I’m not going to lie. I love analogies and puns. That’s why this week, I’m taking you into my brain to look at something I’m calling the “Layer Cake Launch Strategy”…

I think we’d all agree that launches have become multi-layered and often include one main launch strategy, surrounded by other LAYERS of social marketing.

Social media is a great way to connect with people who will potentially be interested in your business – maybe becoming clients, readers, fans, collaborators, influencers, and subscribers.

If you’re not on social – on the main platforms at the very least – you run the risk of literally disappearing. No one right now is just BLOGGING. Unless you’re running paid ads perhaps… and that means, you’re likely on Facebook.

Now – let’s look at product launches and launching… if it’s your first product, you might feel totally overwhelmed at the different ways and platforms and tactics you see other people using in their launches.

But – here’s one thing that all of bigger brands have in common – they have layered on these strategies. They likely only started with one and then slowly added to that … OVER TIME.

So – it’s no wonder that when you decide to do 3-4 Facebook Lives without ever building a community on the platform or even interacting there or ever doing a live there – that it feels like it’s not working.

Worst case is when you are using all the platforms or trying to and then you are never really sure what worked?

Are you reaching whatever goals you thought you’d reach by being everywhere? Are people responding to you on the sites? Are you being consistent? Ddi they like the Instagram Live? The IG Story? Are you specific about what you post on the various channels or simply reposting the stuff from other spots?

If we're not careful, it can become a mess and that's why I love treating each new strategy like an added layer to the business.

In today’s episode here’s what we cover:

• The most important thing to figure out right now about your business before you launch
• Why committing to a small number of social marketing activities leading up to your launch can dramatically increase the success of you any launch–your business, a new product, a rebranded blog, a coaching service or program.
• Why the long game and where you want to go should be your main concern.
• How to get started creating your first layers now so you can find out what works
• My favorite social platform and why I think it’s the best no matter what you end up using for your launches.
• The final element to each layer you need to create before adding another one!
• How long you should give yourself to test the effectiveness of a layer before moving on to the next tool, social platform or channel.

One More Thing

Don’t get hard on yourself – judging your success on follows isn’t a good idea. Focus on the interactions you are having, on your feed, on another person’s profile…and look for micro movements…because those do count.

Sure you can throw everything at it, but testing one layer at a time is the way to know what works and what doesn’t.

Imagine you make a 10 layer cake, and you bite into it…and it’s like wow, something is really weird about this… it’s salty…or like too buttery… would you know which layer to go to? To fix?

But if you go through building your business and your launches level by level, you’ll be able to:

• Try on the individual layers and know when it stops tasting good.
• Clearly see when it’s working and when it’s no longer working (even that means just for you)
• When the layers may taste great alone, but when they are together – it’s too much, it turns everything into a hot mess…that’s when you
• You’ll get the information.

So – you can apply this layer cake to launches even if you’re creating a new product and not completely starting from scratch.

For example, let's say you have something you’d like to try, not sure you really want to invest much money or other resources in it.

Ask yourself what’s the simplest way to get something out to the world – validate the idea, deliver some of that idea…

Here's one example I talk about in the episode…

I just invited founding members to my new membership program…that’ll be launching publicly soon.

What membership, you say?

Well, I invited only my current paid customers, past students, anyone who’s already on the inside or I've worked with closely in some way.

• I have a shorthand with them
• By the end of this founding member opening – I’ll have sent 5 emails, 2 many chat messages…and put a few notes into my Facebook Groups…

Next time, you’ll see something else – a series of Facebook Lives, Facebook Ads, or a Webinar. I did that so I could focus on my systems + process, but also so I could put my focus on the message, my vision for the membership and really figure out why I’m doing this. Also, I wanted to focus on a small number of people who I want to give value to RIGHT AWAY…so they can start making progress in their businesses.

And that's basically … it!

I honestly tend to keep my launches only a few layers…and will continue to do that because I don’t foresee wanting a gigantic team or wanting to take a long time preparing for my launches. I want things to always have a sense of ease…

So, I’ll choose one central launch strategy and only build onto that so much – I like to try new things, but I also like to conserve my energy…

But I do believe it helps everyone realize too that you don’t need all the things.

So I’ll leave you with two questions now as we pause for another week –

What do you want to build/create AND what’s one launch or marketing strategy you can start executing on right now to make your first layer?

And if you’re ready to start building the first layer for your next launch, the Launch Incubator 12-month program might be right for you!

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