Brianne West
June 19, 2024
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Incrediballs is still a few months from launch, but we have thousands of people on the waitlist, a growing community of incredibally loyal fans, retailers already asking to stock the product and export markets lined up.
I get asked a lot if you should start talking about your business before you launch. In a lot of cases, the answer is yes. Traditional PR of a surprise launch is becoming harder as newsrooms and journalists need to do more with less. So, you can build your own hype through social and other networks.
Here’s what we did:
1. Started talking about this from almost day one. I referenced it as a secret to begin with, then gradually spilled the beans. I created a podcast so people could follow along the journey. All of this helps people feel involved from day one. It also builds curiosity, and never underestimate how curiosity builds hype…
2. We asked questions. It teaches you about your audience and again, they feel involved.
3. We shared the ugly bits. That sometimes things weren’t going right, how it was slower than I liked, how something didn’t work. Be transparent and show the ‘ugly’ truth, because yet again, it helps people feel invested.
4. Build that email list! Most importantly, we collected emails from the moment we started talking about it. EDMS (newsletters) are one of the single most effective ways of marketing. So, build a waitlist, keep talking to them, and ensure you send out valuable, interesting emails to keep them engaged.
5. And we did all this across multiple platforms. I didn’t just speak to the consumer audience on more ‘consumer’ friendly places like TikTok and Instagram, I did it on LinkedIn too. LinkedIn is often where you will find investors, retailers, or journalists. This is where a lot of that industry interest has come from.
6. And finally, none of this would be possible without an Incrediball support crew. Finding people who truly support you throughout some of the hardest times can be difficult, but you will.
