They say stress, nerves, and excitement are all the same bodily process, expressed differently.
Launching a product runs you through all of them.
The stress of everything that goes into it (more than you think). The nerves of launch day. The excitement of watching money roll in and your hard work become a finished product people want to consume.
I’ve done it 3 times now. Each launch was a bit different, but hey, they were all launches.
I learned a lot. Perhaps the most after the first launch, but plenty of new lessons came from launch 2 and 3, too.
So below, I’ve laid out 8 lessons I learned firsthand putting my offers out into the world.
1. Ask Your Audience First
A lot of people create a product, eager to make money selling their own thing…
And then can’t find anyone to sell to.
That’s because they’ve flipped the steps around.
You need a market of people who want it first. THEN you create a product the market wants.
So the first thing I did was ask my email list and post on LinkedIn asking whether followers/connections would be interested.
I wrote and scheduled a quick email asking, “Hey, I am thinking of launching a new product that does XYZ. Are you interested?”
I repurposed this for LinkedIn, making tweaks (with ChatGPT’s help) to optimize for the platform.
I waited a couple days for subs to respond and LinkedIn followers/connections to leave comments.
My list is not HUGE, so I was only expecting a few “Yes” responses to validate. My LinkedIn following is bigger, so I waited a bit longer.
Once I had those, I moved forward with creating the offer.
Now…
I admittedly DID outline each offer before validation. But very roughly. Which brings us to the next section.
2. Mine Your GDrive
Woodworkers “sell their sawdust.”
Butchers sell the bones and trimmings.
These things are byproducts of their main line of work, yet they offer value to people.
Same goes for digital products.
You’ve probably crafted from thin air systems, processes, templates, frameworks, and so much more while doing your main thing.
If those things help you make money (directly via more revenue or indirectly via more time), then they are literally worth money.
Therefore, they are digital products in waiting.
Which means the raw materials for your next offer are hiding in your GDrive.
That’s true of all of my offers:
- 21-Email Swipe Vault: I analyzed hundreds of emails I wrote for clients, dissected the best ones to find recurring patterns, and compiled the subsequent frameworks/templates into a swipe file.
- Perfect Price Hike Formula: I ran a price increase campaign for a client that sold like crazy. I used the same framework for other clients to great success. I templatized it, shot a few videos, and made it a mini-course. I created the original campaign “from scratch”… but based on my knowledge of email marketing, copywriting, and marketing/sales psychology.
- AI-Assisted Email Copywriting: I developed my ChatGPT process organically, over time, as I mastered using LLMs for this line of work. I had a few prompts I kept in a Google Doc that I used as part of the process. So I ran a live workshop showing it all, then packaged the recording and other materials into a course.
I have SO MUCH MORE good stuff lurking in my GDrive.
Every new client project or thing I do in my own business is a potential offer.
Same for you. That’s why you should save anything you create and document your work as much as possible.
3. Plan Things Out
A bit of planning goes a long way. Helps you see the big picture and not “wing it” when launching the product.
I briefly sketched out:
- The offer itself
- The technical stuff I’d need to set up (like Stripe, Thrivecart, delivery of materials, etc.)
- Email campaign
- LinkedIn strategy
On those last two, I didn’t do much. Came up with a few angles I could use and wrote them down so I wouldn’t forget.
4. Repurpose Your Marketing Materials
Product launches often involve lots of marketing. No need to craft a unique piece of copy for every channel, every time.
Instead, repurpose content across channels where possible.
For example, I’d often write an email to my list, then tweak the language (with AI, see #6) to fit LinkedIn.
Boom. One piece of copy, two platforms, more reach. Works particularly well when the email itself is a high performer, of course.
There’s another aspect to this, though. Something I picked up while writing for financial publishers…
See, financial copywriters have to prepare a lot of “lift notes” — emails that push to a long-form piece (VSL or sales page).
They also have to write “space ads”, short ads you drop in newsletters to, well, push to a VSL or sales page.
The sales page/VSL script is a GOLDMINE of hooks and angles for these.
Find a compelling idea within the sales page, then flesh that out into an email (or space ad, or social media post, etc.).
A financial publishing example:
We were selling a trading service that focused on some cutting-edge sector. I found a graph in the VSL script showing the potential market cap of the industry vs. 3 other hot sectors (streaming, cannabis, and cloud tech).
I took it and a bunch of surrounding copy (such as what XYZ big bank said about the industry), tweaked that copy, worked up an intro, and had an email ready.
You can do this with YOUR sales pages. There’s a good chance you have a bunch of half-written or even almost-fully-written emails hiding in them.
Putting it all together…
Your sales page can serve as a foundation for many of your launch emails. Your launch emails could become LinkedIn posts.
Now you’ve completed a good chunk of your launch calendar after writing just one sales page!
5. Recruit Affiliates
Affiliate marketing is so cool for both parties:
- The offer owner can multiply his reach and the amount of mailing he can do… by letting others mail for him
- The affiliate makes money without having to whip up an offer of their own
When you’re newer to the product game (maybe you have a small list or less-developed presence), affiliates are so much more helpful…
Especially those with larger responsive lists.
They don’t just send you more customers. They lend you instant credibility because by mailing to you, the affiliate implies that you know your stuff and are worth paying.
When I launched my first product, AI-Assisted Email Copywriting, I recruited Chris Orzechowski as an affiliate.
He sold HALF of ALL the spots in the workshop.
Yeah, I had to pay him a fat commission. But I didn’t have to find those customers he sent me.
Then, later on, those affiliates can promote the product forever.
One day, they might decide to mail to your product without your knowledge. The next day, you wake up with “free money” in your Stripe. It’s like finding hundreds of dollars in your coat pocket.
So… who to find as affiliates?
