Member Article

Product launch: 5 ways to build buzz

To mark the launch of its long awaited virtual reality headset, Oculus Rift’s CEO, Palmer Luckey, personally delivered the very first order directly to the customer’s doorstep, which worked wonders for the brand’s publicity, generating masses of positive buzz across global media outlets.

This goes to show that when it comes to bringing a new product to market, first impressions really do count. If handled correctly, a product launch will succeed in making a strong statement and demand the attention of prospective customers. However, all too often businesses fail miserably to create an impact with the right audience groups and products end up flopping quicker than you can say ‘McPizza’.

Here are some key pointers to ensure your product launch is a success:

Map out your launch date and work backwards from there

Use the date of your product launch as a line in the sand then start building up awareness of your new creation long before it launches, ensuring you have sufficient time to liaise with all relevant journalists and other influencers. Think about ‘longer lead’ media outlets, such as monthly titles, that will require more notice to write things up, and adopt a phased approach to media outreach that ensures your timings work for all of your influencer targets.

Build intrigue

There are a number of ways to begin leaking nuggets of information that will begin to whet peoples’ appetite around a new product or service. This can be anything from simple social media posts with ‘secrets’ or ‘hints’ to creating more rich content, such as videos or interactive mini sites, that will engage consumer interest and start getting them bought into a new product early on. These tactics also work well in beginning to inform consumers of the details of a product, such as specification, price point and where / when they might be able to get their hands on it.

Sample the product

As well as targeting journalists and other key influencers, don’t forget to share samples of your new product with a selection of your target demographic. In this current market, consumers are constantly bombarded with various different brand messages through various different mediums. Despite the power of above-the-line marketing activities, such as television or print advertising, giving the consumer an opportunity to try a product themselves and make an educated decision as to whether they want to be converted into a long term customer, is more effective.

Popular cake brand, Mr Kipling, did this to good effect by partnering with sampling expert, The Work Perk, to undertake a national campaign for its new Cranberry, Orange and Oat Slices. The campaign distributed more than 100,000 free samples of the Mr. Kipling slices directly to the desks of the brand’s target demographic, along with a questionnaire for recipients to provide their honest feedback on the product. Over 17,000 consumers gave feedback, with 43 per cent stating that they would buy the product in future. This not only confirmed to Mr. Kipling that the product resonated well with consumers, it also suggested that the activity would have an ongoing impact on purchasing decisions. If you are launching a new product, sampling can be a great way to raise broad awareness and drive those all important sales.

Real life event

Depending on the product you’re launching, an event or a series of events, can be an effective and impactful way of building brand awareness and driving consumer engagement with your product. For example, an event for an edible product might be hosted and backed by a culinary expert and brand manager, who can discuss the story and rationale behind how the product came to be, while offering guests a taster to try for themselves. Real life events can also integrate effectively with digital activity, by driving attendees onto a brand’s social media channels via a dedicated app or hashtag in order to receive access to exclusive content or special offers.

Consider longevity

Whilst it’s important to work with journalists and other influencers in the build up to a product launch, and indeed around the actual launch date, don’t forget that there will be plenty of opportunities to continue plugging your product post-launch. Create new opportunities to re-approach your influencer targets and share updates such as reactions to the product, unusual uses of it, new iterations of the product that are potentially in the pipeline, and any seasonal hooks you can capitalise on too such as summer holidays or Halloween.

By Hannah Campbell, Operations Director at The Work Perk

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Hannah Campbell .