Why my recent launch didn’t go as expected (and how to nail your next one)
3 lessons learnt to improve your next launch.
Welcome to issue #008 of The Creator-Educator Club. Every Sunday, I send proven strategies from top creator-educators to help you build a high-impact email course so you can scale your knowledge business faster. Subscribe below so you won’t miss the next issues.
This issue is presented by: Email Course Blueprint
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Last week, I finally hit the launch button on Email Course Quickstart.
After three months of planning, building, and refining every detail, it was time to put my product in front of real customers.
I had big expectations. An engaged waitlist. A proven framework that solves a real pain point. Positive comments on social media. Everything screamed success.
But the results fell short of my expectations.
Reality hit me like a cold shower on a Monday morning.
My initial reaction was a mix of disappointment and confusion. But as I dug deeper into what went wrong (and what went right), I realised I had been playing an entirely different game than the creator-educators who consistently nail their launches.
I focused too much on the launch period instead of the weeks before
While I obsessed over perfecting my launch week, I completely neglected the foundation that actually determines success.
I spent countless hours tweaking my sales page copy, refining subject lines for my launch emails, and crafting the perfect announcement posts for social media.
Don’t get me wrong.
While these things matter, they don’t contribute to your launch success as much as the groundwork you do leading up to the launch period to build trust and anticipation.
Your launch success is decided long before you hit send on that first announcement email.
That’s why I want to share my biggest lessons learnt so you can avoid the same expensive mistakes and actually get your future launches right.
3 lessons learnt to nail your next launch
1. Start promoting your waitlist from day one
I didn’t promote the waitlist of Email Course Quickstart as much as I should have during the building phase.
Six posts on X and seven notes on Substack to be exact.
I only started talking about it seriously during the final month before launch.
But here’s the thing:
I had been building this product for three months. And that means I wasted two full months when I could have been creating awareness and excitement among my audience.
That was a pretty poor job to be honest.
I should have promoted this waitlist from the very moment I started building this product.
The more you talk about your upcoming product, the more genuinely excited people you’ll have ready to buy when launch day arrives.
So next time you’re building a new product, remember to start your waitlist on day one and promote it consistently.
Sometimes it really is a volume game.
2. Nurture your waitlist like VIPs, not strangers
On the email side, I barely engaged with my waitlist subscribers during the first two and a half months.
I collected emails but went radio silent on them until two weeks before launch. In total, I ended up sending only three emails specifically to my waitlist over three months of building.
Still unclear? That’s one email per month.
Huge mistake.
I should have nurtured them with emails filled with regular behind-the-scenes content, exclusive insights, and progress updates.
By launch day, many of my waitlist subscribers had already forgotten why they signed up or lost interest entirely. They were cold leads instead of warm advocates ready to buy. And that’s the last thing you want going into your launch.
So once people get on your waitlist, make sure you turn them into insiders who feel special and invested.
Get them involved and invested in your creation process as much as possible.
3. Gather feedback early and often
This is probably the one I’ve been guilty of the most, especially knowing that organising a feedback round is one of the most effective ways to validate your product idea.
I waited until my product was 100% finished before collecting feedback from beta users. And that was only two weeks before launch when I sent out the first set of invitations.
Definitely way too late.
I simply didn’t spare enough time for this crucial task. Some beta users had to rush through their reviews while others couldn’t respond in time.
In the end, I received a limited number of inputs to improve my product and only a handful of testimonials I can use to build even more trust before launch.
I should have started doing this much more in advance. I didn’t need to wait until it was ready when the first version that was 60-70% completed is more than good enough.
Don’t wait until your product is perfect.
Get it in front of as many potential customers as possible once you have the first version, and listen to what they tell you.
No matter how awesome you think your product is, it’ll only be valuable if it truly aligns with their needs.
Final words
Launch success isn’t about running the perfect launch period.
It’s about the weeks of groundwork you do beforehand to build that hard-earned trust and genuine anticipation.
Start promoting early, nurture consistently, and gather feedback often. I’m sure your future self (and your bank account) will thank you.
See you next Sunday,
Beer
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