Product Launch Strategies Online

I'm tired of hearing PR = traditional media. Most agencies are getting it wrong too. 🙃 It isn’t… The NY Times The WSJ  <Insert any other big-name publication> people get excited about Even if you land in a top-tier publication, chances are people will read about it like you are right now - on their LinkedIn feed - rather than the actual media platform where it was published. These traditional platforms may provide varying degrees of credibility, but they don't provide distribution. Today, EVERYTHING is media. Here’s what that might look like: Targeted Content: - Niche Podcasts: Identify the specific podcast your ideal CIO (Chief Information Officer),  CMO (Chief Marketing Officer), or whoever listens to based on their industry and interests. These podcasts are GOLD for moving prospects from awareness to consideration. - Curated Newsletters: Seek out targeted Substack newsletters relevant to your niche, not just "gems." Think "Bankless" for crypto enthusiasts or "The Information" for tech insiders. - Engaging Collaborations: Partner with influencers who genuinely understand your audience and know how to engage them on platforms like Instagram Live. Look for influencers who spark conversations and promote meaningful interactions. - LinkedIn Fireside Chats: Host live-streamed chats with industry leaders and your CEO, and top clients. This adds credibility and attracts a wider audience. - Leveraging Trends: Create TikTok accounts or tie into those that creatively engage with relevant trends and topics specific to your industry. Interactive & Community-Driven: - Virtual Conferences: Participate in or host virtual conferences that attract your target audience, offering valuable content and networking opportunities. - Twitch Streams: Consider live-streaming on Twitch for real-time interaction, especially if your target market is tech-savvy or in the gaming industry. - Reddit AMAs: Host Reddit AMAs (Ask Me Anything) on relevant subreddits to directly engage with your audience and answer their questions in an informal setting. - Pinterest Boards: Create curated Pinterest boards around themes your target market actively searches for, showcasing your brand's expertise and visual appeal. Content with Reach & Impact: - YouTube Channels: These channels have content optimized for search, and one interview alone can drive targeted traffic. - Data-Driven Insights: Prioritize creating content backed by data and industry insights that your target market craves, like reports, white papers, or infographics. Remember: If you aren't seeing the results you want with PR, it's almost ALWAYS one of two things. Either your definition of media is too narrow (and hence, strategies are outdated and underperforming), and/or you don't have a distribution plan to go with it. #pr #publicrelations #strategiccommunications #marketing #tech #b2b

Most brands spend a lot on media, but treat landing pages as an afterthought If you’re running ads and sending traffic to a homepage or a poorly built landing page, its almost criminal. Specially when gen AI has reduced the cost and time for content creation drastically Here’s how to get landing pages right. Consistently. 1. Match Intent, Not Just Aesthetics The #1 job of a landing page? Continue the conversation you started with your ad •If your ad says “energy efficient fans”, the landing page should show highlight this feature front and center •If your Google ad targets “Mixer Grinders under ₹5000,” don’t show ₹8000 models on the page. Message match > Visual design 2. Keep the Hero Section Clean & Focused Above-the-fold matters. You need to have •Clear headline – Say what the product is and why it’s special. •Key benefits – 3 crisp points max. •Visuals – High-quality product image or demo video. •CTA – One action. Not three. Buy Now,” “Book a Demo,” or “Know More”—but pick ONE 3. Product Benefits, Not Just Features Nobody cares that your mixer uses XYZ motor tech. I mean they do care but only if they care how it helps them They care a lot more that the mixer has a coarse mode which enables silbatta like texture resulting in great taste And that BLDC or intelligent motor tech enables it 4. Solve for Trust People are skeptical by default. Give them reasons to believe •Ratings & Reviews – Show real customer ratings (4.5 stars? Flaunt it). •Media Mentions – “As seen on The Hindu / NDTV” works. •Certifications – BEE 5-Star? BIS approved? Display badges. •Guarantees – Free returns? Warranty? Mention clearly 5. Speed & Mobile Optimization Today at least 80 percent of your traffic is mobile. If your landing page loads in 4 seconds, you’ve lost half. Aim for <2s load time. Avoid fancy animations that slow things down. Test your page on Mobile (3G/4G) and in all browsers Chrome, Safari etc 6. Minimize Distractions A landing page is not your website. •No top nav bars with 7 menu items. •No footer clutter. •No exit doors—except the CTA you want. Keep it focused. Keep them moving toward action 7. Strong CTA (Call to Action) •Make it obvious. One clear button. •Use actionable language: “Get My Free Sample,” “Book a Demo,” “Shop Now.” •Repeat CTA 2-3 times as they scroll, especially after key benefit sections. 8. A/B Test, but with caution: Gen AI makes it very easy to do so. Test •Headlines •CTA text and colors •Images vs Videos •Long-form vs Short-form copy But get the fundamentals of A/B testing right. You need statistically significant sample sizes for each test A good landing page doesn’t sell the product by itself. But It removes friction so the product has a better chance of selling And when done right, your CAC drops, your ROAS climbs, and your ads finally start working to their fullest potential

