If you have a DTC consumer product, it only makes sense that Instagram should be an important part of your marketing strategy, so it is essential that you perfect your launch on the platform.
A product launch in and of itself can be daunting, even without the added pressures of establishing yourself on the relevant social media channels along with it.
It is intimidating, we know. Building hype, an audience, and confidence around a product that doesn’t (really) yet exist. Though, with some planning and a proper strategy in place, it can be a whole lot easier than it seems.
PLANNING
Before you do anything, you have to set out a plan with goals. It helps to develop a set of creative guidelines to help inform the types of content, visual direction, and aesthetic that you want to create for your brand.
Often times, setting the foundation for your tone and visual direction for your social media could be the most difficult part, but once it has been established, it’s relatively smoother sailing from there.
Influencers are a part of today’s marketing world and making use of them can be well worth your while. It’s important to note that proper planning around this strategy, needs to be done beforehand.
Following direct competitors, indirect competitors, and relevant hashtags could serve as great inspiration for planning your own direction or finding your voice, not with the intention to copy them, but rather see what you would have done differently.
Set up a comprehensive content plan for with posts that represent your creative direction. A content plan is an absolute necessity if you want control over a consistent account.
PRE-LAUNCH
Leading up to your official launch, a level of secrecy around your product affords the opportunity for teaser posts which will create anticipation for your early followers. This is the best time to populate your account with grid-style posts that span across 3, 6, or 9 posts, as we did with Smirk.
Design: This is just a simple screenshot. If there’s a better way to do this visual, please do so.
Introducing a soft launch amongst friends and family in this time, is not only a great way to gain feedback and iron out any issues your products might have, but in corporation with a giveaway, can serve as a method to gather some good early user generated content to use later on(UGC).
LAUNCH DAY
It’s the day you’ve been waiting for and you need to be as loud (read visible) as possible. This doesn’t necessarily mean quantity, but rather quality.
If you want your launch to be any sort of success, some type of spend will be necessary. A couple of paid ads on the platform can go a long way. If the use of influencers is incorporated in your strategy, this is when they make a noise around your product to drive followers to your page.
It goes without saying that this is the day that all hands should be on deck. Once you’ve made the announcement that your brand is live, you will need too attend to any and all social media queries as they come in. We know that you’ll be extremely occupied with filling orders, but it’s crucial that someone mans your social media channels. There is no better time to establish loyalty from your customers.
POST LAUNCH
The days following launch are just as important as the days preceding it. If you have your content plan in place, this is pretty much taken care of. Incorporating early UGC of customer satisfaction into your plan will help to establish your brand.
It’s important to stay atop of the happenings on your page. From comments and DMs to likes and tags – attend to them all timely to build up a strong community amongst your followers.
Review how the posts performed, whether they achieved your expectations or not, and determine whether the rest of your content plan will.
Launching your product on Instagram can be as fun and exciting as it can be as unnerving. If you feel a little overwhelmed by the task, we can help. Whether it’s launching from scratch or double downing on your current page, we can help. Come chat to us.
