Hello, future titans of industry! If you’ve embarked on the exhilarating, often treacherous, and always enlightening path of launching a new product on the market, you’re in for quite an adventure. I’m Victor Tavitian, one of the founders of Tokyo Design Studio Australia, here to walk you through the labyrinthine corridors of product launches with the wisdom of my failures and victories. So let’s look at how to launch a new product on the market.

The Jungle of Services

When you’re about to launch a new product or business, the plethora of services thrown your way can be as overwhelming as choosing the perfect coffee blend at your local hipster café. But unlike your morning caffeine fix, making the wrong service choice here isn’t just disappointing—it’s detrimental. The issue is manifold, but it often boils down to agencies trying to grasp every opportunity, sometimes at the expense of quality and expertise.

Many subcontractors adopt a “why not” attitude towards extra work, but this is where things get murky. Instead of offering expertise, they end up peddling services that may not even meet industry standards. A classic case of having the right people but for the wrong job.

Here’s a tale from the trenches: I recently had a chat with the founder of a groundbreaking E-scooter brand. Without giving too much away (stay tuned for the big reveal), the conversation underscored the recurring pitfalls and mistakes many business owners face. Not knowing how to launch a new product on the market is often not the fault of the business owner, but the result of too much input from the wrong people.

Having the Right People for the Wrong Job

You could have a graphic designer who can make Picasso weep with envy, but ask them to animate a video, and you’re likely to end up with an avant-garde disaster. The same goes for agencies.

• Right Expertise, Right Task: It’s crucial to align talent with tasks. For instance, you wouldn’t hire a chef to fix your car, so don’t ask your PR agency to do your branding.
• Three Quotes Rule: Always get at least three quotes for any task. This is your chance to learn what you truly need while gauging the market rate.
• Sit Through The Sales Pitches: It might not make you feel great, but in sales pitches many companies give great input into what you might need. The honest ones might even tell you that you need to go through another step before using them. It’s all a part of learning how to launch a new product on the market.

Understand the Market and Industry – how to launch a new product on the market

Before plunging into hiring, understand the industry landscape:

• Design Agency vs. Branding Agency vs. PR Agency:
• Design Agency focuses on the visual elements.
• Branding Agency crafts your brand identity and strategy, provides the starting point for a design agency, and might be your first stop before moving to a design agency. However many design agencies also do branding.
• PR Agency manages your public image and media relations, using the assets created by the design agency.

Steps to Prepare for Launch – how to launch a new product on the market

1. Feasibility Study

First things first, conduct a feasibility study. This will help you gauge whether your product idea is viable, both financially and logistically. If you are planning on putting a lot of money into this investment, pay for proper market research to be done, and get proper statistics. Google Search won’t cut it.

2. Business Plan

Have the basics of your business plan in place. This isn’t just paperwork—it’s your roadmap.

Here’s a breakdown of what your business plan should contain:

• Executive Summary:
  • Overview, mission statement, and product description.
• Company Description:
  • History, structure, ownership, and market position.
• Market Analysis:
  • Research on industry size, trends, target market, and competitors.
• Organisation and Management:
  • Company structure, ownership details, management team profiles.
• Products or Services:
  • Detailed description, benefits, unique selling propositions (USPs), and lifecycle. These USPs have to address pain points that your target market has.

3. Branding Strategy

Once the foundational work is done, focus on your branding strategy:

• Brand Identity:
  • Positioning, messaging, values, and personality.
  • Visual and verbal elements like logo, colour palette, typography, image style, iconography, style guide, and tone of voice.
• Differentiation Strategy:
  • Stand out in the market by highlighting what makes you unique.

4. Product Design

Next, align your product design with your brand identity:

• Aesthetic Components:
  • Colour, shape, texture, line, space, proportion, material, pattern, finish, typography, iconography, and branding elements.

5. Marketing Strategy

After nailing down your product design, develop your marketing strategy, your social media marketing strategy would be formed in this part of the journey as well:

• Marketing Objectives and Goals: Define what success looks like.
• Target Market Segments: Identify and understand your audience. (this should have been done in the early part of the business strategy and is a reiteration, now you are nailing things down for precision missile strikes to create sales).
• Marketing Mix (4 Ps): Product, Price, Place, Promotion.
• Promotional Plans: Digital marketing, content marketing, traditional media.
• Customer Acquisition and Retention: Strategies to attract and keep customers.
• Metrics and KPIs: Measure marketing effectiveness.

6. Public Relations (PR)

PR is indispensable in shaping your brand’s public image, and is a very important part of how to launch a new product on the market. Here’s how to fit PR into your strategy:

• Enhancing Brand Reputation: Build trust and credibility.
• Supporting Marketing Campaigns: Amplify marketing reach and impact.
• Media Relations: Foster relationships with journalists and influencers.
• Crisis Management: Handle negative events proactively.
• Content Creation and Distribution: Produce and share valuable content.
• Event Management: Organise and promote events for brand visibility.
• Influencer and Community Relations: Collaborate with key figures and community leaders.
• Internal Communications: Keep your team informed and engaged.
• Monitoring and Measuring Public Perception: Adjust strategies based on feedback.

7. Sales Strategy

Finally, craft your sales strategy:

• Sales Objectives and Goals: Define your targets.
• Sales Process and Methodology: Lead generation, qualification, closing techniques.
• Sales Channels and Distribution Methods: How you’ll reach your customers.
• Sales Team Structure and Compensation: Roles, responsibilities, incentives.
• Customer Relationship Management (CRM): Tools and strategies for managing customer relationships.
• Metrics and KPIs: Measure sales performance.

Biblical Wisdom for Business

Now, let’s sprinkle in some timeless wisdom that will answer the mindset on “how to launch a new product on the market”:

• Consistency and Integrity:
• Proverbs 22:1 (NIV): “A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold.”
• Building Trust:
• Matthew 5:16 (NIV): “In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”
• Authenticity:
• 2 Corinthians 8:21 (NIV): “For we are taking pains to do what is right, not only in the eyes of the Lord but also in the eyes of man.”
• Vision and Mission:
• Habakkuk 2:2 (NIV): “Then the Lord replied: ‘Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it.'”
• Uniqueness and Value:
• Matthew 10:31 (NIV): “So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.”
• Communication and Clarity:
• Ephesians 4:29 (NIV): “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.”
• Brand Promise:
• James 5:12 (NIV): “Above all, my brothers and sisters, do not swear—not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. All you need to say is a simple ‘Yes’ or ‘No.’ Otherwise, you will be condemned.”
• Ethical Conduct:
• Philippians 4:8 (NIV): “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”
• Influence and Impact:
• Matthew 5:14 (NIV): “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden.”

Final Word

Launching a new product is no small feat, but with the right strategy, team, and guidance, it’s entirely achievable. Remember, the process is as important as the destination. Now go forth and conquer the market. I hope this article helps you understand how to launch a new product on the market.

Happy launching!

Victor Tavitian

Founder, Tokyo Design Studio Australia