Just as you need an effective overall marketing plan to raise awareness about your company, you need an effective plan to launch specific products, services or events. The following steps can help with a successful launch, increase awareness and gain great results.

Set goals. How will you and your team define success?  Do you want a specific amount of sales in a certain timeframe?  Would an increased percentage of new subscribers to your newsletter or social media pages be a goal? How about increasing your website’s rank on search engines? Defining everything you need to want from the launch will allow you to determine if it has been successful.

Research. Take a look at some of your previous campaigns and results. What is it that worked? In today’s digital age, there is much data which can be interpreted to help determine what tactics were most effective. Also, the internet has many sites that highlight great marketing launches (and, some not so great!). Many advertising agencies describe successful campaigns in the form of case studies on their websites as well. These can help form a strategy as well.

Build a product-specific landing page. Creating a specific landing page for the product being launched will allow your audience to focus directly on your offer – its features and perhaps price. It will also allow you to capture information about the individual should they require more information.

Get help from others. Although advertisements are an effective way to get the word out about your new product, getting help from online influencers will expand your reach. By partnering with people in your industry who have a large audience following, you can potentially touch people that you may not have been able to connect with otherwise.

Create a realistic timeline. From planning to execution, every element of a marketing launch takes time, so it’s important to create a schedule that can be realistically managed. Make a timeline of everything that needs to be done and who will be responsible for each activity. Keep in mind to include extra time for events beyond your control.

No matter what strategies you use for your launch, be sure to measure the results as you go. Just as your yearly marketing plan will always require adjustments, the activities you plan when you launch a product should also have the same flexibility. Measure your results early on in the launch period and make changes as needed if you are not beginning to see trends in the expected results.