Does only the best product win in the marketplace?? ⚡⚡ In today's competitive market, a standout product is just the beginning. As someone deeply involved in mentoring startups navigating this landscape, I've seen firsthand that success hinges on more than just quality. It's about crafting a compelling brand narrative that resonates far beyond the product itself. The secret? It's not about pushing your product onto customers. It's about pulling them in with a story they can't resist. Here's how to turn your product into a magnetic brand: ➡ Know Your Tribe Understand your niche audience inside out. Dive deep into their desires, frustrations, and buying habits, and position your product as the hero in their journey towards solutions. ➡ Craft a Compelling Story Storytelling is where the magic happens. Create a narrative that evokes emotions and connects with your audience profoundly. ➡ Positioning is Everything Carve out a distinctive space in the market. Define how your brand will be perceived and ensure it resonates with your target audience. ➡ Create a Visual Identity that Stands Out Develop a strong visual identity that reflects your brand's essence, right from logo design to color schemes and website aesthetics. ➡ Cultivate a Community Build a thriving community around your brand. Engage actively on social media, host events, and foster a sense of belonging among your customers. Remember, building a brand is a marathon, not a sprint. When your exceptional product aligns seamlessly with a compelling brand strategy, you're not just surviving but thriving. Are you ready to elevate your product to a brand? Share your unique strategies in the comments below! LinkedIn News India LinkedIn Guide to Creating LinkedIn #Branding #Startups #LinkedInNewsIndia

PR CAMPAIGNS SHOULD BE DRIVING REVENUE OR TRAFFIC 💰 🚀 we recently had a brand come to us because they’ve been working with one of the biggest PR agencies in the country, they’d won awards, hundreds of press - NO attributable sales. 👎🏼 The campaigns they ran were incredible too, very creative ideas, I was jealous! But impact on the business was very small. The campaign was more famous than the brand, and that’s an issue! They asked should our campaigns be making sales or is it just a brand awareness play? The thing that was missing for them, was consideration of how that campaign can live on other channels. 💻 What about onsite 📧 Email 📱 Social 🧒 Influencer? So… We recently ran this cross channel campaign and the results are 👏 it was a PR first campaign, designed for awareness and links back to site from press but our email element of it alone drove £40k revenue, with a 5.28% CTR, and 51.4% open rate 26k sessions directly to a landing page we built of which 60% were completely new customers Were seeing a massive shift for “Omni channel” PR campaigns right now and really all you have to consider is how We also now rank on page 1 for a key term around the campaign (impacted organic search) This is why rise at seven was born

Make your customers want it before you sell it. When it comes to marketing, persuasion is often seen as the final push that gets customers to make a purchase. But what if the real magic happens before the pitch even starts? That’s where PRE-SUASION comes in. It starts way before you pitch your product, setting the right mood, expectation, and the context. Take luxury watches, for example. Before you even see the watch, the ad shows you the world of success, power, and elegance. By the time the product is unveiled, you're already sold not just on the watch, but on the lifestyle it represents. Or think about e-commerce sites that highlight “bestsellers” or “limited-time deals.” It creates a sense of urgency and FOMO prompting customers to buy before it’s too late. Even something as simple as an email subject line like “Exclusive Invite for VIP Customers” makes the reader feel special and eager to open the email, all before seeing the content inside. Then, of course, there's Apple—masters of the pre-suasion game with their product launches. The months of silence, the rumors, the teasers, the countdowns. By the time the product is finally revealed, you've been prepped, primed, and you're counting down the seconds until it's available. And let’s not forget Netflix. The "Top 10" lists, the "Because you watched..." recommendations—Netflix gets you hooked before you even start watching something new. Pre-suasion is the art of priming your audience, creating excitement, and laying the groundwork so the final decision feels inevitable. When done right, you’re not just offering a product, you’re offering an experience that your audience can’t resist. What’s the best example of pre-suasion you’ve seen in action? #presuasion #marketing #branding #startups

