product-launch-orchestrator

# Product Launch Orchestrator

## Overview

Transform product launches from chaotic scrambles into orchestrated campaigns that maximize market impact. This skill encodes the sequencing, coordination, and execution frameworks that separate forgettable releases from launches that change market conversations.

## When to Use This Skill

- **Launch planning** — Structuring a launch from announcement to follow-up
- **Tier classification** — Determining appropriate investment for a release
- **Cross-functional coordination** — Aligning product, marketing, sales, and support
- **Content creation** — Generating launch assets with consistent messaging
- **Timeline management** — Sequencing activities for maximum impact
- **Post-launch retrospective** — Analyzing performance and capturing learnings

## Launch Tier Classification

Not all launches deserve the same investment. Classify first, then resource appropriately.

### Tier 1: Major Launch
**Criteria:** New product line, major platform shift, or company-defining moment

**Investment:** 6-12 weeks preparation, full marketing campaign, exec involvement

**Typical Activities:**
- Press/analyst outreach
- Launch event (virtual or physical)
- Full content suite (blog, video, demo, case study)
- Paid media campaign
- Sales enablement training
- Customer advisory preview
- Internal all-hands

**Examples:** New product launch, major platform redesign, significant acquisition

### Tier 2: Significant Release
**Criteria:** Major feature, new integration, or meaningful capability expansion

**Investment:** 4-6 weeks preparation, targeted campaign

**Typical Activities:**
- Blog post with demo video
- Email to customer base
- Social media campaign
- Sales one-pager
- Help documentation update
- Customer webinar (optional)

**Examples:** New integration partner, significant feature release, new pricing tier

### Tier 3: Standard Release
**Criteria:** Feature enhancement, bug fix, or incremental improvement

**Investment:** 1-2 weeks preparation, minimal campaign

**Typical Activities:**
- Product changelog entry
- In-app notification
- Support documentation update
- Brief sales notification

**Examples:** UX improvements, minor features, performance enhancements

### Tier 4: Silent Release
**Criteria:** Backend changes, maintenance, or low-visibility improvements

**Investment:** Minimal, operational only

**Typical Activities:**
- Internal release notes
- Documentation update (if user-facing)
- Monitoring for issues

**Examples:** Infrastructure changes, security patches, internal tooling

### Classification Decision Matrix

| Factor | High Impact (↑ Tier) | Low Impact (↓ Tier) |
|--------|---------------------|---------------------|
| Revenue impact | Enables new revenue streams | Incremental value |
| Customer request volume | Top-requested feature | Nice-to-have |
| Competitive significance | Closes major gap or creates differentiation | Parity feature |
| Market visibility | Press-worthy | Operational |
| Sales enablement need | Requires training | Self-explanatory |
| Customer adoption effort | Requires migration or behavior change | Automatic/seamless |

## Launch Timeline Framework

### Tier 1 Launch: 12-Week Timeline

**Weeks 12-10: Foundation**
- [ ] Finalize launch date and tier classification
- [ ] Complete messaging framework (positioning, key messages, proof points)
- [ ] Identify launch goals and success metrics
- [ ] Assign cross-functional owners
- [ ] Brief executive stakeholders

**Weeks 9-7: Content Development**
- [ ] Draft press release and media pitch
- [ ] Create blog post outline and first draft
- [ ] Develop demo script and begin production
- [ ] Design landing page wireframes
- [ ] Draft email sequences (announcement, nurture, follow-up)
- [ ] Create sales enablement materials outline

**Weeks 6-4: Production**
- [ ] Finalize and design all content assets
- [ ] Complete video production
- [ ] Build and test landing page
- [ ] Set up paid media campaigns (draft)
- [ ] Complete sales enablement deck and one-pager
- [ ] Prepare customer case study
- [ ] Schedule analyst/press briefings

**Weeks 3-2: Enablement & Preview**
- [ ] Conduct sales enablement training
- [ ] Notify customer advisory board / beta customers
- [ ] Final content review and approvals
- [ ] Test all links, forms, and tracking
- [ ] Prep social media queue
- [ ] Brief support team
- [ ] Finalize launch day runbook

**Week 1: Launch Week**
- [ ] **L-2 days:** Embargo press briefings
- [ ] **L-1 day:** Final systems check, content staged
- [ ] **Launch day:** Execute runbook (see Launch Day Checklist)
- [ ] **L+1 day:** Monitor, respond, amplify
- [ ] **L+2-5 days:** Follow-up nurture, analyst briefings

