What's New: Pre-launch marketing strategies for founders

(from the latest issue of the Indie Hackers newsletter)

What's your pre-launch marketing strategy?

• From maximizing The Golden Hour, to planning multiple launches, here's how you can build the most effective pre-launch strategy for your product.
• Do you need expert help, but can't justify the cost of hiring for a full-time role? Dru Riley talks hiring a fractional executive, and only paying for what you need.
• Founder Geoff Young built and failed, built again, and failed again. Below, he shares how he protects his mental health even when things are rocky, and why he hasn't yet bought a new pair of jeans.

Want to share something with over 100,000 indie hackers? Submit a section for us to include in a future newsletter. —Channing

📝 Pre-Launch Marketing Strategies for Founders

by Sanat Mohanty

I'm launching soon on Product Hunt, and wondering about pre-launch marketing. What's your process for preparing to launch?

A quick, dirty list

Bhavika Chauhan shares a list of quick tips:

1. Secure your audience before launch.
2. Start early.
3. Release teasers.
4. Run a contest.
5. Build hype through influencers.
6. Create a press kit.
7. Throw a launch party.
8. Use Amazon Live.
9. Run audio ads.
10. Connect with niche communities.

Launch tips

Nithin Jawahar interviewed several founders whose products ranked in the top three on Product Hunt, and here are some of the common tips that they shared:

1. Build a waitlist before launching: Do this either through a lead magnet or by setting up a pre-launch offer.
2. Don't stick to just one channel: Promote your launch in multiple communities. The more, the better!
3. The Golden Hour: The first hour of your launch is the most crucial time. If you get enough upvotes to crack the top three in first hour, you will most likely retain your spot there.
4. Be active on Product Hunt: The more active you are in the community, the better engagement you'll get for your launch.
5. Optimize your product name, tagline, and thumbnail: Make sure to use copywriting frameworks like AIDA or PAS to write your product tagline, description, and first comment. Make sure it is optimized for clicks.

I run The Big Bang Launch Newsletter, where we interview the founders behind the top three Product Hunt products about their launch strategies!

Coming soon

Eylul Danisman previously launched two products on Product Hunt:

Both of our products entered the top five. I can give a few recommendations based on my experience:

1. Coming soon: In the "Coming Soon" section, you can make a page for your product and collect subscribers. Keep your subscribers posted about your launch day plans.
2. Audit: You will get a lot of feedback at launch, both good and bad. The way to prevent bad reviews is to test upfront. Conduct a free self checkup on Product Doctor to improve your product.
3. Be online: The first hours on launch day are important. I recommend launching your product at 7 AM UTC. Try to get organic upvotes and comments within the first two hours.
4. Post-launch: Reach out to interested users after launch!

Multiple launches

Bengin Cetindere recommends launching more than once:

You shouldn't have just one single launch. Try launching a new version or feature semi-regularly.

The great thing about launching multiple times is that you can validate your idea early instead of waiting for the big launch day. Don't limit yourself to just one launch!

The right timing

Leon Ou recommends launching on Monday or Tuesday:

Since the week is starting, these are the best day to get engagement, in my experience.

Find a "Hunter" to upvote your product. Your Hunter's followers will receive the notification, and since they are already familiar with the Hunter, they are more trustworthy.

Launch as soon as the day starts. If you don't launch early in the day, your product's showing time will be less than others.

What are your top pre-launch strategies? Share in the comments below!

Discuss this story.

📰 In the News

from the Growth Trends newsletter by Darko

🤖 The future of AI in content marketing.

💻 Reddit has launched "Reddit for Business" to help marketers.

🔗 Four types of local links, and how to earn them.

🗣 Advertising essentials to increase your ROI.

👩‍🏫 Online tutoring side hustles are in demand.

Check out Growth Trends for more curated news items focused on user acquisition and new product ideas.

👩‍💼 Fractional Executives: Leadership-as-a-Service

from the Trends.vc newsletter by Dru Riley

Why it matters

You can work with experienced executives on an as-needed basis.

Problem

You need expert help, but can't justify the cost of hiring for a full-time role.

Solution

Find a fractional executive, and only pay for what you need.

Players

Fractional executives:

• Maciej Cupial (Trends Pro Member): Fractional CTO at Podcast Hawk.
• Kevin Whelan (Trends Pro Member): Fractional CMO who teaches you how to become an advisor.
• Jeffrey Fidelman: Fractional CFO specializing in fundraising.
• Neil Portus: Fractional CFO for growth companies.
• Michael Truog: Fractional CTO with decades of experience at every level.

Hiring platforms:

• byDesign: On-demand marketing subscription-based platform.
• Shiny: Fractional talent marketplace.
• Business Talent Group: Hire fractional executives.
• Passionfruit: Hire a world-class fractional CMO.
• Continuum: On-demand executive talent.

