Tag Archives: product launch formula review

Product Launch Outsourcing – Managing Your Outsourcing Projects

So far in this series on getting help with your product launch, we’ve covered…

…knowing when and what to outsource, how to write a compelling ad to attract the most qualified people, and how to recruit the best person for your needs.

In this message, we’re going to look at Step Four: Managing Your Product Launch Outsourcing Projects

Once you hire one or more people to complete a job, it’s up to you to manage the project.

Here’s what you need to know to make everything go more smoothly:

• Make your expectations clear. Same as when you’re writing a project ad, you need to be clear about your expectations.

For example, if you prefer files to be delivered in a Zip file, let your freelancer know.

If you want them uploaded to DropBox, be clear about it.

Your freelancer isn’t a mind reader, and you’ll get better results when you are very clear about what you want.

• Explain what you like and want more of. When your freelancer does something the right way, let them know you’re really happy with the work and that you want more work in that style.

For example, if you hire a video producer who adds a “doodle style” demo to a video that you really like, let them know what you liked about it and that you want more videos like that.

• Let them know how often you want updates/communication. Some people prefer daily updates, some prefer every other day, some are fine with weekly or twice-monthly updates.

You need to be clear upfront about what you want.

TIP: You may ask for more frequent updates in the beginning, and then request less frequent communication once you and your freelancer have established a good relationship.

Be sure your freelancer knows you’re always available for questions, and let them know to alert you immediately whenever there is a problem or potential problem.

• Provide the required resources and information. In other words, give your freelancer the tools he or she needs to complete the job.

For example, if you’re asking your freelancer to write an article, provide resources with the facts and other information needed to complete that article.

• Consider giving a bonus for exceptional work. This bonus might come in the form of a direct financial reward on top of the regular payment, which is the preferred bonus for most freelancers.

However, in some cases you might give your freelancer a gift certificate to their favorite restaurant or another surprise reward for exceptional work.

• Praise good work along the way. Obviously, your freelancer is doing the work in exchange for money.

However, frequent praise for good work can make the project feel much more rewarding for your freelancer.

TIP: Praise for good work helps build a good relationship between you and your freelancer.

In turn, a freelancer may make special accommodations for you in the future, such as scheduling your projects first or giving you an unexpected discount.

• Be cordial and specific when tweaks are needed. From time to time your freelancer may not complete the work exactly as you envisioned.

Your first step is to go back to your brief and written communications to check if you were clear about what was needed.

Then politely let the freelancer know what specific tweaks you need to complete the project.

TIP: If the fault rests with your communication, then take responsibility for not being more clear, pay for the necessary corrections, and vow to do better in the future.

• Be aware of time zone differences. In addition, ask your freelancer their preferred hours for conference calls and other communications.

For example, someone may have a six-hour time difference from you, but they may be night owls or early risers who work much the same hours as you do.

TIP: If you’re hiring someone from another country, be aware of holidays, power outages and other circumstances that may affect your freelancer’s regular work days.

Also, if you’re in the United States and you hire someone from a country like Australia, take note that while you’re right in the middle of your Friday, they’re already into Saturday (and thus they may not be working).

• Complete the project with appropriate feedback. Here you should mention both the good things, and the things you want changed for the future.

Then be sure to follow up with a prompt payment to close out the project. (In other words, once your freelancer has delivered the final project, review it quickly so that you can make the final payment promptly.)

One last tip: if you’re using an outsourcing site, then communicate through the channels provided on the site.

This offers you some degree of protection in case there is a problem, plus it helps ensure that you’re not sending emails back and forth that may end up in a bulk email folder or otherwise get lost.

Now let’s wrap things up…

Closing Thoughts

Now that you know the four-step process for finding, hiring and managing people to help you with your product launch or with ongoing business activities, you too can start enjoying the results soon!

While the entire process can take some time upfront to comb through candidates to find the ones most suited for your needs, it’s time well spent.

So get started on the process today, and start reaping the rewards of hands-free outsourcing!

Warm regards,

Rocky

PLUS: When you’re ready, here are 3 ways I can help you to grow your business using product launches:

1. How To Build A Profitable Launch List.
Building an email list is critical if you plan on doing a launch for your product, service or business. My 1-2-3 List Building Cheat Sheet will show you how to build a responsive list of prospects who are ready to buy from you during your launch. Click Here.

2. How To Create A Signature Product Out Of Thin Air In 72 Hours Or Less
Creating your product does not need to take weeks or months. My 72 Hour Product Creation Guide shows you how to build high value products or bonuses one after the other in 72 hours or less. Click Here.

3. How To Outsource Your Product Creation And Make It Hands Free.
Outsourcing the creation of some or all of your products and bonuses is a great way to save your time for the more important (and more fun) things you’d rather be doing. Grab my Hands Free Outsourcing Cheat Sheet to learn more. Click Here.

And don’t forget to check this out 🙂

Jeff Walker’s free Product Launch Formula training.

Product Launch Outsourcing – Evaluating And Hiring Freelancers

In this previous post, we looked at how to create a compelling advertisement that will attract the most qualified outsourcing candidates to help you with your product launch outsourcing.

