How to Generate Buzz Around a New Product Launch

Generating a Buzz around a New Product Launch

Launching a new product or service can be an exciting, but stressful time. You can put a huge amount of time into bringing your new idea to life and making countless tweaks to make it perfect for meeting your customers’ requirements.

With so much energy and resource being poured into creating your new offering, it can be easy to overlook the important factor of getting the word out to potential customers who may benefit from purchasing it from you.

You mustn't let all your hard work go to waste by missing the opportunity to generate a buzz around your product launch. In this article, we guide you through the best ways to promote your new product or service both on-site and online.

What is a Product Launch?

Let’s begin by diving into a little detail on what we mean when we use the term ‘product launch’. To put it in simple terms:

“A product launch refers to a business’s planned and coordinated effort to debut a new product to the market and make that product generally available for purchase.” – ProductPlan

Although typically the term refers to the launch of a physical product, the advice in this article can be applied to launching almost any product or service from a brand-new BBQ model to the launch of a new tasting menu.

To save confusion, from here on we will use the generic term 'product' to refer to both products and services unless otherwise specified.

When to Promote a Product Launch?

However small your new product, creating a launch plan will help you generate the most success possible.

You should start to generate a buzz around a new product as soon as you can. By promoting a launch ahead of time, you can start to build excitement and anticipation within your audience, this, in turn, will ensure you have earnt the required attention when launch day arrives.

Although you shouldn’t take risks by promoting a product before you are 100% it will happen, you may choose to generate excitement by promoting early teasers of what is to come. For example, rather than starting your promotions by giving full product details, you may simply highlight that ‘something exciting is coming’ or give some hints as to what it might be.

Preparation

Before you go ahead and start shouting about your exciting new product, undertaking a little preparation is going to help you get the most from it.

• Put the Customer First
  Although this stage should come before you start creating a new product, it is so important that it is worth highlighting here.
  
  All new products you create should be made with the customer in mind. When looking at creating a new offering, ask yourself whether it is truly going to serve your customer either by entertaining and delighting them or by helping them overcome a challenge. If the answer is no, you should question why you are creating this product in the first place.
  
  Combining customer data such as demographic information and buying habits with qualitative information such as feedback forms, surveys and even just general conversation with customers can help you get a clear idea of what they are looking for.
  
  Once you have assessed the need and created your new product you may choose to run it on a trial period to assess its popularity. For example, you may run a new menu for set hours during a week before replacing your current menu.
  
  Putting your customer first is crucial when it comes to generating a buzz. A product that truly serves a customer and meets their needs will ultimately generate considerable word of mouth and will grow organically om top of your other forms of promotion.



• Create a Positioning Statement
  When you have your customer-centric product created, formulating a clear and concise positioning statement will help you focus your efforts when undertaking all forms of promotion.
  
  There are three questions you must answer in your positioning statement:
  
  
  • 1. Who is the product for?
  • 2. What does the product do to help?
  • 3. Why is it different/better than other similar products?
  
  
  For example, your positioning statement for a brand-new BBQ model may be:
  
  The BBQ3000 has been created as an entry-level BBQ for food lovers. It is the best quality BBQ in the market which can be purchased for under £200 and also offers a function that lets you easily smoke food.
  
  This statement offers you a quick reference to ensure that you are always targeting promotions to the right people and with the right messaging to highlight the most relevant unique selling points.



• Plan your Marketing Strategy
  Creating a marketing strategy is crucial to a successful product launch. Without a strong strategy in place, you are likely to spend considerable time and effort promoting your product launch in the wrong way and may miss big opportunities.
  
  In the rest of this guide, we walk you through the best methods to include in your marketing strategy to ensure product launch success.

Digital Considerations

We will look at both digital and onsite promotional options in this guide. Neither is better than the other but should be used in parallel to ensure comprehensive messaging and to reach as many relevant people as possible.

• Websites
  If you already have a website for your business, this will be a good location to focus your digital promotional effort for your product launch.
  
  The likelihood is that the majority of people visiting your website are customers or those who are interested in becoming customers. This makes for a very good audience for your new product launch.
  
  Including a clear promotion of your new product on your website homepage will help you generate awareness and buzz.
  
  Depending on the type of product you are launching, you may include a landing page on your site which details product information. You can then use other digital forms of promotion and onsite promotion to drive people towards this page.
  
  To further leverage the success of a product launch landing page you could also include an email sign up so people can get updates on the new product as and when those details are released.



