Some of the most common questions I get from all of you are about how to launch digital products. I’m often asked how I do everything when it comes to my launches but I think one of the most important steps in any launch is the content you create. It’s critical to create high-converting content that serves you and your business well. A launch can be a digital product or course, but it can also be a new service or even your new website. Whatever it is, your launch strategy matters! So today, let’s take a deeper look into how to create content for launches!

WHY SHOULD WE CREATE CONTENT?

For me, I’ve learned that creating engaging content is a powerful way to build my brand and audience. This was important both as a photographer and an online business educator. Creating strategic pieces of content that’s helpful for my audience has allowed me to connect with my audience and build their trust in me. If you’re wanting to offer or sell something new, these pieces of content will help generate buzz naturally for you and your business – and most importantly, show that you’re an expert. As people connect and understand that you know what you’re talking about, they’re going to be more excited (and inclined!) to support you. 

WARM AND COLD AUDIENCES

When you create content, you’re basically creating two types: a cold audience or warm audience. A cold audience is someone who is outside your current audience. Something like a blog will likely reach people who don’t know you yet. A warm audience are those individuals who follow you, and are part of your community. Your email list is the perfect example of a warm audience – the people who are primed and want to connect with you even more. When thinking about a launch, it’s important to create content in both categories. Your warm audience gets primed while you connect with a cold audience to build up your community. They work hand in hand before, during, and after a launch. Remember, your content helps build your authority in this area, too! 

WHY WE SHOULD PROVIDE FREE CONTENT BEFORE LAUNCHES

When you provide valuable free content, people become naturally excited to purchase paid offerings from you because they believe in what you do and what you provide. This also shows that you can find a difference between what’s offered in your free or paid content. Your paid content often takes more time and energy, is often higher quality, and contains more information than your free content. It truly is possible – but don’t stress too much about it all. 

Finally, one of the reasons I love content creation is because it’s a long game. And when you create offerings that will be long-term for your business, these pieces of content become evergreen. All this means is that your content is still serving you after the launch is over. YouTube videos are a great example of this. I have videos from over a year ago that still get seen, bring in new students, and share my work with a  new cold audience. Basically: it’s important to create strong pieces of content that will serve you for the long-term! 

WHAT KIND OF CONTENT SHOULD WE MAKE?

We know that creating content is important now. But let’s talk about what kind of content you should be creating for your launches. First of all, when you’re thinking about content leading up to a launch (maybe the 4-6 weeks prior to your launch), you want to begin with priming content. This just means content that will establish you as a leader in your niche or topic. Priming content is ALL about giving value over and over and over again for free. The better your free content, the better your launch will be. It’s really that simple. 

While you’re creating this content, be mindful of what freebies or email list building downloads you can incorporate. Not only does this build your list, but it will lead to evergreen funnels in the future. Remember, it’s about the long-game! You’ll see me doing this on my YouTube videos: I redirect viewers to my free resources, which then add them to my email list. Seriously, I believe in the power of my email list – it’s the best way to connect and sell with my audience. 

When it comes to the week of your launch, you need to switch your content up a little bit. At this point, you want to focus on generating buzz about your new launch. This is much different than the priming content. Personally, I put more emphasis on my priming content because that’s what’s going to build my email list! However, the week of the launch I want to create some buzz. So, I continue to share personal branding content as I begin to share about the product. I love to share about the product, about students in my community and already using the product. It’s super easy to ask my class members to share about their experiences and turn those into testimonials. 

HOW DO WE PLAN ALL THIS CONTENT?

So now that we know the kind of content we need, we have to plan it all out. I always start with a content calendar- and I sell my exact Trello board content calendar. As a note, I plan Instagram separately (because it’s not as heavy with the content – it’s more about personal branding!). Using this calendar, I plan out my topics, notes, and workflows for the priming content leading up to the launch. I do this for YouTube, blogs, and emails. It’s the easiest way to see what’s going out on each platform to prime my audience. 

I truly believe planning in advance and with a solid strategy is the best way to build the runway up to your launch. Spend time deciding how to diversify your content so that you can gain the most momentum possible. It’s important to spread out your energy because each platform truly does provide something different for your brand. 

As you can tell, I LOVE talking about content creation and launch strategy! So, please let me know what else you’d like to learn about when it comes to these strategies in your business so I can help you even more. A successful launch is truly about preparing your audience, which is absolutely possible to do.