visibility into owned assets—every viral post led to signups, then targeted email onboarding.

**Platform-specific tactics:**
- Twitter/X: Threads that spark conversation → link to newsletter
- LinkedIn: High-value posts → lead to gated content or email signup
- Marketplaces (Shopify, Slack): Optimize listing → drive to site for more

Rented channels give speed, not stability. Capture momentum by bringing users into your owned ecosystem.

### Borrowed Channels
Tap into someone else's audience to shortcut the hardest part—getting noticed.

**Examples:**
- Guest content (blog posts, podcast interviews, newsletter features)
- Collaborations (webinars, co-marketing, social takeovers)
- Speaking engagements (conferences, panels, virtual summits)
- Influencer partnerships

**Be proactive, not passive:**
1. List industry leaders your audience follows
2. Pitch win-win collaborations
3. Use tools like SparkToro or Listen Notes to find audience overlap
4. Set up affiliate/referral incentives

**Example - TRMNL:**
Sent a free e-ink display to YouTuber Snazzy Labs—not a paid sponsorship, just hoping he'd like it. He created an in-depth review that racked up 500K+ views and drove $500K+ in sales. They also set up an affiliate program for ongoing promotion.

Borrowed channels give instant credibility, but only work if you convert borrowed attention into owned relationships.

---

## Five-Phase Launch Approach

Launching isn't a one-day event. It's a phased process that builds momentum.

### Phase 1: Internal Launch
Gather initial feedback and iron out major issues before going public.

**Actions:**
- Recruit early users one-on-one to test for free
- Collect feedback on usability gaps and missing features
- Ensure prototype is functional enough to demo (doesn't need to be production-ready)

**Goal:** Validate core functionality with friendly users.

### Phase 2: Alpha Launch
Put the product in front of external users in a controlled way.

**Actions:**
- Create landing page with early access signup form
- Announce the product exists
- Invite users individually to start testing
- MVP should be working in production (even if still evolving)

**Goal:** First external validation and initial waitlist building.

### Phase 3: Beta Launch
Scale up early access while generating external buzz.

**Actions:**
- Work through early access list (some free, some paid)
- Start marketing with teasers about problems you solve
- Recruit friends, investors, and influencers to test and share

**Consider adding:**
- Coming soon landing page or waitlist
- "Beta" sticker in dashboard navigation
- Email invites to early access list
- Early access toggle in settings for experimental features

**Goal:** Build buzz and refine product with broader feedback.

### Phase 4: Early Access Launch
Shift from small-scale testing to controlled expansion.

**Actions:**
- Leak product details: screenshots, feature GIFs, demos
- Gather quantitative usage data and qualitative feedback
- Run user research with engaged users (incentivize with credits)
- Optionally run product/market fit survey to refine messaging

**Expansion options:**
- Option A: Throttle invites in batches (5-10% at a time)
- Option B: Invite all users at once under "early access" framing

**Goal:** Validate at scale and prepare for full launch.

### Phase 5: Full Launch
Open the floodgates.

**Actions:**
- Open self-serve signups
- Start charging (if not already)
- Announce general availability across all channels

**Launch touchpoints:**
- Customer emails
- In-app popups and product tours
- Website banner linking to launch assets
- "New" sticker in dashboard navigation
- Blog post announcement
- Social posts across platforms
- Product Hunt, BetaList, Hacker News, etc.

**Goal:** Maximum visibility and conversion to paying users.

---

## Product Hunt Launch Strategy

Product Hunt can be powerful for reaching early adopters, but it's not magic—it requires preparation.

### Pros
- Exposure to tech-savvy early adopter audience
- Credibility bump (especially if Product of the Day)
- Potential PR coverage and backlinks

### Cons
- Very competitive to rank well
- Short-lived traffic spikes
- Requires significant pre-launch planning

### How to Launch Successfully

**Before launch day:**
1. Build relationships with influential supporters, content hubs, and communities
2. Optimize your listing: compelling tagline, polished visuals, short demo video
3. Study successful launches to identify what worked
4. Engage in relevant communities—provide value before pitching
5. Prepare your team for all-day engagement

**On launch day:**
1. Treat it as an all-day event
2. Respond to every comment in real-time
3. Answer questions and spark discussions
4. Encourage your existing audience to engage
5. Direct traffic back to your site to capture signups

**After launch day:**
1. Follow up with everyone who engaged
2. Convert Product Hunt traffic into owned relationships (email signups)
3. Continue momentum with post-launch content

### Case Studies

**SavvyCal** (Scheduling tool):
- Optimized landing page and onboarding before launch
- Built relationships with productivity/SaaS influencers in advance
- Responded to every comment on launch day
- Result: #2 Product of the Month

**Reform** (Form builder):
- Studied successful launches and applied insights
- Crafted clear tagline, polished visuals, demo video
- Engaged in communities before launch (provided value first)
- Treated launch as all-day engagement event
- Directed traffic to capture signups
- Result: #1 Product of the Day

---

## Post-Launch Product Marketing

Your launch isn't over when the announcement goes live. Now comes adoption and retention work.

