I am a firm believer that first impressions are lasting impressions. You never have a second chance to make a good one. When it comes to introducing a new product it is not solely about WHAT you deliver, but more importantly HOW you deliver it.

You have a vision and are in the process of seeing that come to light through your MVP. Now, you want your Minimal Viable Product to be the Most Valuable Player in the market. The success of your product launch can solely rely on the strength of 2 key areas: COMMUNICATION AND PREPARATION.

Communication

It is getting close to opening day and you are ready to tell the masses. Timing and context mean everything. Make sure you deliver your product messaging at the RIGHT time and also to the RIGHT audience with the RIGHT messaging. Announce key dates and stick to them! Make sure the value proposition for your product is clear and be specific on any next steps no matter where you are in the process. Don?t leave anyone wondering how to get to you and what he or she can do to get involved in the process.

Preparation

Here we go! It?s time to begin your warm up and prep your internal team for the road ahead. Conduct team training for all departments and build EXCITEMENT! Make everyone the expert. Abraham Lincoln had it right when he said, ?Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe?. There are 3 key areas you need to polish and add to the beginning of the line-up:

• Marketing/Sales: First up to bat. Create a product demo and make sure all sales and support staff are prepared to create value for any audience using their knowledge of the product.
• Training/Implementation: Setup is extremely important in ensuring that the client can implement a solid workflow to fit their needs in order to optimize and move towards realizing the product?s true potential.
• Support/Client Experience: Your third place hitter should be your best hitter overall in the line-up. Make sure all clients are equipped with a number to call and also make sure the staff answering the phones is well equipped to answer the questions that may come in or guide the client to someone who can. This is where you build your relationships with clients through the product and word of mouth begins to swell through client experience.

If you are in product management, development or QA this is not a spectator sport. Now you are in Beta and on to the next season. Make sure you have a process in place to capture client feedback and enhancement requests. I know there are plenty of features in the backlog but make sure you close the client delivery loop and incorporate client requests in when evaluated as a good fit. It is now time to dust off your practice jersey and get ready for the next release.