**Weeks +1-4: Post-Launch**
- [ ] Monitor adoption metrics
- [ ] Gather customer feedback
- [ ] Conduct retrospective
- [ ] Optimize based on learnings
- [ ] Handoff to ongoing marketing

### Tier 2 Launch: 6-Week Timeline

**Weeks 6-5: Planning**
- [ ] Confirm launch date and messaging
- [ ] Assign content owners
- [ ] Draft content briefs

**Weeks 4-3: Content**
- [ ] Draft and finalize blog post
- [ ] Create or update landing page
- [ ] Develop sales one-pager
- [ ] Record demo/walkthrough video (optional)

**Weeks 2-1: Preparation**
- [ ] Design email announcement
- [ ] Prepare social media content
- [ ] Update help documentation
- [ ] Brief sales and support teams

**Launch Week:**
- [ ] Execute announcement sequence
- [ ] Monitor and engage
- [ ] Gather initial feedback

## Launch Day Execution Checklist

### Pre-Launch (Launch Day Morning)

**Content & Pages:**
- [ ] Landing page live and tested
- [ ] Blog post scheduled or ready to publish
- [ ] Email ready in platform
- [ ] Social posts queued
- [ ] Help docs updated
- [ ] Product changelog updated

**Systems:**
- [ ] Analytics tracking confirmed
- [ ] Forms and CTAs tested
- [ ] Redirect URLs working
- [ ] Demo environment stable

**Team:**
- [ ] War room channel created (Slack/Teams)
- [ ] On-call list confirmed
- [ ] Escalation path clear
- [ ] Exec communications drafted

### Launch Sequence (Typical Timing)

| Time | Activity | Owner |
|------|----------|-------|
| 6:00 AM | Final go/no-go check | Launch Lead |
| 6:30 AM | Landing page goes live | Web Team |
| 7:00 AM | Blog post published | Content |
| 7:15 AM | Social posts begin | Social |
| 8:00 AM | Press release distributed | Comms |
| 8:00 AM | Customer email sent | Email |
| 9:00 AM | Internal announcement | Exec/Internal Comms |
| 10:00 AM | Sales notification | Sales Enablement |
| 12:00 PM | Social engagement check-in | Social |
| 3:00 PM | Day-one metrics review | Launch Lead |
| 5:00 PM | End-of-day summary | Launch Lead |

### Post-Launch Same Day

- [ ] Monitor social sentiment and respond
- [ ] Track website traffic and conversions
- [ ] Address any support tickets
- [ ] Capture press coverage
- [ ] Document issues for retrospective

## Cross-Functional Coordination

### RACI for Tier 1 Launch

| Activity | Product | Marketing | Sales | Support | Comms | Exec |
|----------|---------|-----------|-------|---------|-------|------|
| Launch date decision | A | R | C | C | I | A |
| Messaging framework | C | A | C | I | R | I |
| Feature readiness | A | I | I | C | I | I |
| Content creation | C | A | C | C | R | I |
| Sales enablement | C | A | R | I | I | I |
| Press/analyst outreach | C | C | I | I | A | C |
| Customer communication | C | A | C | R | C | I |
| Support readiness | C | I | I | A | I | I |
| Launch execution | C | A | C | C | R | I |
| Success measurement | R | A | C | C | I | I |

*R = Responsible, A = Accountable, C = Consulted, I = Informed*

### Stakeholder Communication Cadence

| Stakeholder | Pre-Launch | Launch Week | Post-Launch |
|-------------|------------|-------------|-------------|
| Executives | Weekly update | Daily update | Weekly summary |
| Sales team | Training + weekly | Launch day brief | Week 1 feedback |
| Support team | Documentation review | Launch day brief | Ticket escalation path |
| Customer success | Advisory preview | Launch notification | Customer feedback loop |
| Engineering | Feature status | On-call support | Bug triage |

## Messaging Framework

### Core Messaging Document Structure

Every launch needs a messaging framework covering:

#### 1. Positioning Statement
> For [target customer] who [has this problem], [Product/Feature] is a [category] that [key benefit]. Unlike [alternative], we [differentiation].

