What is the best way to choose/prioritize channels for a product launch?

This always starts with defining your audience. Once you know who you’re trying to reach, you can prioritize the best channels to reach them. There are two questions that I try to answer before I jump into channel strategy:

1. Will this feature drive new user acquisition or adoption within our existing user base?
2. Which of our users will care about this news?

It is tempting to say that a feature is relevant to both new and existing users across personas, but prioritizing audiences can make a big difference in choosing the right channels. I always recommend establishing a priority between new and existing users, and to limit personas to a max of 2 so the launch strategy stays focused.

Once you’ve identified who to target, you can focus on the best channels to reach them: Where does this audience get their product news? How do they like to hear from you? Is there a specific channel that makes sense for this particular announcement?

Example: At Figma, we’re currently planning for an update to our Slack integration. The update itself is relatively small, but has been a top request from users of the integration. Given this, we’re prioritizing existing users for this launch, and planning to reach out to them directly via Slack (as opposed to email).

When launching a product, it is important to choose the right channels to promote it. This involves using both data and strategy to make informed decisions. Here are some key factors to consider:

1. Audience: Know your target audience and where they spend their time. This could include industry forums, LinkedIn, trade publications, or other niche platforms. Be present where your audience is.

2. Historical performance: Analyze past performance data to identify channels that have generated high engagement, leads, or conversions.

3. Budget and resources: Choose channels that are within your budget and can be managed with the resources available, optimizing for the ones that provide the best ROI.

4. Content: Different channels cater to different formats of content. Ensure that the channel you choose aligns with your content strategy, whether it's webinars, whitepapers, demo videos, or case studies.

5. Agility and adaptability: Continuously monitor the performance of your channels post-launch and be prepared to pivot resources if certain channels underperform or new opportunities emerge. This way, you can make informed and flexible choices that ensure your product message resonates effectively with your target audience.

This will depend on your specific goals for the launch. I like to define tiers for product launches and then have a bill of materials for each tier. That makes the process easy to replicate and facilitates cross functional collaboration, because everyone knows what to expect. For example, you might define your tiers this way:

• Tier 1: Large, brand new product that is opening a new market for your company. You're going to make a really big deal about this and activate all your channels, from web to PR and social. You'll train your sales and CS teams to be ready.

• Tier 2: Significant update that will make your existing customers super happy. You may decide to do a blog post, social, and give sales and CS one slide.

• Tier 3: Small update or bug fix. You're not going to tell the world about this, but customer support needs to know in case there are any tickets.

This depends on your launch goals and the target audience. 

Start by understanding your target audience. Analyze their behavior and content preferences with surveys, social media insights, and web analytics. Find out how they learn about similar products to yours. Do you do it through forums, tradeshows, networking events, etc?

Next, define your launch goals. If your goal is to create widespread awareness, broad-reaching channels like social media ads, PR, and influencer marketing might be effective. Consider channels that allow for interactive content, such as webinars, live demos, and email marketing for deeper engagement. To drive conversions, use channels with proven ROI, like email marketing, search engine marketing (SEM), and retargeting.

Budget and resources will also be important factors in your channel strategy. However, if you have data on how your current channels are performing, that could also help you prioritize which channels to invest in.

By the numbers. Understand your audience for each channel and where your target demo for that product is going to engage, and then show up in those areas. For example, if youre a B2B product and you're targeting end-users within your customer base, a sales pitch isnt going to get the message across--you'll also need targeted ads or emails. If youre a B2C product and youre targeting Gen Z, you might lean away from facebook in favor of tiktok (or vice versa if youre targeting Milennials) and so on.

To simplify:
1) understand your product's target demo
2) understand what channel mix you have available
3) measure performance of historical usage of those channels, specifically by your target demo
4) choose your channel mix based on a balance of impact of the channel and time you have to create that content
5) optimize messaging per channel and run your programs

When selecting and prioritizing channels for a product launch, my approach takes into consideration topics like launch tier and goals, audience preferences, channel engagement and efficiency, and budget/resource constraints. Below, I've detailed the framework that guides my decision-making process, highlighting the key information I consider to shape my strategy. It's important to remember that more channels aren't always better; focusing on the right ones is crucial.

1. Launch Tier & Goals: Start with the objectives and goals for each tier of your launch. Are you aiming for brand awareness, lead generation, or drive feature adoption? Is your launch a Tier 1 (top tier), then you may want want to invest in more channels, versus a lighter Tier 2. Staying focused on the goals will help guide your channel selection and allocation of resources.

2. Audience: Know your target audience inside out. Which channels are they most active on? Where do they seek information related to your product or industry? This will help you prioritize more effectively.

3. Channel Engagement & Quality: Take the time to thoroughly analyze the engagement and effectiveness of each potential channel, examining factors like reach, interaction rates, and conversion rates. Certain channels might be more effective for building awareness, while others could be better at driving conversions. If you don't have all the answers yet, it's perfectly fine to adopt a test-and-learn approach. Additionally, it's beneficial to review your content strategy to ensure that your existing or planned content is appropriate for the selected channels.

4. Budget & Resources: Evaluate the budget available for your launch and allocate resources accordingly. Identify which channels provide the best return on investment (ROI), considering your goals and target audience. Be aware that some channels might require a higher investment but can yield greater results, whereas others might be more cost-effective. Additionally, ensure you have the necessary personnel and time to effectively manage these channels.