One of the highest profile elements of product marketing is managing public launches. Back in August we ran our last Paddle Forward - and we have our next one planned for March. Here are a few things we have learned. 1) Help the audience first It's so easy to get caught up in your internal business case for a launch... to focus on what you think it means. But the starting question should be: "Why should hundreds/thousands of our customers and prospects want to attend this, engage AND enjoy the time with us?" How can you help them think about their world differently? How can you give them access to your team? How can you introduce them to new tools that save them time or make them money? 2) Focus on the ‘so what’, not the ‘what’ The best communicators spend most of their time thinking about the reasons, the why, the so what... not the 'what we did'. Yet many product updates skip the context, miss the emotion, bury the 'what's in it for you'. Make the 'so what' how you start, and how you end. It's always better to summarise the details into bitesized chunks and link away for proper documentation. You will hate it at first, because these are hard-won details that you are now relegating. But your audience will thank you. 3) Format matters Some companies have a rhythm of regular programmed virtual and physical events (think Apple or Stripe). Some rely on community promotion of new features. Some rely entirely on written documentation. But the format is more than just whether its a doc or a webinar. It's HOW you deliver it. Is there live Q&A? Is there education and inspiration packaged up with release notes? What's the balance of powerpoint to live demos? How many customers are showing how they use the new product? We blend live presenting of market insight, pre-recorded demos of product updates and customer interviews, and topic-based break-out rooms for live Q&A with our product and engineering teams. 4) Plan, deliver, iterate The best communications build an expectation for more. And the best launches get people asking what you will be launching next. So, don't just plan one. Plan the next one. And right after each one, get feedback from your audience, gather your team for input. Listen to your engineers and product teams. And make a plan to get better. 5) Brand it The best software businesses ship regularly. In order to build expectation, consistency, and affinity, don't just plan a series - brand it. Make it something that your customers and prospects want to get in the diary early. I know many people who plan their lives around WWDC. I remember being in-person at one of the first Meta Facebook F8 conferences - and even meeting Zuck - and then tuning in regularly as I was involved with building Facebook apps. What else have I missed? If you want to take a look at the last Forward, just search "Paddle Forward" on Google or Youtube. Massive shout out to Bianca, Leigh Anne, Danielle and Hayley for how they ran the event.

Crowdfunding isn’t a platform strategy it’s a marketing strategy. One of the biggest mistakes founders make? Thinking they can just launch on Kickstarter or StartEngine and wait for the money to roll in. But here’s the truth: People don’t go to crowdfunding sites looking for something to fund. They discover your campaign accidentally — through a friend’s share, a video clip, a headline. If your landing page doesn’t stop the scroll, you lose them. What actually works: A short, authentic video (30 seconds, real voice, no polish) – A visible progress bar (e.g., $240K raised of $250K = instant FOMO) – A single, obvious CTA (“Support this project”) — no friction Real example: Island Brands raised millions via StartEngine — not because of the platform, but because they treated their campaign like a full-on product launch. High emotion. Simple messaging. Smart distribution. Crowdfunding doesn’t work because you uploaded something. It works because you marketed it.

Our team on #MACCosmetics recently ran a short sales-driven campaign on social, with a check out via the website and the results speaks for itself! They used the creative device of a make-up stock market to entice a consumer purchase via live bidding and interactive polls on Instagram stories. Insight: >> Consumers love discounts and when the discount is time-bound, it creates a sense of urgency >> Leveraged the intrigue and curiosity of the audience by introducing a makeup market with a unique twist >> Focused on transparency and inclusivity, building trust and engagement with the audience Idea and Execution: >> Teased the campaign effectively to pique audience interest before unveiling the makeup market concept >> Implemented interactive polls featuring product tiles to simulate bidding, creating an engaging experience >> Revealed product details and prices an hour before the market opened, establishing transparency >>Adopted an inclusive "something for everyone" strategy by offering a 20% discount to all customers Metrics: (Everything Organic) >> Achieved over 550 link clicks, surpassing the average for regular posts and offers >> Ranked among the top 6 stories in terms of story reach, link clicks, and profile visits over the past three months >> Showcased an 85% increase in revenue compared to the average for other days of the month Why it Worked: >> The campaign capitalized on audience curiosity, driving higher engagement and interest >> Interactive polls and transparent communication enhanced the overall user experience >> The inclusive discount strategy likely broadened the appeal and participation >> Financial success demonstrated the effectiveness of the campaign in driving sales and revenue >> The acquisition of new customers indicates the campaign's positive impact on expanding the customer base This one is a classic example of how a social campaign can drive bottom funnel results! Let me know what you think of the idea? #SocialMedia #Instagram #BottomFunnelMarketing #MakeUp

