How to Launch Your Subscription Business

Presented by: Jesse RichardsonLearn more about the presenter:

jesserichardson.com

Meet Us!Jesse Richardson Connect with us!

Free Resources & Videoswww.subscriptionschool.com

Webinar is being recorded & will be available!

Facebook Groupwww.facebook.com/groups/subscriptionschool

Facebook Pagewww.facebook.com/subscriptionschool

Cratejoy Knowledge Baseforum.cratejoy.com

Overview:• Early action items & how to get started

• 3 Steps to an “Official Launch”

○ Getting early adopters, converting & lead nurturing, and benchmarks.

• Challenge!

Step 1: Start a Free Trial

1. Head to start.cratejoy.com

2. Create Your Store

3. Start working through Cratejoy’s platform to get a feel for it

4. Check out the designer, customer accounts, apps, etc

5. You can extend your trial by tweeting, etc.

… And don’t forget!

The Launch: A Multi-Stepped Process

The process of launching your subscription over time (versus in 1 day) serves a variety of different purposes. Here are the goals:

● To validate your idea● To test product/market fit● To build anticipation● To generate revenue to fund your business.

Step 1: The Teaser/Prelaunch Phase (1-2 Months)

Often referred to as a ‘pre-launch’, this is the beginning of your launch process

It’s optional.

What needs to be in place before this phase?

● Branding and logo● Some good marketing copy and a ‘voice’.● Product development should be 80% complete

What are the goals of this phase?

● To validate your idea● Experiment with marketing (you’ll get an idea of how receptive your community

is to the concept)● Collect initial interest and begin to build anticipation.

EXAMPLE #1: Yogi Surprise

EXAMPLE #2: Prospurly

EXAMPLE #3: Harry’s Razors

Step 1: Resources

• SumoMe/Optin Monster: Good for lead generation if you’re already live

• Launchrock: Launch pages above used this (Also: Unbounce, Kickoff Labs, Wordpress)

• Cratejoy: TryCelery for Presales. Prelaunch themes in Beta (email for access)

• Mailchimp: This is where you import your email subscribers. Keep them “warm” then leverage this when you open sales.

• READ ME: http://subscriptionschool.com/guide/simple-steps-powerful-prelaunch/

Step 1: Getting Traffic & Lead Nurturing Use Free Methods to Get Traffic. This includes:

● Niche blogger outreach● Instagram Ambassadors / Social Influencers ● Organic methods via social

Keep your leads warm:

● Stay in communication with your leads. 1 ½ or 2 months is a long time to wait.● With the right communication, the anticipation will compound over time.

Set Benchmarks:

● Limit yourself to 1-2 months (60 days MAX)● Aim for 2000-5000 leads, but the more the better - Why so high?! :( ● Visitor to presubscriber conversion rate should be 10-20% minimum

Step 2: Formal Launch & Early Sales

This occurs on the day you end your prelaunch campaign. It’s time to take subscribers!

What should have been finished during prelaunch:

● List building (& nurturing)● Website & Billing System● Early product choices & Packaging Decision

Phase 2 Goals:

● Convert initial anticipation in revenue○ This funds your business. It pays for packaging, shipping & month 1 items.

● Build the rest of your business (site updates, better funnels, lead gen ideas…) ● Evaluate product market fit and “real” conversion rates – then plan!● Assemble your ‘founding member’ marketing army

Step 2: Benchmarks and Timing

You might be asking…. How long is this phase? When do I ship?

● This phase is run for about 1-1.5 months● For example, if you open up for pre-subscribers on October 1st, your very first

shipment could go out November 1st or 16th. It’s important to make this clear and set expectations – as long as you do this properly, you’ll only get a minimal number of complaints from the people that pre-subscribed early on.

What’s the true conversion rate?

● Successful lead to paying conversion is around 5%-10%

Step 3: The ‘Launch’ of Momentum

Phase 3 marks the SHIPMENT of your first boxes. You’re now in business with a product.

● Use your original influencer partners to help announce your “official launch.” Send them free boxes, which are now available to you.

● Now it’s time to launch your full site or finish building it out.● Re-announce the “official launch” to your unconverted lead lists.

You should also:

● Have built out customer service solutions (Zendesk) ● Identified areas of improvement (branding, checkout page, operations) ● Consider outsourcing fulfillment (check the Resources page on

SubscriptionSchool.com)

What are you waiting for?

Assignment: NEXT Friday!

• It’s September 23rd. On September 30th, you’ll have a store set up, an idea chosen, and thoughts about your first batch of items.

• You should have:

• Started your free trial

• Downloaded the resources available from Jesse

• Started working on your store and branding

• Next up… schedule a prelaunch to get more interest!

Extra Resources: Things That’ll Help

SubscriptionSchool.com

● Free guides, videos & Facebook Community

The Cratejoy Blog - start.cratejoy.com/blog

● Cratejoy news, but also informative posts

JesseRichardson.com

● That’s me! I provide a free brand invite to newsletter subscribers

JamesonMorris.com

● Entrepreneur behind Yogi Surprise. Blogs about Subscription Commerce

Q+A

Add some questions to the right panel. Let’s chat!

Action Item Reminders

1. Start a free trial at Cratejoy!

2. Develop your product and

branding to 80% before launch

3. Review our resources at

SubscriptionSchool.com

4. Ask us a question!