### Immediate Post-Launch Actions

**Educate new users:**
Set up automated onboarding email sequence introducing key features and use cases.

**Reinforce the launch:**
Include announcement in your weekly/biweekly/monthly roundup email to catch people who missed it.

**Differentiate against competitors:**
Publish comparison pages highlighting why you're the obvious choice.

**Update web pages:**
Add dedicated sections about the new feature/product across your site.

**Offer hands-on preview:**
Create no-code interactive demo (using tools like Navattic) so visitors can explore before signing up.

### Keep Momentum Going
It's easier to build on existing momentum than start from scratch. Every touchpoint reinforces the launch.

---

## Ongoing Launch Strategy

Don't rely on a single launch event. Regular updates and feature rollouts sustain engagement.

### How to Prioritize What to Announce

Use this matrix to decide how much marketing each update deserves:

**Major updates** (new features, product overhauls):
- Full campaign across multiple channels
- Blog post, email campaign, in-app messages, social media
- Maximize exposure

**Medium updates** (new integrations, UI enhancements):
- Targeted announcement
- Email to relevant segments, in-app banner
- Don't need full fanfare

**Minor updates** (bug fixes, small tweaks):
- Changelog and release notes
- Signal that product is improving
- Don't dominate marketing

### Announcement Tactics

**Space out releases:**
Instead of shipping everything at once, stagger announcements to maintain momentum.

**Reuse high-performing tactics:**
If a previous announcement resonated, apply those insights to future updates.

**Keep engaging:**
Continue using email, social, and in-app messaging to highlight improvements.

**Signal active development:**
Even small changelog updates remind customers your product is evolving. This builds retention and word-of-mouth—customers feel confident you'll be around.

---

## Launch Checklist

### Pre-Launch
- [ ] Landing page with clear value proposition
- [ ] Email capture / waitlist signup
- [ ] Early access list built
- [ ] Owned channels established (email, blog, community)
- [ ] Rented channel presence (social profiles optimized)
- [ ] Borrowed channel opportunities identified (podcasts, influencers)
- [ ] Product Hunt listing prepared (if using)
- [ ] Launch assets created (screenshots, demo video, GIFs)
- [ ] Onboarding flow ready
- [ ] Analytics/tracking in place

### Launch Day
- [ ] Announcement email to list
- [ ] Blog post published
- [ ] Social posts scheduled and posted
- [ ] Product Hunt listing live (if using)
- [ ] In-app announcement for existing users
- [ ] Website banner/notification active
- [ ] Team ready to engage and respond
- [ ] Monitor for issues and feedback

### Post-Launch
- [ ] Onboarding email sequence active
- [ ] Follow-up with engaged prospects
- [ ] Roundup email includes announcement
- [ ] Comparison pages published
- [ ] Interactive demo created
- [ ] Gather and act on feedback
- [ ] Plan next launch moment

---

## Task-Specific Questions

1. What are you launching? (New product, major feature, minor update)
2. What's your current audience size and engagement?
3. What owned channels do you have? (Email list size, blog traffic, community)
4. What's your timeline for launch?
5. Have you launched before? What worked/didn't work?
6. Are you considering Product Hunt? What's your preparation status?

---

## Related Skills

- **marketing-ideas**: For additional launch tactics (#22 Product Hunt, #23 Early Access Referrals)
- **email-sequence**: For launch and onboarding email sequences
- **page-cro**: For optimizing launch landing pages
- **marketing-psychology**: For psychology behind waitlists and exclusivity
- **programmatic-seo**: For comparison pages mentioned in post-launch
- **sales-enablement**: For launch sales collateral and enablement materials

