There is no such thing as a launch

The obvious exception to the title above is if you’re in the space vehicle or model rocket business. When talking about businesses, products, ebooks and the like, what is frequently termed a “launch” is just the beginning of another frantic work cycle.

What launch really means in business terms

The moment in time we refer to as “launch” is actually when, for a week or a month, the frantic work begins to promote that the product is ready to go. You need to generate interest and revenue quickly to cover the costs of bringing the dream to life. So while you might be tempted to think of the launch as the completion of the project, it’s really just one stepping stone in the development of a business venture.

Somewhere in the middle of this frantic promotion cycle, you will realize that several things are broke and need fixing. You’ll also realize that some features you thought could wait are going to be needed to reach the sales goals you expected. Now you are managing sales and development aspects of the project all post-launch. It’s right about now that your project or business is not feeling very complete.

It’s never done

The heading above is the key point of this post. A business that produces a sustainable income stream for you will never really be done; not until the moment you choose to pull the plug and retire the product. So there are touchdowns; that moment when it’s all over. You’ve had your fun and hopefully made some money along the way, but now it’s time to shut the venture down. That’s done. That’s a finish line.

It’s more likely you are “launching” what will become an ongoing concern. Sure, go ahead and have a launch party and enjoy the moment of having achieved some level of commercially acceptable product. As the party winds down, however, realize that the real work has just begun. Perhaps it’s the realization that you need an affiliate marketing module to reach your sales goals. That’s what I’ve spent a fair amount of time figuring out over the last six months. If all goes well, and with a little luck, we’ll add that module to our ProofPass.com product line in the next couple of weeks.

It’s never really cheap or easy

If bringing products and services to market that provide sustainable revenues streams was cheap and easy, everyone would be doing it. Plan on multiple months of hard work and multiple thousands of dollars of investment before your product will be market ready. Then plan on years more of hard work and tens of thousands of dollars reinvested in your dream.

Once your project is in orbit it gets a bit easier, but even an orbiting space station needs maintenance and an occasional course correction to make sure it doesn’t crash back to earth. Smooth orbits and soft landings – that’s the goal.

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