Most brands spend lacs pushing products on social media. We spent ₹0 on and focused on this type of content to grow 10X faster. Here's the shift that changed everything: Most brands fail at social media because they focus too much on selling. Their feeds are: - endless product catalogs - discount announcements - and sales pitches. That's why audience growth stays stagnant and selfish content becomes the norm. To flip the script, you have to stop selling continuously and start gaining people's trust. When we created a strategy with 80% focus on audience-centric content and 20% promotion, everything changed. - Engagement tripled - DMs flooded with queries - and sales grew organically The blueprint that works for brands is as follows: - Answer audience's questions, break myths, misconceptions, and more - Create how-to content that makes your audience trust your knowledge - Share behind-the-scenes that makes others feel like a community - Turn product features into relatable content for everyone Simply put, we must shift the focus from the product to the people and make them the hero of your brand. As a result, you can have a growing community of engaged individuals who trust you and your products. Your social media isn't your shopping catalog. Make it your classroom, your stage, your way to make a difference. 💭 Are you making selfish content or selfless? #socialmedia #brands #strategy

🚀 8 Proven Strategies to Double Your Virtual Event ROI (Steal These for Your Next Founder & Funder Event!) Let’s Talk Strategy! These strategies helped us double our ROI, generate 50+ high-quality leads, and secure over $500K in business opportunities—and they can do the same for you. 1. We Announced Our Attendance & Reached 10K+ Views • Strategic Social Media – We crafted engaging LinkedIn posts using event-specific hashtags, boosting pre-event visibility by 10,000+ views. • Tagging Event Organizers – Mentioning speakers and event hosts increased engagement by 45%. • Pre-Event Email Campaign – Sending teasers to our network resulted in a 20% meeting booking rate before the event. 2. LinkedIn Sales Navigator Gave Us a 50% Higher Response Rate • Sent Personalized Connection Requests – Achieved a 50% acceptance rate, leading to more meaningful conversations. • Followed Up Post-Conference – Keeping the conversation going increased conversion rates by 35%. 3. Upgraded Our Tech Saved Us Time & Captured More Leads • Engaging in comments—Instant contact sharing saved time and increased retention by 70%. • Optimized CRM for Mobile – HubSpot’s mobile entry feature helped us log leads on the spot, reducing data loss by 90%. 4. We Designed a Background and Used Networking During Event • Interactive Experience Over Static Banners – Attendees spent 3x longer engaging with us. • Exclusive Giveaways – Branded items led to 200+ daily booth visitors. 5. Interactive Content Drove More Engagement • Gated Landing Pages for Lead Capture – Increased post-event conversions by 50%. • Digital Brochures — Make content easily available throughout event improving accessibility. 6. We Stood Out with Memorable Attire • Branded Apparel with Bold Colors – Recognition increased by 50%. • Team Uniformity – Boosted credibility and led to 20% more inquiries. 7. We Created a Must-Meet List & Secured Key Connections • Pre-Event Research on 20 VIP Attendees – Led to strategic meetings with decision-makers. • Sent Personal Invites to Connect – 60% confirmed meetups before the event. • Tracked High-Value Attendees in CRM – Ensured no missed opportunities. 8. Followup Engagements for Networking Built Deeper Relationships (You know I love to throw the After Party) • Organized Small Gatherings with Key Prospects – Strengthened relationships beyond the event floor. • Extended Conversations Over Dinner & Drinks – Led to higher conversion rates. 🚀 The Results: • ROI Doubled from Last Year’s Events! • 50+ High-Quality Leads Generated! • $500,000+ in New Business Opportunities! Which of these tactics are you already using? Or is there one you’d love to try but need help executing? Drop a comment or send me a DM—I’d love to swap notes and hear what’s worked for you!