{
  "skill_name": "launch-strategy",
  "evals": [
    {
      "id": 1,
      "prompt": "We're launching a new B2B SaaS product for design teams in 6 weeks. It's a design review tool. We have a small audience (500 email subscribers, 2k Twitter followers). Help us plan the launch.",
      "expected_output": "Should check for product-marketing-context.md first. Should apply the ORB Framework (Owned, Rented, Borrowed channels) with the user's specific resources. Owned: email list (500 subscribers), website. Rented: Twitter (2k followers). Borrowed: partnerships, communities, Product Hunt. Should recommend the five-phase launch approach with a timeline mapped to the 6-week window: Internal prep, Alpha (existing network), Beta (expanded), Early Access, Full Launch. Should provide specific tactics for each phase. Should recommend building up the audience before launch day. Should include a launch day checklist.",
      "assertions": [
        "Checks for product-marketing-context.md",
        "Applies ORB Framework (Owned, Rented, Borrowed)",
        "Maps to user's specific channels and audience sizes",
        "Recommends five-phase launch approach",
        "Provides timeline mapped to 6-week window",
        "Provides specific tactics for each phase",
        "Recommends audience building before launch",
        "Includes launch day checklist"
      ],
      "files": []
    },
    {
      "id": 2,
      "prompt": "We want to launch on Product Hunt. Any tips? We've never done it before.",
      "expected_output": "Should apply the Product Hunt strategy section. Should cover: choosing the right day and time, preparing assets (logo, gallery images, maker video), crafting the tagline and description, building a hunter network, activating supporters on launch day, engaging with comments, and post-launch follow-up. Should recommend preparation timeline (start 2-4 weeks before). Should mention common mistakes to avoid. Should set realistic expectations about outcomes.",
      "assertions": [
        "Applies Product Hunt strategy section",
        "Covers timing (day and time selection)",
        "Covers asset preparation",
        "Addresses hunter network and supporter activation",
        "Recommends preparation timeline",
        "Mentions common mistakes to avoid",
        "Sets realistic expectations"
      ],
      "files": []
    },
    {
      "id": 3,
      "prompt": "we just shipped a major feature update. how should we announce it? it's not a full product launch, just a big new feature.",
      "expected_output": "Should trigger on casual phrasing. Should apply the ongoing launch strategy section, specifically the major/medium/minor update matrix. Should identify this as a major feature update. Should recommend appropriate channels and tactics for a feature launch (less than a full product launch but more than a changelog entry). Should include: announcement email, blog post, social media push, in-app notification, and possibly a mini Product Hunt launch. Should provide a feature announcement framework.",
      "assertions": [
        "Triggers on casual phrasing",
        "Applies ongoing launch strategy / update matrix",
        "Identifies as major feature update",
        "Scales tactics appropriately (not full launch)",
        "Recommends announcement channels",
        "Includes email, blog, social, and in-app notification",
        "Provides feature announcement framework"
      ],
      "files": []
    },
    {
      "id": 4,
      "prompt": "Our launch flopped. We launched 3 weeks ago and only got 50 signups. We expected at least 500. What went wrong and what can we do now?",
      "expected_output": "Should apply the post-launch product marketing section. Should diagnose potential failure causes: insufficient audience building pre-launch, wrong channels, weak value proposition messaging, poor launch execution, targeting the wrong audience. Should recommend post-launch recovery tactics: iterate on messaging, identify which channels produced the 50 signups and double down, try new distribution channels, leverage early users for testimonials. Should provide a specific 30-day recovery plan.",
      "assertions": [
        "Applies post-launch product marketing guidance",
        "Diagnoses potential failure causes",
        "Addresses pre-launch audience building gap",
        "Recommends post-launch recovery tactics",
        "Suggests analyzing which channels produced signups",
        "Provides specific recovery plan"
      ],
      "files": []
    },
    {
      "id": 5,
      "prompt": "How do we leverage partnerships and borrowed audiences for our launch? We don't have a big audience of our own.",
      "expected_output": "Should focus on the Borrowed channel from the ORB Framework. Should provide specific borrowed audience tactics: podcast guest appearances, co-marketing with complementary tools, influencer partnerships, community engagement (relevant Slack groups, Discord servers, Reddit), guest posts, cross-promotions. Should recommend how to identify and approach potential partners. Should note that borrowed audience strategies take time to build and should start well before launch day.",
      "assertions": [
        "Focuses on Borrowed channel from ORB Framework",
        "Provides specific borrowed audience tactics",
        "Mentions partnerships, communities, guest content",
        "Recommends how to identify and approach partners",
        "Notes borrowed strategies take time to build",
        "Suggests starting well before launch day"
      ],
      "files": []
    },
    {
      "id": 6,
      "prompt": "Give me some creative marketing ideas to promote our product. We're bootstrapped and don't have a big budget.",
      "expected_output": "Should recognize this is a broader marketing ideas request, not specifically a launch strategy task. Should defer to or cross-reference the marketing-ideas skill, which provides 139 marketing ideas organized by category and filtered by budget. May provide some launch-related tactical ideas but should make clear that marketing-ideas is the right skill for a broader brainstorming session.",
      "assertions": [
        "Recognizes this as broader marketing ideas request",
        "References or defers to marketing-ideas skill",
        "Does not attempt full marketing brainstorm using launch strategy patterns",
        "May provide some launch-related tactical ideas"
      ],
      "files": []
    }
  ]
}