#### 2. Key Messages (3 max)
- **Message 1:** [Primary value proposition]
- **Message 2:** [Secondary benefit]
- **Message 3:** [Differentiation/proof point]

#### 3. Proof Points
| Message | Supporting Evidence |
|---------|---------------------|
| Message 1 | Customer quote, data point, demo example |
| Message 2 | Customer quote, data point, demo example |
| Message 3 | Customer quote, data point, demo example |

#### 4. Audience-Specific Angles

| Audience | Their Priority | Our Angle | Key Message |
|----------|---------------|-----------|-------------|
| Economic Buyer | ROI, risk reduction | Business impact | "Reduces [cost] by [%]" |
| Technical Buyer | Integration, reliability | Technical merit | "Native integration with [system]" |
| End User | Ease of use, time savings | Productivity | "Saves [X] hours per week" |

#### 5. Competitive Positioning
- vs. Competitor A: [Our advantage]
- vs. Competitor B: [Our advantage]
- vs. Status Quo: [Why change now]

#### 6. FAQs
| Question | Answer | Audience |
|----------|--------|----------|
| "How is this different from [competitor]?" | [Response] | Sales |
| "What does this cost?" | [Response] | Sales |
| "How long does implementation take?" | [Response] | Customer |
| "Will this affect my current [workflow]?" | [Response] | End User |

## Channel-Specific Execution

### Blog Post Structure

**Title Format Options:**
- "Introducing [Feature]: [Benefit Statement]"
- "How [Feature] Helps You [Achieve Outcome]"
- "The [Adjective] Way to [Task] with [Feature]"

**Structure:**
1. **Hook** (1 paragraph) — The problem or opportunity
2. **Announcement** (1 paragraph) — What we're launching
3. **Key Benefits** (3-5 bullets or short paragraphs)
4. **How It Works** (with screenshots/GIFs)
5. **Customer Quote** (if available)
6. **Availability and CTA**

### Email Sequence

**Announcement Email:**
- Subject: [Announcement] + [Benefit]
- Preview text: [Curiosity hook]
- Body: Problem → Solution → Key benefits (3) → CTA
- Length: 150-200 words

**Follow-up Email (Day 3-5):**
- Subject: [Social proof or deeper benefit]
- Body: Customer story or use case → Demo link → CTA

**Final Email (Day 7-10):**
- Subject: [FOMO or specific use case]
- Body: Specific example → Resources → Final CTA

### Social Media Cadence

**Launch Day:**
- Primary announcement (morning)
- Thread with details (mid-day)
- Engagement/reshare (afternoon)

**Week 1:**
- Day 2: Customer reaction or testimonial
- Day 3: Demo highlight or use case
- Day 4: Team behind the feature
- Day 5: How-to tip or advanced use case

## Success Measurement

### Launch Metrics by Goal

| Goal | Primary Metric | Secondary Metrics |
|------|---------------|-------------------|
| **Awareness** | Press coverage, social reach | Website traffic, share of voice |
| **Demand Gen** | Signups, demo requests | Email open rate, landing page conversion |
| **Adoption** | Feature activation rate | Time-to-first-use, DAU/WAU |
| **Revenue** | Pipeline generated | Influenced revenue, deal velocity |
| **Enablement** | Sales confidence score | First mention in deals, win rate change |

### Launch Retrospective Template

**Conducted:** [1-2 weeks post-launch]

**Attendees:** Cross-functional launch team

**Agenda:**
1. **Results Review** (15 min)
   - Metrics vs. goals
   - Wins and surprises
   
2. **What Worked** (15 min)
   - Successful tactics
   - Effective processes
   - Replicable elements

3. **What Didn't** (15 min)
   - Challenges encountered
   - Misses or near-misses
   - Root causes

4. **Learnings** (10 min)
   - Key insights
   - Recommendations for next launch
   - Process improvements

5. **Action Items** (5 min)
   - Documentation updates
   - Template improvements
   - Follow-up tasks

## Resources

### references/
- **messaging-templates.md** — Reusable messaging framework templates
- **channel-playbooks.md** — Detailed execution guides for each channel
- **tier-checklists.md** — Complete checklists for each launch tier
- **announcement-templates.md** — Email, blog, and social templates

### scripts/
- **timeline-generator.py** — Generates launch timeline from date and tier
- **checklist-tracker.py** — Tracks completion status across workstreams

### assets/
- **launch-timeline-template.xlsx** — Gantt-style timeline template
- **messaging-framework-template.docx** — Blank messaging document
- **retrospective-template.pptx** — Post-launch retro presentation format