When you first start your business, you’re doing everything alone, so it goes without saying that you have to learn how to launch alone at the very early stages.
But is that really such a bad thing?
You get to learn what to do, how the process works, the tools, and gain a really great understanding of what it takes to launch.
This can be fun for a period of time when you’re getting your feet wet, figuring out what your business is, who you serve, and what ideas get brought to those people. It can be kind of fun even.
You may even find yourself daydreaming and wondering when you'll get to the point when you can finally get help.
But sometimes this alone phase can last awhile.
So – do you wait until you can hire to launch something?
It’s kind of feels like the chicken or the egg… do you need to hire a team in order to launch? But wait – don’t you need to launch in order to hire?
And it doesn't help to know everyone’s always talking about the benefit of outsourcing, building a good team, and nurturing them as you grow your company (me included by the way).
But how do you navigate that period of time BEFORE you are ready, prepared, and have the resources to hire?
Is it possible to launch alone?
Keep reading and I’ll share the 5 secrets you can take to the bank and launch your own course, product, event, and whatever else you think you might want to launch…even if you're doing it all by your lonesome!
1. Get Clarity
There’s a piece of launching that never quite gets talked about and that’s intention. What’s your intention with this launch? I’m not talking about the money per se… but why are you doing this? What’s your bigger desire for doing this launch in the first place? Is this a stepping stone to a bigger vision you have for your business? Will this specific launch you have to do actually moving you in the direction of that vision?
I find that stopping at the very beginning and thinking deeply about intention is a great way to look at what you want to launch, why you want to launch, and how it may impact your business is a great way to keep you focused and able to FILTER out any unnecessary or non-aligned ideas that will crop up during the launch (it will happen, trust me).
2. Create a launch plan based in reality
Instead of setting a date and then working backward to plan it — which is great in theory, but it can also bring up a ton of stress if you’re doing all the launch tasks yourself. An alternative is to start with a goal in mind.
For example … you start with what you want to create: I want to launch an online course, do a webinar to promote it, and have affiliates helping out.
Then – work forward OR backward through all the pieces of your launch to figure out what needs to get done.
After you have everything you can think of on this list – set some realistic + padded dates to finish those tasks by.
Once your time frames are real and in front of you – then push the launch out 2-3 weeks after you finish those pieces.
The key here is to give yourself real-time to do the tasks. There’s nothing worse than announcing a date and then doing a half-baked campaign where you leave out stuff you just couldn’t get to. You’ll feel like poo when that happens….I know, I’ve been there!
3. Give Yourself Weekly To-Dos
I recently discovered something about myself and the way I work. When I’m ready to work and knock things off my launch to-do list, I flipping go for it. Meaning…I could get up on a Saturday morning and write 3 solid blog posts in one sitting…or write all my launch emails in one afternoon.
Try it yourself – instead of focusing on daily due dates for myself, give yourself what has to get done this week list so you can reach your goal date.
By giving yourself a window of time to get things done, you’ll be able to tap your naturally occurring and often randomly timed bursts of focus and ready-to-work energy.
Now conversely – if you like getting specific things done each and every day and can stick to that, do it. But if you notice you have energy bursts at random times during the week, capitalize on those times and you may feel less stressed about not getting things done when you’re “supposed” to.
4. Use What Ya Got
Take inventory of what you already have in place. Don’t try to bring in any tools you’ve never used before. There’s no time for training you or anyone else when you’re launching, so use what you already have in place when possible.
And if you must implement a new tool in order to launch — whether it’s a new email marketing provider or shopping cart or landing page creator, make sure you take 1 hour to play with it the second you buy it. If you spend more than an hour or two and you’re still futzing around with it…call it. Find someone to take care of that piece or ditch it.
Another no-no when you’re about to launch alone… please don’t go out and buy or try or sign up for a new task manager? If you’ve been using excel to list out your to-do list – STICK WITH THAT. If you’re on Trello – stay there.
A tool is only as good as your ability to use it quickly in my book. I used to have fun trying out new tools and wasted way too much time trying to find the perfect one. Stop it!
If you haven’t started launch prep yet and need to know what tools to use to launch alone – click over to what I use in my business and the tools I use for my launches.
My top three launch tools that I literally use every single day are LeadPages, Kajabi, and Asana. Done.
5. Unsubscribe + Shut Your Eyes
You may not want to admit it, but you’ve got competitor emails and communication coming into your inbox or you’re on someone’s Facebook page. You lurk and you spy and you worry that your stuff isn’t as good as theirs.
Again – been there – a waste of time.
When you’re trying to launch something on your own – you have ZERO time for distractions and energy drains. So please do yourself and your launch a favor…get away from those places NOW.
Looking at your competition is important but at some point, it could start to erode your confidence. Put the blinders on and walk the other way. Trust me. You don't need any more voices in your head – except your own!