Today we’re going to look at Step Three: Evaluating And Hiring Freelancers.

Because you’ve crafted such a good ad, you’re probably going to attract plenty of people offering you a variety of bids and turnaround times for your project.

So here’s how to evaluate your options…

Step 1: Check the Freelancers’ Feedback

If you’re hiring through a freelancing platform like Upwork.com, then you’ll have access to his or her ratings and feedback.

The key is to look for multiple good ratings from multiple people over an extended period of time.

That last part is important.

Sometimes freelancers who are new to a site can gather a lot of great ratings in a short period of time, such as a month or so.

They look like stellar candidates. But then, for a variety of reasons, the quality of their work can start to suffer, and/or and their delivery times can blow out substantially.

That’s why you want to look for someone who has a long, established history of providing great work, which demonstrates their professionalism and attention to detail.

TIP: Plug the freelancer’s name and/or company name into Google to uncover still more information about his business history, professionalism and quality of work.

Next…

Step 2: Browse the Freelancers’ Portfolios

Next, you want to make sure the freelancer does good work.

Take a look at samples of their work, and see if they matche your expectations.

If you don’t see a sample in the portfolio that is similar to what you’re doing, ask for one.

Step 3: Ask These Key Questions

As you evaluate freelancers, ask yourself the following questions:

1. Did the freelancer send a personal reply along with his bid?

Many freelancers bid on every project without even really understanding the project, and then they send generic responses along with their bid.

If a freelancer sends a personalized response that includes details about the project, that shows you they’ve read and understood the project.

2. Have they completed projects similar to the one you’re proposing?

f there is a certain type of skill set required to complete your project, then be sure your freelancer has experience.

For example, if you’re creating an games app for iPhones, then make sure your developer has experience creating both iPhone apps AND game apps.

3. Are there any red flags warranting choosing a different person instead?

For example, if your Google search reveals that a freelancer has complaints from his business partners, that’s a red flag that he may eventually get complaints from customers too.

Go with your gut. If it’s telling you something isn’t right, believe it.

Next…

Step 4: Review the Candidate’s Rates

You don’t want to shop around based on cost alone, which is why this is not the first step of this process.

Once you’ve created a smaller list of the highest-qualified candidates, then review their pricing to see which of these people fall into your budgeted range.

You can then hire the most qualified candidate within that range.

So now you know how to evaluate and choose the most qualified outsourcers.

But there’s one more critical thing you’ll need to know if you want to get the best results, and that’s how to manage your projects without taking up too much of your time.

And that’s what we’ll be covering for you in the next post.

Warm regards,

Rocky

PLUS: When you’re ready, here are 3 ways I can help you to grow your business using product launches:

1. How To Build A Profitable Launch List.
Building an email list is critical if you plan on doing a launch for your product, service or business. My 1-2-3 List Building Cheat Sheet will show you how to build a responsive list of prospects who are ready to buy from you during your launch. Click Here.

2. How To Create A Signature Product Out Of Thin Air In 72 Hours Or Less
Creating your product does not need to take weeks or months. My 72 Hour Product Creation Guide shows you how to build high value products or bonuses one after the other in 72 hours or less. Click Here.

3. How To Outsource Your Product Creation And Make It Hands Free.
Outsourcing the creation of some or all of your products and bonuses is a great way to save your time for the more important (and more fun) things you’d rather be doing. Grab my Hands Free Outsourcing Cheat Sheet to learn more. Click Here.

And don’t forget to check this out 🙂

Jeff Walker’s free Product Launch Formula training.

Product Launch Outsourcing – How To Advertise For The Best Candidates

In this previous post, we looked at how to know if you should be using outsourcing some of your product launch projects, and what tasks and jobs you should be handing off to other people.

Today, we’re going to cover Step Two: Advertising To Attract The Best Candidate

Let’s get started…

If you want to attract the perfect, qualified people to your position, while repelling those who are unlikely to be a good fit, then you need to create a specific and detailed project description (or what’s called a brief) if you want to get the best results.

Here are the sorts of details to provide when you post parts of your product launch outsourcing project on a freelancing site:

• The scope of the project. Be specific about what the job entails. For example, list exactly how many words you need for a report, or how many minutes of video footage you want.

• Deadline. You can list your preferred project-delivery deadline in your ad. If you have some flexibility, then mention that as well. Later you and the freelancer sign an agreement that includes a deadline you both agree on.

• Project milestones and goals. If this is a big project, then you’ll want to outline when you expect to receive certain pieces of the project. Many people tie their payment terms into these project milestones so they don’t pay up-front for work that is never completed, or is of substandard quality.

• Delivery format. For example, if you’re hiring some to write articles, then let the freelancers know if you want them in a .txt file, .doc, .pdf or something else. (Note: It helps to be flexible, because you may miss working with a really great freelancer simply because they’re not using your preferred tools.)

• Usage of the completed project. If your freelancer knows how you’ll use the work, that may affect how they create it. For example, freelancers will create Search Engine Optimised  articles differently than pre-selling articles if that’s what you specify.

• Specific expectations. For example, do you expect your freelancer to give you a daily update via email? Or do you need him or her to jump on a once-a-week phone call? If you have these sorts of expectations and requirements, let the freelancer know upfront.

