PM02: An Ultimate Guide to Uneventful Product Launch

Everything you need to know before pressing the red button and popping champagne.

A few weeks a go I had a discussion with one of my mentees who needed some guidance on launching a new B2B accessibility product for the startup where they work as a solo product manager. This issue arose from that conversation.

How do you launch a new digital product or service? When the countdown hits 0, you push the red button while your team mates popping champagne? That’s how start-up TV shows portray it.

I mean, what exactly the product team needs to do to launch a new built an tested product to be used by real customers, who will pay real money for it?

Boom, you gotta plan it.

In this article, I will share some tips and insights from my experience launching products at Amazon and SLB.

I will talk about:

• 📝 Launch plans

• 👑 Ownership & accountability

• 💬 Communication mechanisms

• 📐 Product & service metrics

• ✅ Success criteria

• 🚀 Go/no-go decisions

• 💥 Mitigation plans

📝 Launch Plan

Plans are worthless, but planning is everything. For many folks, especially those with a startup background, a launch plan may seem like a bureaucratic requirement for large companies. However, it is not. You need a plan, and it should be the most painfully detailed and meticulous spreadsheet ever created by a human being. This plan is going to be your pillar of support over the entire course of the launch.

The launch plan is a main tool to systematically identify and mitigate risks associated with a product launch. It involves the coordination of multiple engineering, design and science teams, while managing multiple tech and business dependencies. This plan requires careful consideration and coordination of resources, timelines and budgets.

It can look similar to this, but is usually bigger and scarier (grab this Notion template here):

Essentially, this includes all of the final engineering tasks, such as the last testing and feedback sessions, the preparation of training and marketing materials, the completion of all necessary sign-offs and certifications, and the actual steps to launch the app to production, redirect traffic, and monitor its performance. In other words, it encompasses everything that needs to be done to ensure the app is ready for a successful rollout.

👑 Ownership & Accountability

The last time I launched a product on my own was way back when I was just 16 years old. It was a website for my schoolmate's father's construction business.

When working with a team on a product launch, it's crucial to have a clear understanding of everyone's roles and responsibilities. In your launch plan, make sure to list all stakeholders and assign specific tasks and decisions to each one. It can also be helpful to designate a single point of contact (POC) to facilitate communication when working with larger teams.

Before moving forward with the plan, it's important to review it with all stakeholders and POCs to make sure it aligns with their expectations and roles.

But sometimes, even this isn't enough in a group setting. Some stakeholders may seem fully onboard and present at meetings, signing off on everything as requested, until the very last moment.

I once had a stakeholder call out a missing feature just before the go/no-go decision for a major launch. This feature had never been discussed before (a major red flag for our discovery process). It turned out that this feature was a deal breaker for them to adopt our product. Although this stakeholder was secondary, our primary stakeholder had a critical business dependency on them, so it became a showstopper. Make sure to follow up with each stakeholder personally, especially those you don't interact with as frequently, to avoid any surprise roadblocks.

💬 Communication Mechanisms

It is important for the extended product team, stakeholders, and leadership to know how and when to access the latest updates on the launch, regardless of the format, medium, and frequency chosen.

I also recommend holding face-to-face meetings a couple of times a week and increasing the frequency to daily in the final week or two before the launch. These meetings provide an opportunity to check in with team members and identify any potential risks that may have been overlooked. Ask "What's on your mind?".

Even if you are using the best project management tool available, I still recommend sending a daily, old-fashioned status update email with a snapshot of the launch plan. This helps to reduce the number of "What's going on with the launch?" inquiries, although you will likely still receive some.

📐 Product and Service Metrics

Status updates from stakeholders and the product team provide valuable insights, while metrics serve as a way to track progress and performance.

Before the launch, it is important to monitor a set of metrics that ensure the product is functioning as intended. This may involve tracking dozens or even hundreds of metrics and monitors at the service, database, and infrastructure level. These metrics should also include the results of automated user tests, and it is helpful to have a way to easily interpret them and view them in a simple, easy-to-understand format such as a health check.

Immediately following the launch, focus on monitoring metrics that answer the following questions:

• Is the product being used?

• Is the new feature being used?

• Who is using the product (location, demographics)?

• Where are users coming from and where are they going in the user journey?

• Does the product address customer needs?

• Do customers love the product?

• What is the impact of the product on the business?"

✅ Success Criteria

Defining a clear set of metrics beforehand will make it easier to establish success criteria for the launch. Consider what success looks like for the launch, whether it is simply deploying the app to production or waiting for the first customers to complete the journey successfully.

To establish success criteria, consider setting targets for service and product metrics, as well as business outcomes. If a metric cannot be measured, it will be difficult to determine whether the launch was successful or not. Make sure that stakeholders are aligned with these criteria as well.

🚀 Go/No-Go Decisions

The go/no-go decision is a crucial moment in a product launch, as it is the point at which the team determines whether to proceed with the launch or not. Complex launches with technical and business dependencies may have multiple go/no-go decisions.

So, how do you decide when to hold a go/no-go decision? Keep in mind that the go/no-go decision is a one-way door decision, meaning that everything that happens before it is reversible, while anything that goes wrong after the decision can have serious consequences, such as reputational damage, financial losses, or even health risks.

🍾 Celebrating Success (or Failure)

Congratulations on all of your hard work and preparation! It's time to celebrate the launch of your new product with your team. If you followed my tips, I have high hopes for a successful launch.

But even if things don't go exactly as planned, remember that every launch is an opportunity to reflect and learn. Take the time to celebrate the accomplishments and efforts of your team, and use the insights gained to drive future growth and success.

Cheers to a successful product launch!