• Email Marketing
  Whether you collect contact information directly from the product landing page or you already have a considerable email marketing list, this is a great tool for creating a buzz.
  
  Use a simple email marketing tool like Mailchimp to update list members on new developments and introduce them to the new product. You may even offer them exclusive deals or early access to incentivise their participation in the launch.



• Social Media
  Social media should be an obvious aspect of your product launch campaign. You can use your already established channels to reach your established customer base with news and information about your new offering.
  
  The major benefit of social media beyond other forms of digital promotion is that it allows for two-way conversations. This can be a great way to collect feedback from your audience and adjust your product or campaign accordingly. For example, you may run a poll on social media asking the best time for launching the new product.



• Advertising
  Using your earnt platform such as social media and email marketing is a great and cost-effective way to promote your brand-new product to your current customers or audience.
  
  Digital advertising provides you with the opportunity to reach further and get in front of those who may not already be aware of who you are and what you do. There are two main types of digital advertising which are worth considering as part of your product launch campaign.



• Social Media Ads
  Social media ads are much as they sound, adverts that are published on social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Which platform you will target will depend on your business, product and audience.
  
  Paying for ads on social media platforms is a great way to target those who are likely to be interested in what you are offering. For example, if you are a local restaurant promoting a new menu, using the Facebook Ads Manager you may choose to target local individuals with an interest in fine dining.
  
  Social ads are a great way to incorporate your campaign message in a digital space where your audience likely spend a considerable amount of time.



• Search Ads
  Search ads are also worth considering when launching a new product. To put it simply, search ads are when you pay a search engine such as Google to put your website at the top of their search engine when someone searches a specific term.
  
  Using the new menu example highlighted above, you may decide to target those who search ‘new Oxford restaurant’ to specifically target those who are looking for somewhere new and exciting to eat in your local area.

Working with Others

Tapping into other people’s audiences can be another good way to reach those who may be interested in your new offering.

For example, if you were launching a new BBQ, you may reach out to a blogger who specialises in BBQ cooking. You may negotiate with them to post a guest post on their blog, or you may send them a BBQ to try and review one of their social media channels.

As people will have no experience with your new product, working with others is a great way to generate the trust required to make sales.

When you decide to work with someone else to help promote your product launch, it is worth considering what they will get out of the arrangement. In many cases it can be worth allocating a budget to pay these individuals.

Onsite Promotion

Promoting in the digital space is a great way to generate buzz. Equally, promoting your new product onsite can be an excellent way to tap into those who will be most interested. This is especially true if you are a local business and your new product will be targeting your current customers.

• External Advertising
  Advertising your product launch on the outside of your premises can be a good way to catch the attention of those who may be interested but don’t visit you on regular occasions.
  
  For example, you may put up an A Board which highlights the key points from your positioning statement and any other key information which may be useful. This physical presence is a great way to catch the attention of passing trade. Using a flag can also help attract attention, but doesn’t provide you with as much space to include information. Flags can be a great option on launch day to drive traffic into your premises.
  
  Well designed and presented posters can also attract the eye of potential passing trade and draw people in to find out more.



• Internal Promotion
  If you are a business with physical premises, your customer will likely visit you often, this can be a good opportunity to promote a product launch to those who are likely to be interested.
  
  Simple leaflets at the door or the counter can help you inform people on the upcoming launch. When someone makes a purchase, you may also physically hand them a leaflet, place one in their shopping bag or include one with their bill.
  
  Your team can also be a good way to promote a launch on-premises. When they are talking to customers you can ask them to naturally drop in the launch and why they think it might be of interest to that specific person.

Offers

Offering a special deal will help you grab people's attention and generate a sense of urgency. For example, when launching a new menu, a restaurant may choose to offer a 50% discount for bookings made before the launch date. This helps generate a buzz around the launch and guarantee paying customers before the new menu is even live.

If you have an offer to run, you can use this to assess how successful other parts of your campaign have been. For example, you may offer two different discount codes depending on whether the customer found the offer online or on-premises, showing which one led to an eventual sale.

Generating Product Launch Buzz

Taking the time to create a comprehensive product launch plan will ensure all the time and effort put into generating a new product doesn’t go to waste. Using the tips in this guide, you will provide yourself with the best chance of new product success.

Product Launch with Pop-Up Shops

Pop-Up Shop Success (with Signs)

Pop up shops are growing in popularity. These time-limited shopping experiences offer consumers a unique and exclusive brand interaction that may otherwise be impossible to find. This is great for brands, giving them access to a potential customer base which has previously been untapped.

