I asked Tayler Cusick-Hollman, Founder and CMO of Enji (aka The Queen Bee of Marketing in my own brain), if she wanted to write a guest blog for Sunday Muse. After she agreed, we talked a bit about what topics you might want to read, and I immediately said, “Marketing campaigns”. Because let’s face it—most of my clients don’t think they need them. (You do.). And one case you really need some sort of plan and campaign in place? When you launch your website. Because, tbh, no one is going to care about your new website unless you give them a reason to care. So without further adieu, here are Tayler’s top tips on launching your new website.

When you’ve made the decision to hire a professional to do your website design, I’d go so far as to guess it’s not just a beautiful website you’re after. Sure, that is your original goal (to have a website that feels more like you and looks super professional), but it’s very likely you’re wanting that website to do other things for you. Maybe that’s help you attract more leads. Maybe it’s to help you get low-quality leads to self-select out. Maybe it’s to level up your brand overall. Regardless of what your true motivation for investing in a new (and much improved) website is, you’re probably also wanting it to make a little noise when it goes live.

But how do you make noise? Well, there are a few key things you’ll want to do if you’re hoping your website launch is going to go well. And that’s exactly what we’re going to cover. So, whether you’re wrapping up building a new website for your small business or in the early stages of getting start with a redesign, here are 3 tips to make sure you know how to launch a website with a bang!

Start building buzz before you launch a website

Kicking these tips off with the one most people forget to do—and that’s to build some buzz and excitement around your new website before it actually launches! And there are a couple of reasons you should do this as you get ready to launch a website. The first reason is you want to build some anticipation around your website launch because (when you do) you increase the likelihood someone will actually visit your new website on the day it goes live—and that’s a really good thing! The second reason is, despite how we feel, the reality is most people don’t see the content we share when we do share it. So, in order to increase the number of people who actually know you are going to launch a new website, you need to create more opportunities for them to find out.

Give people a reason to visit your new website

Another reality? As excited as you are to show off your new website, most people are going to need a real reason to visit it. Don’t get me wrong, you do have friends and followers who are going to check out your new website out of the genuine goodness of their hearts, but the others will need a real incentive. Maybe you run a launch day flash sale. Maybe you give away an awesome free resource. Whatever fits your business type and audience needs, come up with something that gets people to click through.

{Shannon, here, entering the conversation} My favorite way to incentivize people to visit your newly launched website and keep them on it??? Gamify the launch. Hide something on your website (i.e., a tiny heart icon, a fun image, a word in a different color, etc.), and create a scavenger hunt. Whoever finds the hidden item first, gets a prize. You could even have 3 winners. I’ve also seen people hide 5 things, not just 1, on their new website. The scavenger hunts are so fun and people actually participate. Plus, if you do it right, you can even collect their email addresses to add them to your email list.

Ask people to help you celebrate your website launch

Remember those friends who will visit your new website out of the goodness of their hearts I just mentioned? You can (and should) ask them to help you spread the word about your website launch too! The reason this is helpful is because celebrating your website launch doesn’t just end up as you “shouting into the void of the internet”. When you have friends sharing the news, it’s a good signal to all those algorithms we’re constantly battling, and it helps expand the reach of your news. Just be sure to give folks a few assets (graphics, images, swipe copy, etc.) that makes it really easy to share—the easier you make it, the more people who will celebrate alongside of you.

Need help making your website launch plan? Enji has a marketing campaign template for that!

First off, what is a marketing campaign?

Marketing has a lot of moving parts, so it’s okay to be wondering, “What in the heck is a marketing campaign?!” And you can stop holding your breath because the answer is simple. You can think of a marketing campaign as a specific marketing push you’re doing around a goal and in a specific timeframe (a.k.a. stepping on the gas pedal for a bit). They are things you do in additional to the regular marketing you’re hopefully doing on a regular/ongoing basis, and they help you focus a bit of effort on something in particular. Ahem—like your website launch.

Why your website launch deserves a marketing campaign

There is a common thread between all the tips I shared above, and in case you haven’t picked up on it (which is totally okay), the common thread is the need to drive traffic to your new website. And this is important for a few reasons.

As much as you’ll read through and test your website, you will miss things that are broken, mistyped, or look weird. And that’s because your brain will just go and “correct” things in your head. So, driving traffic to your website early is a great way to essentially get testers and extra eyes on it all so you can fix whatever needs fixing.
Getting people onto your website is hopefully going to give you a launch day bump in sales—and who doesn’t want to start making some of the money you invested in your new website sooner rather than later?
New websites (especially when you have a new domain) need to earn people’s and Google’s trust. So having an influx of people interacting with your website is a good signal that it’s a trusted website and resource.

But you won’t drive traffic to your new website by simply making it public—if you build it, they will not just come. And that’s why having a marketing campaign planned around your website launch is important! You’re not just leaving things to chance and you’re doing what’s needed to get what you want out of things.

Get a website launch checklist in Enji’s marketing campaign templates

My guess is you’ve read this much of this blog because not only are you getting ready to launch a new website but that you’re someone who does their own marketing too. And that means that while these tips are all very helpful, what you could really use is something that spells out your next steps. Well, today is your lucky day because Enji has tons of marketing campaign templates for you—including one to help you launch your new website!

Enji is marketing software for small business owners who have to do their own marketing but aren’t marketing experts. So in addition to getting you going with a website launch marketing campaign template, Enji is a place you can create your marketing strategy (in minutes), get a marketing calendar populated with recommended tasks, track your marketing metrics, and more!

Want to make sure your new website makes the noise you need and make the rest of your marketing a heck of a lot easier? Click here to start your free 14-day trial and get 15% off your first 2 months when you subscribe!

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