Marketing a product or service that doesn’t really exist yet just makes most people cringe. Why? The idea that you’re promising something you don’t have, seems . . . what’s the word? Unethical? Unsavory? Uncouth?
But, think about it – every day you buy things that don’t really exist yet. In a sub shop, your sandwich is made to order. Dell revolutionized the PC industry by sourcing and building your product after you order it. Somehow, the old way of thinking dictates that a product should be sitting (gathering dust) ready and waiting before you sell it.
In reality, it’s been established several times over that building things – and then waiting for orders – is a horrible way to do business.
Marketing and Marketing Online
It may seem silly at first, but drawing a distinction between marketing and marketing online may make sense for your business in a pre launch marketing effort. If you have a physical product that you will be selling, you should be doing some things well ahead of your product launch.
What are some pre launch marketing ideas?
- Start your blog as soon as possible, and focus on topics that are important to your intended customer base.
- Establish your social media presence – whether on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or LinkedIn – and start building it organically.
Contrary to popular thinking, you don’t have to have your pitch down first. You’re not standing in front of a showcase with physical products under glass yet. You can find ways to do some marketing online, then hopefully hit your break-even point sooner.
Let’s Call It Pre-Marketing
Looking back on ventures, product launches, and sales pushes, I can point to one mistake I’ve made on several occasions. I didn’t market early enough. True, there wasn’t a product yet, but there were a lot of things that could have been done in physical-world marketing and marketing online. Let’s call it pre-marketing.
Much of the failure to pre-market can be attributed to the fact that you’re busy getting a product ready, of course. But, how much of that work might be negated by what you can learn in pre-marketing?
In fact, there is a lot to gain tactically in pre-marketing. You can learn the terminology and strategies that grab the most attention. With some early marketing online you can get new product ideas. In fact, these benefits are along the lines of small batching and practices taught by Tim Ferris of 4 Hour Workweek fame.
What about your experiences? Is there something you can be doing now to build future business? Comment below or reach out on Twitter @GamelanLLC.