I remember a very specific time when I got caught up in someone else’s process…actually the way someone else was going to launch…It made me scattered, anxious, and un-productive for a solid week. Thank goodness I realized that I need to keep my eyes on myself…or that launch would not have happened.
Before You Make The Decision To Launch Alone
Here are some questions you should ask yourself before you settle on doing everything yourself:
- Am I technical enough to set up all the webpages, payment processors, emails, webinar pages, and any other backend pieces required to launch a product online? (Maybe you’ve got an easy-to-use tool like Leadpages)
- Am I design-savvy enough to know when something looks like crap or perhaps needs a visual and can I do something about it once I’ve noticed it? (like say use Canva.com or Picmonkey.com to make some images/graphics)
- Am I able to get things done without some “boss” telling me what to do? And…can I do that on a consistent basis? Base this on your current and past behaviors running your own business.
- What one potential area of creating all the launch pieces do you feel least able to handle on your own? …and are you willing to find help if you can’t do it to your sense of completion?
- If this is your first launch, do you understand the process of launching and what needs to happen logistically and marketing strategy-wise? (This may be different for everyone…)
Now a no doesn’t mean you shouldn’t launch alone, but it may point to you being willing to get help if you can’t see through all the pieces alone or if you won’t have the patience to push back the launch if you need to.
Not sure you’re up for the challenge?
Leave a comment below and let me know your biggest question about launching alone.
It is possible. You can do it. You just gotta be prepared and willing to shift if necessary.
Fearless Launching is opening soon – so if you could use a community to support you through your next solo launch, make sure you're on the list to find out when we open the doors!
Check out my latest masterclass here to show you the simple process I teach inside Fearless Launching.
Wow, super helpful. I am launching alone and I know you definitely need to have your ducks in a row so everything is smooth (at least somewhat) for when the launch does happen. I did a smaller launch recently with success but I am gearing up for a larger launch probably early next year so that’s gonna be a good one… thanks for the post, Anne!
Thanks for your comment and I’m curious – What did you find the hardest about the doing the smaller launch on your own? Sounds like you’re already super organized…so maybe you didn’t have any issues!
As part of our launch process we try to record/create content as much in advance as possible. With the beauty of technology, we can schedule it and focus on other things (sometimes just life).
Anne, as always, a brilliant post. Love the way you framed the to do list. I’m going to do it with that frame in my mind’s eye . . . I really like that.
I’m actually looking at re-doing my on-line store front, certainly how the categories are, however, maybe also the look . . . as much happened over the summer, It’s more like a healing centre . . . so if I am going to re-do it or reframe it, i realized the other day… oh boy, that means a launch I wasn’t expecting…
… I have new products a well … my biggest question? How do I introduce the new look (or categories) of the store and the new products… one first before the other, or all at the same time as I trickle it out… How should I be thinking? So I introduce the new look and intertwine the new products in with that, or are they separate? If I separate them, then how? 😉 That’s the percolating question at the moment…. as I prepare to ‘launch alone!”
Yup – doing things in advance is definitely the way to go…I completely agree!
Elizabeth! Let’s chat girl – you know I love this type of question…and I think a good place to start is to imagine you are a visitor to your site. The visuals matter, but I think you can definitely roll things out in stages. Improvements are a sign of growth too and I love it when I see a site that improves different things over time. xo
Thanks, Anne! I’m launching alone as we speak…and I’m LOVING it. Thanks for the affirmation – so many people talk as though you couldn’t possibly do this without an army of contractors and support staff. 😉
Anne 🙂 . . . Yes . . . Let’s chat!!!! Thinking of my store as a visitor…. good common sense and grounded advise as usual . . . The kind I like …. I’m looking forward to chatting!!!! xo !!!!!
Anne, the most helpful point you make is about knowing your intention beyond $ and growing your list. Truly it keeps things in perspective and somehow takes the pressure off.
I attempted to reverse engineer my launch with the calendar and failed miserably. I think it’s because my life can be so unpredictable with kids…you would think after 5 years I would remember that! Ambition and desire get the better of me and I lose sight of what’s practical and possible.
Thank you Anne. So needed this reminder. Big launch coming up. This keeps me grounded. Speak soon.
Brilliant advice, Anne. As someone who prefers working alone, launching can seem daunting. Your tips always help me to stay on course, even if I’m the only one manning this ship. 🙂 Thank you for so generously sharing your wisdom.
I never got a chance to acknowledge your comment Theresa! Thank you for chiming in. You are in inspiration and I go through times where it feels like I’m the only one on the ship too! Ahoyyyy Mateyyyyy!!
Awesome post. I’m in the thick of it now, launching alone, and your article is spot on. Especially the part about putting on blinders.
Biggest challenge – launching and growing my audience simultaneously. Still figuring it out.