A product launch timeline is an essential tool that marketers and businesses use to stay on track for a successful product launch on time. Although product launches do not happen overnight, they are still very critical to the success of a new product. Product launch timelines serve as visual representations of these crucial stages of a release. Depending on your product, the timeline will include various stages, such as planning, beta testing, and strategy formulation. Here are some of the things you should take into consideration when preparing your product launch timeline.
Your Marketing Plan
Before you even begin thinking about a product launch timeline, you need to create a comprehensive marketing plan that outlines your ultimate goals and purpose. Also, keep in mind the advantages and disadvantages of mechanistic structure. If you do not have a clearly defined marketing plan, you will be unable to determine what actionable goals you must achieve, and how you plan to reach those goals. A comprehensive marketing plan should outline the purpose and target market for your product, as well as what steps you plan to take to meet them. Also, it should contain actionable goals that you can accomplish within the time period outlined in the plan.
Action Items
The product launch timeline should also contain concise action items that you and your team will work to achieve after each phase of development. These should be written down in a way that everyone on the team will have a clear view of what is required of them. A way to accomplish these action items is to break down the goals and objectives of each phase of development and list the action steps that will be necessary to reach each goal.
Determination
Each week, or as determined by your product launch timeline, update your schedule and chalk out individual deadlines for each milestone. Schedule individual meetings with team members to discuss individual deadlines. It is important to remain consistent with your deadlines to keep everyone on track. If one of your team members has an important deadline that must be met, make sure to add his or her onboarding time to the overall project time.
Reaching Milestones
After each goal has been reached, you should update your product launch timeline with new actionable goals. Set realistic goals that are achievable within the time frame specified on your schedule. Make sure, however, that your team members understand and accept the deadlines outlined in your marketing plan. Let them know, through verbal communication, that non-compliance will result in further action.
Post-launch Activities
Your product launch timeline should include post-launch activities. These should be coordinated with your marketing plan and company website. Depending upon your company’s revenue and target market, you may want to make sure that certain promotional offers are offered to your customers prior to launch day. Your marketing team can assist you in planning these activities, or you can arrange for independent promotional vendors to provide you with their services.
Creating A List
You should create a list of leads and contacts from your presentation. These contacts may include previous customers and clients, current customers and clients, business partners, and other individuals who could become future clients. This list will make it easier to follow up after the launch date. If you have developed an opt-in system, this list can be used to generate additional contacts. By using a combination of leads and contacts, you are taking the best chance at capturing new leads and building your network.
Committing To Timelines
One of the most important aspects of a product launch timeline is providing project-specific deadlines across all team members. This is also a great way to ensure that everyone is on the same page. It gives your team members the opportunity to discuss the project in a timely manner, which can help you achieve positive results more quickly.