As I said, you want people with good-sized, responsive lists that trust the list owners.
Your offer should be something their list would be interested in. Don’t sell vegan products to a carnivore list.
That doesn’t mean it must be the same niche. A marketer might sell a “digital business bookkeeping” course to their list, if their list is business owners or other marketers. Such a course would teach these subscribers the basics of managing their books and finances.
Lastly, look for people who have no offer of their own yet. Easier to sell them on being an affiliate. They can monetize their list NOW, without making a new product… while delivering something that helps their audience.
Spend some time, as you plan things out, to browse your network and note down names who might promote for you. Good chance you could build up a little affiliate squadron.
6. Invest in Software
In college, one of my management professors said something to the effect of this:
“The point of your first job, whether fast-food or retail or something else, is NOT to teach you lessons about hard work or managing your money or even to get something on your résumé. It’s to inspire you to strive so you never have to work one of those jobs again.”
That stuck with me. It applies to launching your first few offers, too.
Let me share some “behind-the-scenes” of my first product to show you what I mean…
My first product launch (AI-Assisted Email Copywriting) was a thrill, but it SUCKED without a formal piece of online business/product software.
I had to stitch together Kit, Stripe, and Zoom.
I had to deliver the materials ahead of time via email through a shared GDrive folder.
I hosted the workshop on Zoom, and had to wait for the recording to finish so I could give my students the video and transcript…. In GDrive.
I had to track affiliate sales in Stripe’s wonky UI by manually creating different links AND duplicate sales pages for each affiliate.
I had to export this data and triple-check it all to ensure I paid my affiliates properly.
I also couldn’t rename those sales page (they were Google Docs) or people would see the “affiliate” language, which made things confusing as hell.
So I made a decision:
The moment I made enough sales to afford it, I’d invest in Thrivecart.
And when I hit that threshold, I bought the Ultimate Bundle (figured I’d skip to the top tier instead of paying more over time).
After the initial troubles (exporting my AI-Assisted Email Copywriting students from Stripe and into Thrivecart and ironing out access issues for some students)…
Holy moly is life easier.
I can build offers, upsells, downsells, bump offers, and entire funnels within the platform.
My products (including that workshop) are all hosted on YouTube, but videos are available in a nice and neat Thrivecart course area.
Students can download any downloadables from the course instead of some GDrive folder.
I can send affiliates a signup form or add them with their name and email instead of dealing with manual link and sales page management.
Everyone has to go through that early struggle to learn this lesson.
Just like everyone needs that first job to teach them to strive for more rather than settle.
Invest in the right technology instead of paying yourself. It’ll help you sell more and do better for your customers… all while helping you avoid headaches.
7. Use AI Wisely
Some people blatantly dismiss AI/LLMs. While I am skeptical of “it can do everything” based on extensive experience using it…
It is a GODSEND for handling a lot of the stuff surrounding the “building the core offer” and “writing the copy.”
ChatGPT helped me do a lot of things:
- Navigate Thrivecart
- Iron out sales page messaging (but not write all of it)
- Determine logistical details (like how to deliver certain pieces of an offer)
- Develop bump offers
- Work out affiliate commission structure/amount
- Figure out sales tax registration & filing
I did everything pertaining to offer creation and sales page/email copywriting, but ChatGPT helped hone messaging and knock out peripheral stuff.
That said, it did help me write the copy. I still put my stamp of copy expert approval on it (after edits and revisions), but it helped get the main idea “onto paper.”
(You can learn my exact methods for writing with ChatGPT here.)
8. Test the “Customer Experience”
Nothing more embarrassing and frustrating than a mass of customers unable to smoothly check out because of some tech issues.
Nothing against the customers, of course. Not their fault.
But you want to run through as a “customer” yourself to ensure customers hit no hiccups.
I recommend hiring someone to do this if you don’t have time. I have a virtual assistant (hi Emily!), so I tasked her with that.
She recorded a Loom walking through the whole process looking for snags. She asked me questions to make sure things worked as I expected.
Saved me so much time and headache.
A Few Things I’ll Do In the Future
No launch is perfect, of course. So here are two quick things I didn’t do that I plan to in the future:
- Write flows: I am still building out my email flows. Each product needs post-purchase onboarding and review request flows at minimum. Perhaps product-specific abandoned carts/checkouts for launch and evergreen (but at least a general cart/checkout abandonment flow).
- Plan more extensively: I admittedly didn’t plan that much. I had a small audience and leaned heavily on affiliates. In the future, I’d prepare swipe assets for affiliates and more thoroughly map everything out.
- Do more prelaunch: I like to do a casual “Hey, I’ve got this new product coming soon, get excited” thing in my emails when I’m close to launch. As my list grows, I will likely formalize my prelaunch process.
Keep These in Mind When You Launch
Creating and launching your product is indeed a LOT. But keeping these things in mind can help cut down on the frustrations..
Mine your GDrive for potential offers, but don’t skip asking your audience before turning that “sawdust” into the product.
Once that’s done, you can plan things out and get to work on the offer itself. Run through the buying and consumption process before you launch to ensure a smooth process.
As for marketing, repurpose materials where possible and recruit affiliates to expand your reach and multiply your sales. Use AI to help various parts of the process. Invest your earnings in software (and other things) to make future launches and offers easier.
Who knows when I’ll create my next offer. But when I do, I know there will be more lessons to learn.
“Bring it,” as they say.
What To Do Next
- Share this article with someone who might find it helpful (or entertaining).
- Get my free eBook using the form below to learn the 5 things stopping you from turning “one-and-done” customers into repeat buyers.
- Grab my 21 best email templates/frameworks.
- Reach out to me if you have a sizable email list and make less than 20% of your revenue through email.
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