How to Create a Marketing Plan for Your Course Or Digital Product Launch
An online course or digital product isn’t going to do much for you or your business without a solid marketing plan in place.
Marketing your course doesn’t have to be super complicated or overwhelming, but it does require quite a bit of planning and strategy.
If you are creating a new digital course, this blog post will help you figure out how to create an effective marketing plan for your upcoming course launch.
The Launch Phases
Before we begin, it’s important to note that every course or digital product launch should have 3 distinct phases:
The Pre-Launch Phase - Approximately 2-8 weeks before your launch, depending on how warm your audience already is and how much the investment is.
The Launch Phase - The period of time that your cart is open and your course is open for enrollment.
The Post-Launch Phase - Approximately 1-2 weeks after your launch is over and your cart is closed.
So let’s dive into each of these phases and make your launch a little easier!
Phase 1: Pre-Launch
This is the most important, and usually longest, phase of your launch. How well you plan your pre-launch will usually determine how well your launch does.
In this phase, the most important part is showing up, showcasing your expertise, and building the know, like, and trust factor with your audience.
That usually includes promoting a lead magnet, such as a new guide, webinar, challenge, quiz, etc., that fits as a lead into your course.
If your audience is small, this phase can also be focused on not just nurturing but also bringing in new leads either via organic strategies or paid advertisement (usually on Facebook Ads) to promote your content and lead magnet to more people.
You’ll also want to make sure you’re crafting a compelling, conversion-focused sales page for your course or digital product to send people to during your launch phase. Since you won’t be hopping on sales calls with each and every customer, your sales page needs to do a lot of the heavy lifting to sell your offer, so don’t underestimate how important this is to the overall success of your launch!
Want to shortcut your way to a high-converting sales page for your course or digital product? Check out the ThriveCart Templates over in the shop!
Phase 2: Launch
This is when your doors are officially open, and all of your launch planning will start paying off. During the cart launch period, you’ll want to focus on 2 main areas:
Showing up and talking about your course - everywhere and all of the time.
Don’t worry about annoying your audience. You know the statistics; people need to see something 7 or more times before taking action. So, don’t be shy to talk about your course or digital product! Nobody else will be as excited about it as you are, so share that excitement and help spread the word about the amazing results your resource will give for the right people!
And the second main focus should be on connecting.
Be more responsive to messages on social media or email. Make anyone who inquires feel heard and, as always, make sure to deliver excellent customer service. You could even send warm leads who click on the link in your launch emails or who signed up for your waitlist a personalized video. Another option is to add a live chat box to your course sales page. Focus on building those relationships and authentic connections.
As you start to make your first sales, don’t be shy to ask your new customers for their feedback - and add those kind words onto your sales page! This sort of social proof can do wonders to tip casual browsers into buyers.
Phase 3: Post-Launch
After your launch, no matter if you hit your goals this time around or not, don’t forget to take a break and celebrate! Launching is a lot of work, and the post-launch phase is essential for making your next launch even better.
Check out your numbers and see what was done really well. Then, make notes on what could be improved for next time.
You will thank yourself in the long run if you take the time to perform a launch audit to see what worked and what didn’t. Everything is always a valuable learning lesson!
Final Thoughts
Crafting a well-thought-out marketing plan is essential for a successful course or digital product launch. Don’t under-estimate how important the pre-launch phase is and make sure you’re showing up at your best during the launch period.
Wondering how to create your strategic marketing plan for your upcoming launch? Book in a Strategy Session and we can map out your launch plan, sales page layout, content and more!