We continue this article by discussing how businesses can run a successful pop-up shop with a special focus on our expert subject areas – signs. So, if you have been considering running a pop-up version of your shop or have experience and want to get better results, read on...

What are Pop Up Shops?

Let’s start with quickly explaining what we mean when we talk ‘pop up shops’.

Traditional shops are located in a permanent or semi-permanent location, often holding a lease of a premises for 12 months or more. This is a great way to build a consistent customer base and ‘get known’ in the local area.

Pop up shops flip this concept on its head. A typical pop up will be at any one location for a very short period, tapping into the buzz created by exclusivity and limited access. For example, a clothing brand may host a pop-up store in a shopping centre for just a couple of weeks before moving on.

Due to their flexible nature, pop up shops are also a great way to test the potential popularity of their brand in a new, unexplored area before investing heavily in a permanent location.

Although we refer specifically to pop up shops in this article, the advice given is just as applicable to any pop-up business such as a pop-up restaurant or café.

Planning a Pop Up Shop

Planning a pop-up shop can take considerable time and effort. With such a small window of opportunity to make sales, careful consideration and planning should be taken to ensure the greatest ROI.

With this in mind, those running pop up shops should ensure they build as much buzz as possible around their event before it kicks off.

Build Suspense

As pop up shops are generally run over a short period, before you start thinking about promotion during your event, you should consider how you can use tools to generate as much buzz as possible.

There is no real limit to how much time you can spend building interest in your pop up shop, but you also want to make sure you don’t promote it for so long that potential customers lose interest over time.

In many cases, those who will visit your pop up will already be visiting other, close by areas. For example, if you host a pop-up shop in a shopping centre, your audience will likely visit that centre in the weeks and months leading up to your pop up.

By using temporary signage such as a-boards in these areas you can start to build visibility and buzz around your upcoming event.

Signs For Logistics

Most of the tips in this article focus on the promotion of your pop up as a route to success. However, careful logistics play a huge part in well-executed events and therefore should not be ignored.

During set up, you will need to ensure that the right kit is delivered to the right place at the right time, as well as that the kit is assembled in the way you envisaged. Often you will not be on site for both the delivery and assembly. In these cases, it can be worth asking the site owner to install a suitably sized display which can be used to highlight the location of the pop-up, confirm the checklist and offer detailed plans on assembly.

Directing Traffic

Pop up shops can be located anywhere. However, they are most often located somewhere where those running the shop can benefit from heavy footfall and a ready-built infrastructure such as in a large shopping centre.

To ensure success on these occasions, taking time to consider where the heaviest footfall is will enable you to direct traffic towards your shop. This can be done easily with a well-placed a-board. Alternatively, if you are located somewhere like a shopping centre, you can discuss with the site manager whether there is allocated space to advertise and direct footfall to your store.

Advertising

Once you have planned how to tap into the traffic around your pop up, you need to ensure it is also well advertised on site. This will make it easier to spot, both for those who are looking for it and for those who just happen to be in the area.

Branded café barriers are an excellent way to promote your shop on site. Many pop-ups are located in wide-open areas such as in the lobby of a shopping centre. In this case, branded café signs are the perfect way to outline your physical presence whilst advertising your brand. Pop-ups in smaller physical spaces can use these barriers to highlight an entrance and funnel people into the store.

Freestanding flag signs are another good way to promote the presence of your store in a larger open space as these can be seen over crowds of people.

Leverage Light

Pop up shops need to grab as much attention as possible in a relatively short period. This is why many successful pop-up shops leverage lighting to help their store pop out.

Internally, lighting can help you make a small space more interesting and help you develop a good atmosphere. Externally you may use backlit poster frames to make sure your key marketing messages are clear in darker areas.

To stand out from the crowd, you may also invest in a neon sign for your store. This is sure to catch people's attention and can help your brand stand out as 'edgy' and unconventional.

Signs of Success

When it comes to promoting a physical store such as a pop-up, physical signage is a great way to grab the attention of those who matter most. Following the tips in this article and pairing it with a solid digital marketing strategy will increase your chances of success.

If you enjoyed this article, you may also like…

• Lifting Lockdown – How Signage Can Help


• Maintain Social Distancing with Cafe Barriers


• 4 Display Tools Your Organisation Needs after Lockdown


• Reopening Your Small Business Post Lockdown

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