This episode includes all the wins, losses, breakthroughs and breakdowns of the latest product launch by James. Listen in on what he and his team learned, and how they can take that information to apply it to their next one!
James shares that the best thing you can do after a launch or promotion is to take the time to assess the numbers and see what worked (and what didn’t). This is where you’ll find the space to grow and prepare for your next launch, and his team calls it “unpacking.” Phoebe adds that this should be done immediately after the launch is complete, and that the results should be shared with everyone on the team.
They consider this the best launch they’ve ever done. It didn’t have the biggest financial result (with $333,000 in total revenue generated), but they did hit their lowest goal and streamlined their processes, learning many lessons.
James quotes Brene Brown, when she talks about entrepreneurs being “in the arena” and being “beat up and bloodied.” He says:
“That’s the only way you really experience or created knowledge, wisdom and discover those lessons”
Although the launch wasn’t effortless, it was painless and fun, with his team really stepping up. He wasn’t the bottleneck, as not everything had to go through him to get done.
Phoebe wanted two things from the launch. First, she wanted it to be as stress-free as possible, and she also wanted to develop her leadership skills. She says she achieved both personal objectives in this launch.
“It was such as positive, exciting experience the whole way through”
Facebook ads were used very strategically, and they say it was the most dynamic use of this marketing tool that they have ever experienced. It created about 20,100 new subscribers into the launch and onto James’ email list in only 2 to 3 weeks of promotion.
James talks about Dan Ariely’s book “Predictably Irrational” (see “INTERVIEW LINKS”), and the concept of price relativity. He compares this idea to their launch and “goal relativity.” For some of James’ coaching clients, a $100,000 launch would result in a total breakdown, whereas for others, it would change their lives.
James shares the launch’s “Earning Per Lead” (EPL) calculation, which determines how much each subscriber was worth. This number is what is really crucial, as opposed to total revenue, as you can always scale and get more people in your next launch.
Key Takeaways:
1) James feels that the offer for the product they were selling needed some work.
“The offer, at the core level, is what the promise is and how much it’s going to cost to fulfil that promise. What is the outcome, or what are you clients really paying for?
2) The price was too low (an upcoming episode will be focused on the topic of raising prices). The product was actually created two years ago, and based on pricing at the time, was listed at $297. With the amount of content, value and support included, this number could have been higher and the product would have still sold.
Wins:
1) Responsibilities were clear for the core group of four team members, and the team was easily accessible by person (or Skype) to support the others.
2) Communication was key and led to the stress-free launch. Along with regular meetings and the use of visual aids (calendar), everyone knew who was working on what and the status of the task. James used the methods of Jeff Sutherland’s, “Scrum: The Art of Doing Twice the Work in Half the Time” (SEE “INTERVIEW LINKS”).
3) The process templates available to the team, as well as the software used, simplified the process and resulting in more upsells and a success with affiliates.
The team kept info in one place, on a “magic page”, with resources that will make the next launch turnkey. They effectively used Sweet Process that Michael Hyatt recommends, as well as The New Kajabi (SEE “INTERVIEW LINKS”). On The New Kajabi, James says that for the first time, he got to experience everything working together (course hosting, upsells, checkout pages, sales pages and an affiliate center).
The participation of over 50 affiliates resulted in thousands of clicks, and their upsell conversion rates were very good, at 20 to 26% for existing courses that they already offer).
A backend offer of a $1,000 one-day live event was added and sold out immediately to 10 customers.
James concludes this episode with the big lessons he took from the latest launch. Online entrepreneurs need to get really good with their offer, as well as being open and willing to increase their prices. Knowing the true value of your offer is key, as well as operating effectively as a team and letting go to trust others more.
INTERVIEW LINKS:
"Predictably Irrational" by Dan Ariely
"Scrum: The Art of Doing Twice the Work in Half the Time" by Jeff Sutherland