• Exclusive rights for a completed project. You should be very clear (and it should be in the contract) that you get exclusive rights to the project once your final payment has cleared. You don’t want stuff you paid for turning up all over the internet after the outsourcer sells it to other people.

• Encouragement to ask questions. Sometimes freelancers don’t want to “bother” you with questions. Be sure your freelancers know they can and should reach out any time with questions and clarifications.

• Payment terms. Here’s where you list how much you’ll pay for the project, how you’ll pay (e.g., with PayPal) and when you’ll pay. Generally, most freelancers prefer to work on a 50% down, 50% on delivery for smaller projects. For larger projects, you may create milestones tied to payments.

• Examples to use as a role model. It’s helpful to show your freelancer specific examples – not for copying purposes, but to show your freelancer the “flavor” you want. For example, you might show your content writer an example of two or three articles you really like.

• Company mission, vision and philosophy. This helps your freelancer create work that matches the company mission. For example, a customer service rep can answer inquiries in a way that matches your company’s philosophy.

• Preferred skills and abilities. This is particularly important if you’re hiring an assistant for a variety of tasks. Be very clear about they need to be able to do, what types of software they must be comfortable using, and so on.

It’s a good idea to look at other projects posted on freelancing sites to get a feel as for what types of ads get the best results.

Let me give you an example. Let’s suppose you’re posting a very simple job for five blog articles.

Here’s an example…

———SAMPLE AD———

Wanted: Skilled writer to create five blog articles about organic gardening.

You should have experience writing about gardening topics, and be able to produce samples in this niche. I’m looking for someone who can create entertaining yet educational articles that will engage readers. Some sales or copywriting experience is a plus, but not required.

Length of articles: 1000 words each (so this project is 5000 words total). I’ll provide you with titles, outlines and three to five research resources for each article. Here are the five topics: [insert topics and descriptions of each of the five articles].

Examples: Please see my blog at [yourblog.com] for examples of the style and quality of work I’m looking for. If you can meet or exceed this quality, then please bid on this job.

Style: Please check my company’s mission statement to understand how we operate. You’ll need to write articles that reflect this mission, when appropriate. [Insert mission statement or link.]

Deadline: Prefer to have these articles within three weeks, but I will make an exception for the right person.

Payment: Full payment upfront through the site’s escrow service, which you’ll receive once I approve the final work. Exclusive and full rights to the work will transfer to me once final payment is received.

Expectations: Once you begin the project, please send me daily updates to let me know how things are progressing. I prefer if the project is delivered in a .doc file.

Budget: [insert a budget range here]

If this sounds like something you can do, send me a link to your portfolio along with your bid. I look forward to hearing from you!
__________________

If you write a good ad or project description, you’ll get lots of really good people wanting the job…

So, now you know how to write a compelling ad, to attract qualified outsourcers to help you create some or all of your product launch content, or content or tasks for your general business needs.

But before you can choose the right person for your job, you’ll need to know how to evaluate and hire best candidate.

And that’s what we’ll be covering for you in the next post in this series.

Warm regards,

Rocky Tapscott

PLUS: When you’re ready, here are 3 ways I can help you to grow your business using product launches:

1. How To Build A Profitable Launch List.
Building an email list is critical if you plan on doing a launch for your product, service or business. My 1-2-3 List Building Cheat Sheet will show you how to build a responsive list of prospects who are ready to buy from you during your launch. Click Here.

2. How To Create A Signature Product Out Of Thin Air In 72 Hours Or Less
Creating your product does not need to take weeks or months. My 72 Hour Product Creation Guide shows you how to build high value products or bonuses one after the other in 72 hours or less. Click Here.

3. How To Outsource Your Product Creation And Make It Hands Free.
Outsourcing the creation of some or all of your products and bonuses is a great way to save your time for the more important (and more fun) things you’d rather be doing. Grab my Hands Free Outsourcing Cheat Sheet to learn more. Click Here.

And don’t forget to check this out 🙂

Jeff Walker’s free Product Launch Formula training.

How To Outsource The Product Launch Stuff You Don’t Want To Do

If you are considering using a product launch to quickly grow your business, one of the best things you can do for your sanity is to learn how to make it as hands-free as possible.

In fact, this goes for everything you do in your business.

If you can outsource the stuff you don’t want to do, the stuff you don’t like to do, and the stuff you don’t know how to do, you can focus on the more important stuff that helps you to grow and prosper.

Now if you’ve never done any outsourcing before, you might be scratching your head.

How, exactly, do you go about figuring out what to outsource, and then finding a good freelancer to complete the tasks?

That’s what this series of posts is about.

Over the next 4 posts, you’ll discover a four-step process which includes:

1. Determining Your Needs.  In this first post I’ll be explaining where, what, and when to outsource for your business.

2. Advertising Jobs.  Then in the next post, you’ll learn how to write a good job description to make sure you get what you are paying for.

3. Evaluating And Hiring Freelancers. In the 3rd post in this series, you’ll learn how to screen candidates and pick the best freelancer for your project.

