A product launch is an eventful time. With many moving parts, it can be challenging to outline every step of the way and ensure all components are accessible to everyone involved. But go-to-market success depends on organization and one way to stay organized is to create a B2B product launch timeline. So, how can you build a product launch timeline and why is it a key factor in go-to-market-success? We discuss product launch timelines, why having one is beneficial and what elements should be included to ensure progress and success.
The Benefits of a Product Launch Timeline
A product launch timeline details the tasks, deadlines and team members involved in everything related to the product launch. While the overall focus is launching your product, the details are what make it come to life. The number of details to include depends on what will be most useful for your organization. Think of sales efforts to marketing and even the engineering of the product. Some information might be more useful than others, so only include critical information.
Why use a product launch timeline in the first place? Marketers with a plan and strategy are 313% more likely to report success. Plans with timelines serve as a foundation for achieving success and can be used to visualize every step of the way. As we discuss later, visualization can make your goals more realistic by illustrating exactly what needs to be done. Having a timeline can also align goals across teams.
Components of a Product Launch Timeline
There are many components you can include in your product launch timeline. Here, we examine a few non-negotiable elements.
Actionable Goals
The goal of your product launch timeline is to support the successful debut of the product. However, achieving this requires the successful execution of the many tasks and activities leading up to the launch. It is important to create goals for these activities. For example, you need to create an email marketing plan for the promotion of the launch. Set a deadline for when it is due and a date for when the first email will be sent. Give your sales team the same structure for their goals. How much outreach will they complete before launch? How many times will your leadership promote the new product on social media? All goals, whether sales, marketing, product or beyond, can all be achieved by setting incremental, actionable goals throughout the timeline.
Dates and Deadlines
Setting dates and deadlines pairs with creating actionable marketing goals. Team members must know when an activity or campaign is due, whether it is their responsibility or another team member. Including key dates and deadlines in your timeline sets expectations and provides everyone with a universal source of truth. For example, sales team members need to know what marketing is working on in case they need to collaborate with them, or their project is dependent upon the marketing project’s completion.
Template
Visualization can be a great way to see everything happening. With deadlines across teams and constant activity and movement, it can become unclear over time and might often lead to misunderstandings. Regardless of what it is, your timeline should be in some sort of document. Whether it be an Excel spreadsheet, Word document, PDF or template, you need to have something that acts as the go-to document for teams. This allows team members to update it as they are working on various activities and keep track as well.
Review Process
Many activities will often require reviews by other team members or other departments. The review process needs to take place promptly as any bottlenecks can skew the timing and flow of ongoing tasks. Nothing goes as perfectly as planned, so missed deadlines will likely happen, but since reviews are a part of moving things forward, you should try to aim to have them completed on time. Including review expectations on the timeline is essential, everything from review status, who is reviewing, completion deadline and more.
Data and Metrics
To illustrate what success looks like, determine what product launch metrics you will want to track before, during and after the launch. While there are a variety of options, defining which metrics matter most to your organization helps set the standard of what is expected to be achieved. For example, X days after your product is launched, you could aim to reach a specific number of demo requests, achieve a target number of visits to the product page or generate X number of views of an introduction video.
Product Launch Timeline as Go-To-Market Success Tool
The formation of a product launch timeline will take some time, but it will be a key factor in your go-to-market success. If activities leading up to the product launch stay on time and on budget, you are only setting your organization up for success! From outlining deadlines, assigning tasks and setting goals, your timeline can act as the go-to place for the entire organization. Don’t shortchange this needed step for executing a product launch that will exceed expectations.
If you’re looking for assistance in launching your new product or want support on your product launch questions, reach out and contact us today or schedule a free 1:1 marketing consultation.
There are no comments