Predictions

• Fractional executives will launch agencies to scale, and focus on high-leverage activities. Trevor Longino spent a decade as a fractional CMO before starting his own marketing agency. Anna Sullivan is a fractional CMO who started her own social media agency called The Creative Exchange. Marissa Goldberg is a fractional Head of Remote who started Remote Work Prep.
• Fractional executives will offer white-label solutions for common needs. Nick and Char offer white-label subscriptions and referral solutions for e-commerce businesses as fractional CTOs. Mark Preston is a fractional CMO who founded Stopgap SEO to offer a standard solution for link building and technical audits.
• Startups and small businesses will hire fractional general counsel. Lawyers are an expensive, but necessary, business tool. 1010 Tires CEO Sophia Volpov hired fractional general counsel with e-commerce experience. ParticipACTION saved money on traditional legal fees by paying fractional general counsel an hourly rate without a retainer.

Opportunities

• Reduce time to hire. Fractional executives can be hired quickly, saving months of recruiting time. MVP Health Care Inc. pivoted to telemedicine. It needed to go to market without waiting to find the right CMO candidate, so Arlyn Davich joined as fractional CMO to develop its marketing strategy quickly. The CTO of A.T. Cross quit unexpectedly. The company hired a fractional CTO to solve critical systems issues and improve projects. Joyce Ripianzi joined a nonprofit that was in urgent need of a CFO as fractional CFO.
• Become a fractional executive to improve your lifestyle with flexible employment. Beejeel Parmar became a fractional COO so he could travel and homeschool his children. Nicholas Zeisler uses the flexibility of being a fractional Chief Customer Officer to spend time in the Colorado mountains and ski at his leisure. Amanda Rabideau became a fractional CMO to gain autonomy over her clients and schedule.
• Set specific KPIs for your fractional executive to focus on. Kinley Corp hired Robert Mohr as fractional CFO, and reduced the time it took to complete monthly accounting by 50%. ConnectWise hired Angus Robertson as fractional CMO, and increased its pipeline by 118%.
• Hire a fractional executive to automate workflows, saving time and money. Lawline hired a fractional CFO to build an automated forecasting and budgeting tool for the leadership team. Cireson hired Kristy Facchini as fractional CFO to implement automated cash flow processes and NetSuite for ASC606 compliance.

Risks

• Short-term mindset: Make sure that your fractional executive optimizes for long-term success. Short-term incentives harm long-term success.
• Bad fit: The executive you hire might not be right for you or your business. You may need to try multiple executives before finding the ideal team member.
• Team buy-in: Your team needs to understand and accept the value of a fractional executive.

Key lessons

• Learn from them: Fractional executives should be knowledgeable executives who have been in your shoes before. Solicit advice and input.
• Hire specialists: One advantage of working with fractional executives is that you can hire a wider breadth of team members.
• Integrate your fractional executive with the rest of the team: An executive will have a stronger impact if they have visibility into how the team operates.

Hot takes

• Fractional executives will accelerate the overemployment trend. Executives will overwork themselves to maximize income.
• Fractional executives will create niche job titles. In-demand workers will be incentivized to commoditize, and sell their best skill to as many businesses as possible.
• Fractional executives will avoid office politics. They will be more focused on getting the job done in a limited timeframe.

Haters

"How is a fractional executive better than hiring an agency?"

Fractional executives take on more responsibility than an agency. They take full ownership and act as a point person for specific areas of your business, like budget-setting, hiring, firing, and building processes. They should be held more accountable than an agency.

"Fractional executives don't have the same impact as a full-time employee."

It's true that they cannot make the same time commitment. In many cases, fractional executives will have a greater impact on a per hour basis.

"Fractional executives won't understand my company as well as I do."

They aren't supposed to. Fractional executives have specific skills that can be used in a variety of businesses. You and your full-time team members know your product inside and out. Specialists should be used to leverage that knowledge.

"Isn't this the same as hiring an interim executive?"

No. Interim executives are hired on a full-time, but temporary, basis. They implement immediate change until permanent leadership is found. Fractional executives are part-time leaders who should be working towards the long-term success of your business.

Links

1. Examples of Fractional Executives: The tweet behind this report.
2. How a Fractional Chief Operating Officer Can Help Your Business Grow Sustainably: A guide to hiring and correctly utilizing a fractional COO.
3. What Makes Fractional CIO Engagements in SMEs Successful? A Research Framework: Academic research on analyzing the success of a fractional CIO.

Related reports

• Remote Work: Remote work is accelerating the fractional executive trend.
• Consulting: A fractional executive is similar to, but less engaged than, a consultant.
• Agencies: Many fractional executives transition to running agencies.

More reports

Go here to get the Trends Pro report. It contains 200% more insights. You also get access to the entire back catalog and the next 52 Pro Reports.