4. Managing Projects.  And in the forth post, I’ll give you some battle-tested insights into making sure your projects go smoothly.

OK, now let’s walk through the first of these four parts of the process…

____________________

Step One: How To Determine Your Product Launch Outsourcing Needs

There are three questions to ask yourself to help you determine needs.

Question 1: When should you outsource?

Here are three good times when you should consider outsourcing a task:

• When you don’t have time to do the task yourself. Perhaps you have other work, family and social obligations. Or perhaps this is a low-value task, and you need to free up your time to focus on high-value tasks. These are good times to outsource.

• When you don’t know how to do the task yourself. Maybe you don’t know anything about it, so it would take too long and there would be a big learning curve. Or perhaps you just don’t know how to do it well, meaning a freelancer would be able to offer a better end result.

• When you don’t want to do the task yourself. Ever notice that you procrastinate on things you really don’t want to do? Don’t force yourself – just outsource the task to someone who’ll cheerfully produce a great end result for you.

In other words, if you’re stuck and not moving forward very quickly, then outsource the task.

Which brings us to the next question…

Question 2: What should you outsource?

The sky is the limit when it comes to outsourcing.

Let’s look at a quick list of common tasks:

• Content creation. This may your product launch content (including pre-launch content and email sequences, and even the product itself), ongoing newsletters for both prospects and customers, blog posts, social media posts, PDF reports, ebooks, video scripts, and more.

• Social media management. Your freelancer may create and post traffic generation content on Facebook, Twitter and other platforms. They may also help you develop an overall social media launch strategy, depending on their skills and experience.

• Graphic design. This includes web graphics, video presentation graphics, product graphics and more.

• Planning. Here you can hire an expert to help you plan and strategize various parts of your launch and/or other parts of your business, such as marketing or your launch sales funnel.

• Data entry. This sort of task is a great one to outsource, as it’s a low-value task (which frees up your time to focus on high-value tasks), and it requires very minimal skills to complete.

• Customer support. You can hire people to both answer phones and deal with inquiries sent through your help desk. This may be a permanent position, or you may hire people temporarily during expected influxes (such as during your product launch).

• Video editing and production. Most product launches are video based these days, so unless you have skills and experience with video production, this is a task that’s best left to someone else.

• Administrative assistance. You can hire someone to help you with a myriad of day to day jobs, from research to content creation to data entry and more.

• Research. A competent freelancer can help you do market research, product research and more. Your freelancer might give you a report of their findings with links and data, or they may find the resources and let you interpret the data. It all depends on their skill set.

• Traffic generation. Generally, this involves hiring multiple experts to focus on their area of specialty (such as media buys, affiliate marketing, SEO, pay per click, etc).

• Copywriting. A sales letter or ad can make or break the success of your product launch, which is why it’s a good idea to hire a professional copywriter to create these materials for you.

• Legal services. Here’s one area where you should absolutely hire a professional. This includes creating policy documents for your site, reviewing agreements, helping you incorporate, and other legal issues that come up.

• Transcription. If you plan to include videos, audios or webinars as part of your product, you can pay somebody to transcribe them into text very inexpensively through Rev.com.

• Order fulfilment. If you’re shipping physical products, or you need to manually deliver digital bonuses for an affiliate promotion, you can hire someone else to take care of fulfilment.

• PowerPoint® presentation. If you do slide-share presentations for webinars, videos or conferences, you can hire a professional to make your presentation look great.

• Lead generation. This person can help you set up your lead page, tweak it for good conversions, and drive traffic to it.

• Installations and set up. A good freelancer can help you with everything from installing a WordPress blog, to installing complex ecommerce systems.

• Email marketing. You can hire someone to help you create your launch email sequence, as well as better autoresponder sequences that boost your open and click-through rates, meaning you’ll sell more through email.

• Accounting. A good accountant can save you money by ferreting out tax deductions that you didn’t even know about.

• Public relations. A good PR person can send out compelling press releases and land media interviews during your launch so you get additional publicity and exposure.

• Blogging. You can hire someone to create content for your blog, handle blog comments, and publish content on a regular basis.

• Document formatting. You can hire someone to format your Kindle book, ebooks or other documents, which will give your readers a great first impression.

• Affiliate recruiting. You can hire an affiliate manager to find, recruit and motivate affiliates.

• Search engine marketing. This includes SEO (search engine optimisation) as well as PPC (pay per click) marketing using platforms such as AdWords.

Next question…

Question 3: Where you should outsource?

You can cast a wide net by using one or more of the following methods:

1. Post a project to a freelancing site. This includes sites such as Guru.com, UpWork.com, and  Fiverr.com

This is the method I recommend in this report, since you get access to freelancer ratings, as well as some amount of protection through most freelancing sites.

For example, some sites run an escrow service, which protects both you and the freelancer.

2. Search Google. For example, you might search for “ghostwriter” or “software developer.”

Be sure to check the organic results as well as the sponsored results (ads).

3. Ask for recommendations from trusted sources.

This includes your colleagues, mentors, and other associates.

You can also ask on business and marketing forums or Facebook groups.

