Launching a product on a shoe-string budget
Launching a product without a substantial budget can be a daunting experience, but it shouldn’t be a factor stopping you from putting your product out in the world!
Fortunately, advances in digital technologies provide plenty of opportunities to market your product with low to no budget, and when done right, can be incredibly effective. Trust us when we say there are a whole host of success stories out there to act as motivation!
Here’s our top tips for cost-effective techniques with a proven track record…
Know your audience and find your niche
Knowing your customer and finding your niche is the foundation for any successful product launch!
Survey your target market – don’t shy away from picking up the phone and speaking with your (prospective) customers, this will help you gain a deeper understanding on their perspective and will provide valuable feedback on their ‘pain points’.
Research the competition. Enter keywords in to a search engine that your target audience would use and see what results you get. How can you differentiate yourself from the competition? Is there an opportunity to stand out from the crowd?
Importantly, stay flexible and don’t be afraid to make adjustments along the way as you learn more about your niche.
The power of social media
Social media is a great tool when you are dealing with low to no budget!
The first step to an effective launch strategy is to create your social media channels far in advance, without being too quick to rule out any platform as the demographics for social media platforms are constantly changing.
Each channel should be leveraged from the get-go, consistently building hype for the product, while creating a waiting list for customers who are keen to purchase. The important bit here is to keep your followers engaged with regular and exciting content right up to launch. Consider using polls on Instagram, fun and engaging short videos/reels, and going live, which will all help build a sense of anticipation.
This strategy will feed into the pre-hype for the launch and also gives you the opportunity to have direct conversations on platforms such as Twitter, Quora and Reddit with people who have similar interests (seeking out customer feedback as we mentioned previously).
Social media platforms also come with the opportunity to promote through influencers, where many micro influencers will be happy to review the product free of cost so even if you don’t have cash to spare, product seeding to the right people can be enormously helpful.
Maximise your shop window – develop a website and blog
Building a website does not have to be a costly affair. There are multiple platforms available that can help you create a website on your own!
Shopify is a popular example that will not only guide you through building a website from scratch but also provide a chance to monitor traffic and behaviours. This information is key to growing sustainably. Websites with effective call-to-action buttons are one of the primary methods of lead generation, to whom newsletters and blogs can then be shared. Slowly and gradually, additional plug-ins can be introduced into the website for further optimisation.
On a low budget, having a blog and an effective email marketing plan will be your best friends in terms of developing your search engine position and priming customers for committing to a sale.
There are a multitude of was to launch a product on a low budget but do be prepared to invest a lot of your time and commit to your marketing activity. Doing this will certainly yield results! Don’t shy away from getting creative and making the most out of the free tools available, as most of it is test and trial anyway. Additionally, there are numerous resources available to help you navigate until you are a pro. For further inspiration, you may like the following episodes from our Revitalise & Grow podcast:
How to launch a product and create buzz
Is it really possible to do more for less?
You may also like to download our FREE resource: Checklist for a successful product launch