Discuss this story, or subscribe to Trends.vc for more.

🌐 Best Around the Web: Posts Submitted to Indie Hackers This Week

💪 Name one thing that you want to achieve in 2023. Posted by Arz.

🛑 How to prevent your website from being stolen. Posted by Stan Bright.

🛠 I'm learning to code. Posted by Kaleb Smith.

🎄 Are you working over the holidays? Posted by Ryan Randall.

💡 An idea validation strategy. Posted by Fabio Jonathan Arifin.

👀 How much time do you spend looking at competitors' products? Posted by John Bae.

Want a shout-out in next week's Best of Indie Hackers? Submit an article or link post on Indie Hackers whenever you come across something you think other indie hackers will enjoy.

🧠 Geoff Young Talks Mental Health

by James Fleischmann

Founder Geoff Young quit his job and went for broke on his product. Turns out, it didn't go so well. But, he learned a thing or two about mental health, frugality, and moving quickly. Indie Hackers caught up with him, and here's what he had to say!

Going for broke doesn't always work

I was building an ask-an-expert app called Talktree, and it was taking a lot more time than I anticipated. So, I quit my job.

The goal was to get enough traffic to prove viability. This was in April 2021. I had $7K in my bank account, and two months of rent were already paid for. After two months, I planned on living in a tent for the rest of the summer, while building and validating.

But, the go-for-broke strategy didn’t work for me. It increased my anxiety, which affected my productivity.

After two months of this, I got a job working at a bike shop two days per week. At the same time, I got a place to live that was really inexpensive, so I was only without somewhere to live for a week. I kept working on Talktree for another four months, but I eventually suspended the project indefinitely. I was just always making changes. I was too feature focused.

Regaining his mental health

It was a lot of pressure, and I didn't handle it well. I was seeing traffic on the site, but people weren’t using it. I definitely felt a weight on my shoulders, and would feel manic depression at times.

I would start coding at 8 AM, and eat at my desk. By 2 PM, I felt pretty drained. From 2-6 PM, I'd work out, do chores, and scroll TikTok, Reddit, or YouTube. Then, I'd code for a couple more hours in the evening. While I was unemployed, I tried to do this seven days a week, but would get burned out weekly. So, when I got the part-time job, my schedule looked like that five days a week, with two days spent at the bike shop.

My mental health definitely improved at that point. I wasn’t worried about going broke anymore, and allowed myself to socialize and create.

I try to be present as much as possible, and it's easy to ruminate when staying inside my house all day. Doing sports, beyond just working out, really helps me with being present.

Trying again

After Talktree, I transitioned to building a habit tracker app. While working on it, I was getting a ton of targeted ads for habit tracker apps, and the market saturation really turned me away from trying to market it. Then, I dabbled with a Twitter competitor, but figured it'd be too much work.

I recently built a Geoguessr knockoff for mountain biking, but I met some resistance with it being a web app; iPhones remove exif data when uploading images to web. I just started on 80kbimages, a site where you can convert large image files to ~80KBs using a focus and blur effect. But, at this point, I haven’t finished the landing page yet.

I'm moving faster this time. For example, my images app is meant to convert large file sizes to small ones using a focus and blur effect. I’m working on a landing page, and will charge to do this image manipulation. If anyone bites, I’ll pay a freelancer to Photoshop the image, and think about coding it later.

The importance of building a brand

I was surprised by the importance of Twitter. If you have an audience, you can go through the process of creating a business much faster, and you get user feedback faster. I’ve seen indie hackers post consistently on Twitter using #buildinpublic, and gain an audience. Cool to see.

I tried to do that for a bit, but it didn't work out due to lack of effort on my part. I’ve always struggled with using Twitter because the content seems very inauthentic. I like using TikTok, but don’t post enough.

I'm trying to brand myself a bit more, so I’ve recently been spending my time on a portfolio page to position myself as an expert.

Frugality as a business strategy

My frugality has helped me. I’m in a position where I have little financial responsibility, and I've set myself up so that my income and expenses both even out to ~$1.7K a month.

I don’t own a car, my rent is $650 per month all-included, and I have no debt. My healthcare is $11 per month. I almost never eat out. And, I’m on my dad’s phone plan!

I try to use all the money that I make to fund my business. I desperately need a new pair of jeans, but that’s a day of working for myself, so I'm holding off.

Sometimes things work, and sometimes they don’t. You don’t know until you try. While Talktree didn’t pan out, the changes that resulted from quitting my job were for the better!

Discuss this story.

🐦 The Tweetmaster's Pick

by Tweetmaster Flex

I post the tweets indie hackers share the most. Here's today's pick:

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Special thanks to Jay Avery for editing this issue, to Gabriella Federico for the illustrations, and to Sanat Mohanty, Darko, Dru Riley, and James Fleischmann for contributing posts. —Channing