So now we’ve covered the first step in getting started with outsourcing, your head might be spinning with all of the possibilities 🙂

But before you race out and start hiring, you’ll need to know how to create a specific and detailed project description (AKA a brief) in order to find the most qualified person for the job and to get the best results.

And that’s what we’ll be covering for you in the next post.

Warm regards,

Rocky

PLUS: When you’re ready, here are 3 ways I can help you to grow your business using product launches:

1. How To Build A Profitable Launch List.
Building an email list is critical if you plan on doing a launch for your product, service or business. My 1-2-3 List Building Cheat Sheet will show you how to build a responsive list of prospects who are ready to buy from you during your launch. Click Here.

2. How To Create A Signature Product Out Of Thin Air In 72 Hours Or Less
Creating your product does not need to take weeks or months. My 72 Hour Product Creation Guide shows you how to build high value products or bonuses one after the other in 72 hours or less. Click Here.

3. How To Outsource Your Product Creation And Make It Hands Free.
Outsourcing the creation of some or all of your products and bonuses is a great way to save your time for the more important (and more fun) things you’d rather be doing. Grab my Hands Free Outsourcing Cheat Sheet to learn more. Click Here.

And don’t forget to check this out 🙂

Jeff Walker’s free Product Launch Formula training.

Disclaimer: If you purchase PLF through my affiliate link I may receive a referral fee from Jeff Walker, however you will pay no more to purchase the program through me than if you went directly to the Product Launch Formula website. If you would like my personal help as you create your first launch using the PLF process, check out my PLF Bonus offer here.

5 Info Product Creation Tips Tricks and Hacks To Power Your Product Launch

If you’re getting ready to do a product launch for a physical or digital information product, then you’re definitely going to be creating a lot of digital content as you build that product offer.

That’s because you need a complete sales funnel, from your front end lead magnet, to your core product offer, to your backend products – and everything in between.

So if you’re like most info-product creators, you’re always looking for hacks to make the creation process easier and to make sure you have a great end result. That’s exactly what you get below, so read on…

Be Sure You’re Product Launch Is For Something That’s In Demand

Don’t even think about creating a product until you’ve done your market research, as there’s no use creating a product if no one is going to buy it. So what you need to do is find out what people are already buying in your market, and then create something similar (yet better).

Think Ahead To An Integrated Product Suite

Whenever you create a product, you should be thinking about how this product fits into a new or one of your existing sales funnels. This includes everything from the specific lead magnet at the front of your launch funnel to the core offer to backend offers.

If you can’t figure out how a product fits into an existing sales funnel (unless of course this is your first product), then you’ll want to ask yourself why you’re even creating it.

Create Products Faster

Consider these ideas for making more products in less time:

• Outsource some or all of your product creation. This is the fastest way to create a lot of products very quickly, and it frees up your time to focus on other high-value tasks.

• Use quality private label rights content to create everything from your core product to your bonuses. Just be sure to tweak it to make it unique.

• Repurpose existing content. For example, turn a collection of your best blog posts into a lead magnet, or turn those blog posts into videos, audios, guides and reports.

• Use speech to text technology. If you’re creating text products, you might find it faster to write them if you use software such as Dragon Naturally Speaking.

• Do webinars. This takes about an hour of your time, yet you’ll have a product you can give away or sell for months or years to come.

Next…

Create A Multimedia Product

Not everyone learns in the same way. That’s why, whenever possible, you should seek to offer multiple versions of your product (text, audio and video) to accommodate people’s individual preferences.

Ideally your product should include some or all of the following:

  • One or more video tutorials
  • Audio recordings of the videos
  • Transcripts of the videos
  • Checklists
  • Cheatsheets
  • Private Mastermind or community
  • Group coaching
  • One-on-one coaching
  • Question and answer calls

Related Video: How To Create A High Value Product With A Low Refund Rate

Create a Catchy Title For Your Product Launch

Your title can make or break your product, which means you should spend some time brainstorming and testing catchy titles. Use these templates to get you started:

  • The Secrets Of [Getting a Benefit]. The Secrets of Starting a Six-Figure Business.
  • The A-Z Guide Of [Topic]. The A-Z Guide to Selling Your Own Home.
  • What Every [Type of Person] Ought to Know About [Topic]. What Every Parent Ought to Know About Raising Happy, Healthy Kids.
  • How to [Get a Great Result] Without [Some Bad Thing]. How to Melt the Fat Fast Without Feeling Deprived.
  • The #1 Way to [Get a Benefit]. The #1 Way to Create a Bestselling Novel.

Conclusion

I hope these product creation tips help you to build our your product launch funnel so you can generate a bunch of sales and profits.

If you can create and launch a product or service that fulfils an important need for a large, accessible crowd of fanatics with cash to spend, you can create a long-term, sustainable business for yourself and your family that will allow you to prosper for many years to come.

Talk soon,

Rocky

P.S. Being able to create a Perfect Product is a great start, but you also need a way to generate sales in a consistent way. Running a Product launch is a proven way to not only build your list, but generate Social Proof and make a large number of sales quickly. To learn how to launch your product successfully, check out Jeff Walker’s free Product Launch Masterclass here.

