Launching

13.02.2016 |

Episode #7 of the course Intro to Product Management by Ellen Chisa

 

Launching is one of the most exciting parts of working on a product. It’s the day that everyone finally gets to see what your team has been working on. The Product Manager plays a key role in launching the product.

First is making sure everything that’s necessary happens. This varies depending on the company. PMLoop created a 175-item checklist that is a good starting point for you to pull out which items are important for your company. These items range from technical aspects (how do you manage the rollout? Is it to all users at once or just some?) to communications (did someone remember to email the right press?) The PM should be evaluating which items are important and who should be responsible.

Second is making sure that everyone in the company is on the same page. Everyone should be excited about launching. The customer support team will need to be on-hand to support new users. The communications team should be ready to talk to the press. The engineering team will need to be ready to fix bugs. Each of these sets of stakeholders should be feeling excited and involved with the launch process. Since PMs work across these groups, they’re best suited to make sure everyone is geared up.

Third is defining what success means for the launch. While launching can feel like a massive success, it’s only successful if it actually moves the right metrics. How many users do you want to gain from launch? What percentage are you hoping to retain? What factors might convolute your launch? If you get press in the New York Times on day one, it might impact what you’d previously expected to happen.

While launch day is a big day, the Product Manager knows that launching is just another starting point.

 

Recommended resource

Product Launch Checklist

 

Recommended book

“Crossing the Chasm: Marketing and Selling Disruptive Products to Mainstream Customers” by Geoffrey A. Moore

 

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