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The initial product launch is among the most significant moments in the existence of a startup company. As entrepreneur Vinod Ramchandra Jadhav explains, the product launch is often the first time the public has the opportunity to experience a startup company and its offering.
A solid product launch can often lead to bigger and better things. A poor product launch, conversely, can sometimes lead to immediate doom. Because of this, startup companies must take special care in advance of their initial product launch, so the product doesn’t fall flat before ever getting a chance to succeed.
Following are some essential tasks that all entrepreneurs should undertake to ensure they accomplish everything they need for a successful product launch.
Solve a Problem
Most successful products solve a problem for consumers. TVs educate and entertain. Clothes provide warmth and cover-up. Gadgets make it easier to do everything from work to cook.
Whatever your company focuses on, you should understand that your product should solve some problems that your target audience has. Your product doesn’t need to be utterly unique in this sense. It just needs to solve this problem better than what’s already on the market.
Know the Competition
Along those lines, it’s vital that you know your competition and study them well before launching a new product. If you don’t see what’s already available for consumers, it will be hard for you to create a product that better solves your target customers’ problems than the competition. In this realm, you need to study the products your competition offers, where they’re selling them, how they’re selling them, how much they’re selling them for and how they’re marketing them.
Once you have this information, you can prepare your unique value proposition. This is what you’ll market to your potential customers.
Test, Test, Test
Vinod Ramchandra Jadhav explains one of the biggest mistakes startup companies make is not testing their process — vigorously, continuously, and in many different ways. Testing the product on your own is an excellent first step, but make sure to bring in independent, objective people who could test your product.
You know your product well and how it works, which is likely to create bias in how you test it. Those who aren’t familiar with it might use it in different ways, and this could reveal potential flaws in your product that need to be tweaked before you hit the market.
A common thing that sinks many product launches is users experiencing issues with using the product how it’s meant to be used. If you test your product thoroughly before launch, you’ll hopefully rectify these problems before others discover them.
Prepare Employees
Make sure that you prepare your employees for the big push of a new product launch. This includes an influx in in-store or online purchases, a spike in customer service calls, and more orders to fulfill.
Successful new product launches generate a lot of sales, but they also create a lot of stress on the entire company. Preparing your employees for what’s to come will help them respond better.
Announce Your Arrival
At this point, you’re ready to launch your product officially. But will anyone purchase it if they don’t know it exists? The likely answer is no — unless you’re fortunate.
Vinod Ramchandra Jadhav says that how you announce your arrival can be the ultimate determining factor in whether your product launch sinks or swims. So, before you announce your arrival, make sure your message is crafted appropriately for the product and your target audience.
About Vinod Ramchandra Jadhav
A self-described first-generation Entrepreneur, Mr. Vinod Ramchandra Jadhav is the Chairman of SAVA Group and Devtech M2M. With a career spanning over two decades, he is well-versed in marketing, sales, supply chain management, and regulatory and corporate affairs in various capacities.
Mr. Jadhav holds a Diploma in Mechanical Engineering and a graduate degree in Materials Management.