PLUS: When you’re ready, here are 3 ways I can help you to grow your business using product launches:

1. How To Build A Profitable Launch List.
Building an email list is critical if you plan on doing a launch for your product, service or business. List Warrior will show you a proven way to use free software to build a responsive list of prospects who are ready to buy from you during your launch. Click Here.

2. How To Create The Perfect Product 
Creating a product that is perfect for your audience does not need to be difficult. How To Create The Perfect Product shows you how to build high value products your audience will love one after the other. Click Here.

3. How To Attract Buyers To Join Your Launch List So They Can Purchase Your Perfect Product.
Once you have created your Product Launch List and your Perfect Product is ready to go, you need to attract people into your world so they can buy from you. One Minute Free Traffic gives you a proven way to attract buyers with ‘Automated Traffic Machines’ so you can send those people to your optin page, your sales page, your Facebook Group or anywhere else you choose.    To learn more Click Here.

And don’t forget to check this out 🙂

How to Earn $20 in 20 Minutes With Any Topic, Niche or Hobby

Disclaimer: If you purchase PLF through my affiliate link I may receive a referral fee from Jeff Walker, however you will pay no more to purchase the program through me than if you went directly to the Product Launch Formula website. If you would like my personal help as you create your first launch using the PLF process, check out my PLF Bonus offer here.

Questions to Ask Before You Price Your Product

As you prepare for your upcoming product launch, one of your jobs is to find the “sweet spot” when you price your product. Getting this right requires a little upfront research, a little bit of experience, and a bit of testing.

Here are some of the important questions to ask yourself in order to help determine the price that will bring you the highest conversions, lowest refunds, and most profits…

What are your competitors charging for similar products?

What you’re going to find is a range of prices, but you’ll also find a median price or price range. This is where MOST similar products are priced.

For example, let’s suppose your product launch is going to be for a program that consists of 12 Video Tutorials, 3 PDF Reports, a bunch of Checklists and Implementation Guides, and access to a private Facebook Mastermind.

After surveying your competitors, you find that prices for competing products range from $297 to $997. However, perhaps you find that most products sit right around $497. You can use this $497 price point as your starting price, and then slide up or down on the price depending on your answers to the following questions.

How does your offer differ from the competing products?

Next, you want to look at exactly what you’re offering versus what the competitors are offering.

This includes:

  • What formats are the other products within your price range? Some product formats naturally increase the perceived value of an offer. For example, a step-by-step video series and regular group coaching with have a much higher perceived and actual value than just a couple of videos and a bunch of ebooks or Guides.
  • How do the accessories/supplements/bonuses are you offering compare to what your competitors are offering? Certain bonuses can really boost the perceived value of an offer, such as personal or group coaching.

Before we move on, grab a copy of Jeff Walker’s Product Launch Blueprint where he covers this topic in detail.

Next…

How are your positioning your product in the market?

This is about your overall branding as well as your positioning for that specific product. And both the overall branding and positioning will heavily influence your price.

For example, if you’ve positioned your business as a “low price leader,” then obviously you need to price your products on the low end of the typical price range for similar products.

On the flip side, if you’re using positioning that speaks to high quality, luxury, or uniqueness, then you can price the product at or above the high end of the price range.

One critical point to mention here is something I can still hear Dan Kennedy saying any time I’m pricing a product, and that is this:

“You never want to be the cheapest in your market. Your goal is to be the most expensive and then build the value of your offer so it still seems like it’s a no-brainer.”

All other things being equal, price your product high rather than low. You’ll get better customers, who complain less, and you can give them much better value.

How will you track and test your launch pricing strategy?

So, at this point you’ve picked a price based on what your competitors are charging for similar products, as well as the perceived value of your product and your positioning.

Now what?

Now you need to track and test your pricing. The fastest way to do this is by using paid advertising – such as through Facebook or Google AdWords – where you can send a lot of traffic, test several prices, and know which price produces the most conversions within hours or days. It’s the only way to determine your true pricing sweet spot!

Another big benefit of using paid advertising to optimise your launch pricing like this is that once you can give your JV partners conversion numbers, they will be much more likely to want to promote you to their customers.

Conclusion

If you ask yourself the questions above and follow through with research and price testing, you have a good chance of finding your optimal price for your product launch – the price that generates the most profit while giving your customers awesome value.

Best thing to do is to walk into this process without expectations, because sometimes pricing takes an unexpected turn (such as a higher price producing better conversions and lower refunds). Just be sure to look at overall profits (front and backend) to determine the best pricing strategy for you.

Talk soon,

Rocky

P.S. Being able to create irresistible offers is so important to the success of your business that I’ve put together a Free Cheat Sheet that shows you how to create the perfect offer. To make sure you don’t miss anything as you develop your offer, click here to grab your Free copy of The Perfect Offer Cheatsheet

PLUS: When you’re ready, here are 3 ways I can help you to grow your business using product launches:

1. How To Build A Profitable Launch List.
Building an email list is critical if you plan on doing a launch for your product, service or business. My 1-2-3 List Building Cheat Sheet will show you how to build a responsive list of prospects who are ready to buy from you during your launch. Click Here.

2. How To Create A Signature Product Out Of Thin Air In 72 Hours Or Less
Creating your product does not need to take weeks or months. My 72 Hour Product Creation Guide shows you how to build high value products or bonuses one after the other in 72 hours or less. Click Here.

3. How To Outsource Your Product Creation And Make It Hands Free.
Outsourcing the creation of some or all of your products and bonuses is a great way to save your time for the more important (and more fun) things you’d rather be doing. Grab my Hands Free Outsourcing Cheat Sheet to learn more. Click Here.

And don’t forget to check this out 🙂

Jeff Walker’s free Product Launch Formula training.

Disclaimer: If you purchase PLF through my affiliate link I may receive a referral fee from Jeff Walker, however you will pay no more to purchase the program through me than if you went directly to the Product Launch Formula website. If you would like my personal help as you create your first launch using the PLF process, check out my PLF Bonus offer here.

5 Product Launch Customer Service Mistakes You’ll Want To Avoid

As you prepare to start your Product Launch (regardless of whether it’s a Seed Launch, Internal Launch ora  JV Launch, one of your most important considerations is how are you going to handle a potential avalanche of customer support enquiries.

And while your customers don’t make decisions about your business based on the quality of your customer service alone, their decision about whether they’ll ask for a refund or whether they’ll continue to do business with you will often be based on their customer experience with your support desk.

That’s why people who receive a delicious meal but poor service at a restaurant don’t very often go back. And your customers are the same way – they might feel your product is awesome, but they’re unlikely to hang around or do repeat business with you if your customer service stinks.

So how do you provide a good customer service experience? You start by avoiding these common mistakes…

Mistake 1: Putting A Low Priority On Customer Service

Sometimes, and particularly during a hectic product launch, business owners look at customer service as a nuisance, so they end up putting it on a low priority. That’s a big mistake.

Without your customers, you have no business. That’s why you’ll want to be sure that everything from your web design to ordering process to customer care experience is your top priority so that your visitors walk away satisfied.

Mistake 2: Taking Too Long To Answer Customer Inquiries

Launching a product or service is a fast-paced activity, and if you don’t answer customer service inquiries quickly, your prospect will move on to something else that they feel is more urgent.

That’s why you want to make sure you answer inquiries the same day, and even within an hour or two if possible, especially during your open cart period when people are making their buying decision.

Mistake 3: Not Providing Anything Other Than An Email Address

The problem with handling all customer service strictly through email is that emails can and often do get lost or missed, either on your end or the customer’s end. And when they do get lost, the customer will assume you’re ignoring him or her. As you might expect, that’s going to be a bit problem.

The solution?

1. Use a help desk platform instead. Even if you use email, the help desk platform keeps a record of the entire conversation so replies never get lost.

2. Give people a phone number that WILL be answered by a real person 24 hours a day. With ecommerce being a global business, the odds are some of your potential customers will not be living in your time zone or even your country.

Giving people the option to have their questions answered right away (while they are excited and ready to order), or to have their orders processed on the phone has proven to increase conversions.

Mistake 4: Failing To Train Your Customer Service Reps

Another common mistake is to assume that your hired staff knows everything there is to know about providing good customer care. That’s not necessarily true, even if they are experienced.

That’s why you’ll want to lay out instructions for all your staff about how to handle customer service inquiries, including:

  • Offering cut and paste answers for common inquiries.
  • Providing training on how to incorporate your business branding into customer service replies, where applicable.
  • General instruction about what you expect, such as how to address customers and prospects.

Next…

Mistake 5: Not Anticipating High-Volume

If you’re launching a product or even running a big sale, you must anticipate the increased demand for customer service on these higher-volume days and bring on more staff to handle the extra load.

It’s better to have people underworked for a few days during your open cart period than missing out on what could be a LOT of sales during your launch.

Conclusion

During your product launch, customers are the lifeblood of your business, so make sure you treat them right. That’s why it’s critical you do everything you can to avoid the five mistakes listed above, and Jeff looks at how to manage the large influx you’re going to get in your launch during his free Product Launch Masterclass.

PLUS: When you’re ready, here are 3 ways I can help you to grow your business using product launches:

1. How To Build A Profitable Launch List.
Building an email list is critical if you plan on doing a launch for your product, service or business. My 1-2-3 List Building Cheat Sheet will show you how to build a responsive list of prospects who are ready to buy from you during your launch. Click Here.

2. How To Create A Signature Product Out Of Thin Air In 72 Hours Or Less
Creating your product does not need to take weeks or months. My 72 Hour Product Creation Guide shows you how to build high value products or bonuses one after the other in 72 hours or less. Click Here.

3. How To Outsource Your Product Creation And Make It Hands Free.
Outsourcing the creation of some or all of your products and bonuses is a great way to save your time for the more important (and more fun) things you’d rather be doing. Grab my Hands Free Outsourcing Cheat Sheet to learn more. Click Here.

And don’t forget to check this out 🙂

Jeff Walker’s free Product Launch Formula training.

Disclaimer: If you purchase PLF through my affiliate link I may receive a referral fee from Jeff Walker, however you will pay no more to purchase the program through me than if you went directly to the Product Launch Formula website. If you would like my personal help as you create your first launch using the PLF process, check out my PLF Bonus offer here.

How To Build Your Product Launch Email List Step By Step

No matter what type of product or service you’re going to be using a product launch for, one thing you need to be doing is building a product launch email list. That’s because an email database is one of the most valuable assets you can have.

Even if every one of your traffic sources dried up overnight, you’d still be okay as long as you had your list. And even if your products somehow disappeared off the face of the earth, you could still make money by selling other people’s stuff as long as you had your email list. So the point is, list building should be a top priority for you.

That’s why I’ve create this checklist so you can be sure you have all the right pieces in place. Take a look…

First Up You’ll Need An Enticing Lead Magnet

A great lead magnet could be an ebook, video, app, ecourse or anything else that has the following characteristics:

  • It’s easy to deliver. (It would typically be a digital download that you deliver automatically through your autoresponder)
  • It’s something your prospects really want. (Hint: do your market research to find out what problem people in your niche really want to solve and give them the solution)
  • It has a high perceived value
  • It solves a specific problem (it’s not a bunch of general ‘tips’ but something actionable people can get a result from)
  • It sells something else on the backend (such as your front end product)

You can learn more about lead magnets here

Develop A Compelling Optin Page

Even though your lead magnet is free, people aren’t going to knock down your door to claim it unless you show them it has a lot of value. That’s why you need to create a lead or optin page that persuades people to fill in your opt-in form to grab it. Keep these tips in mind:

  • Be sure your lead page looks polished and professional
  • Lead with your product’s main benefits and the results people will get from consuming it
  • Arouse your prospect’s curiosity about the lead magnet if possible. (With the idea being that the only way to satisfy their curiosity is by opting in and getting the lead magnet)
  • Use a specific call to action to get people opting in (EG – Enter your email address into the form below below to grab your copy)

Personally, I use LeadPages and love them, but there are plenty of alternatives these days.

One more thing before we move on: Being to create irresistible offers is so important to the success of your list building campaign and ultimately your launch that I’ve put together a Free Cheat Sheet that shows you how to create the perfect offer.

If you can make irresistible offers at both the lead generation stage and for your product or service itself, your launch should absolutely crush it. To make sure you don’t miss anything as you develop your offers, click here to grab your Free copy of The Perfect Offer Cheatsheet

Choose A Reputable Autoresponder

Steer away from using ‘free’ or seemingly low-cost autoresponders or services without a proven track record over many years. Go with well-established services such as Aweber.com, GetResponse.com, iContact.com and similar.

Create An Initial Autoresponder Sequence

Generally, this multi-part sequence should introduce you to new prospects, let them know what to expect from you, bond with them and ultimately promote your front-end or ‘tripwire’ product. Keep these tips in mind:

    • Offer an informational sequence that’s useful (to build good relationships and keep people reading), yet incomplete (which helps you steer people towards paid products).
    • Provide a three to seven-part sequence that’s informative and engaging. Each email should build anticipation for upcoming emails. E.G., “Next time you’ll discover a little-known trick for getting rid of cellulite!”
    • Craft benefit-driven, curiosity arousing subject lines to get the open. E.G., “Start a six-figure business for just $47?”
    • Use responsive templates/HTML in your emails, as a large number of your subscribers will be reading your message from their mobile phones.
    • Track and test your emails. It’s the only way to know what’s really working in terms of email subject lines, sales copy, calls to action, and even the offers themselves.

And finally…

Make A Commitment to Maintaining Your List

It’s pretty pointless to go through all these steps if you don’t intend to stay in touch with your subscribers regularly. So, commit to emailing them at least once or twice a week, and you’ll see your list profits continue to grow!

By starting to build your email list now, when you’re ready for your product launch you’ll have a group of people who already know who you are, who you’ve already helped, and who will be responsive to buying from you again.

These people will be especially responsive if you invite them to co-create your new product using a Seed Launch. And they’ll be your most rabid buyers if you run an Internal Launch before you roll out your  JV Launch.

Warm regards,

Rocky Tapscott

PLUS: When you’re ready, here are 3 ways I can help you to grow your business using product launches:

1. How To Build A Profitable Launch List.
Building an email list is critical if you plan on doing a launch for your product, service or business. My 1-2-3 List Building Cheat Sheet will show you how to build a responsive list of prospects who are ready to buy from you during your launch. Click Here.

2. How To Create A Signature Product Out Of Thin Air In 72 Hours Or Less
Creating your product does not need to take weeks or months. My 72 Hour Product Creation Guide shows you how to build high value products or bonuses one after the other in 72 hours or less. Click Here.

3. How To Outsource Your Product Creation And Make It Hands Free.
Outsourcing the creation of some or all of your products and bonuses is a great way to save your time for the more important (and more fun) things you’d rather be doing. Grab my Hands Free Outsourcing Cheat Sheet to learn more. Click Here.

And don’t forget to check this out 🙂

Jeff Walker’s free Product Launch Formula training.

Disclaimer: If you purchase PLF through my affiliate link I may receive a referral fee from Jeff Walker, however you will pay no more to purchase the program through me than if you went directly to the Product Launch Formula website. If you would like my personal help as you create your first launch using the PLF process, check out my PLF Bonus offer here.