There are few times more exciting in a company than during a product launch. Anticipation brews and a sense of optimism emerges around the prospect of a growth in market share.
Still, a question always arises when a new product launches: do enough people know about this product launch for it to be successful?
There are multiple avenues to communicate through during a product launch — ads, social media, PR, and blog promotion, to name a few. Yet one of the most underrated and effective communication methods to alert internal and external stakeholders is a product launch email.
Not only can product launch emails be used for raising awareness of the product launch outside of your company, but they can also be used to communicate vital information about the launch to those inside of your company.
In this post, we'll walk you through the steps for writing three different types of product launch emails, include some suggestions for your product launch email subject lines, and outline the ideal product launch email sequence.
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Internal Product Launch Email
You'll want to share an internal product launch email with your entire company on either the day of or prior to your product launch. With this email, you'll want to turn all of the employees at your company into an enthusiastic, well-informed word-of-mouth marketing team by providing them with:
- An overview of the product.
- Why employees should be excited about it.
- "Lazy copy" for email and social media that employees can copy and paste.
Here's an outline of an internal product launch email. You can also download it as a template with more details.
1. Subject Line and Preview Test. Keep the subject line at or under 12 words. We'll provide a list of examples below.
2. Greeting and Tl;dr. Just like you, the employees at your company are busy, so capture their attention with a quick hello and a 1-2 sentence overview on the product launch.
3. What is it? Give your readers the very basic info on your product, like what it's called, what it does, when it's available to the public, and how much it costs. You should also include an image so readers have a visual reference.
4. Why it Matters. Why should your employees be excited about this launch? You can go a little more in-depth here, so explain what void this product fills in the market and what opportunity you're seizing on to expand your market share, delight more users, and expand your customer base.
Some questions you can answer in this section are:
- Does this update address a common customer complaint?
- Are you bringing your product up to par for the market you're in?
- Do you have statistics or revenue projections to prove the importance?
5. How it Works. In this section, give a brief overview of the steps required to get or use this product/feature. How do your customers sign up? Are there any usage limitations? Anticipate frequently asked questions — particularly from salespeople, marketers, account managers, and support reps — and try to reduce confusion upfront.
6. Who It's For. If you haven't already covered it, say who the intended audience for this product is, or if any users will automatically see this new feature. This section is particularly important for regional or language-specific products.
7. Where to Go With Questions. Provide the contact info and name of the person or people who are best equipped to answer any questions about the product, its launch, or its promotion.
8. Lazy Copy. You'll want to make it as simple as possible for employees to share the product launch over email or social media. Provide sample text and URLs that can be copied and pasted — or better yet, pre-made social links from a site like Share Link Generator.
Here's an example of lazy copy for every situation.
- Twitter: We've just launched [Product Name] here @[Company Name]! This new feature will let you [List Main Benefit]. Click here to learn more about it >> [Insert URL].
- LinkedIn: It's an exciting day here at [Company Name]! Today, we're announcing our launch of [Product Name] – a new product that [List One or Two Major Benefits or Features].
We're thrilled to finally share this with our customers. Learn more at our website, and reach out to me if you have any questions about the new product! [Insert Product Page URL] - Email:
Hi [First Name],
Exciting news! I'm reaching out to let you know that [Company Name] has just launched our new [Product Name]. This feature will [List One or Two Major Benefits or Features].
If you've been struggling with [Issue this Product Solves], I think [Product Name] would be a big help. If you're interested in learning more about it, feel free to reach out to me to set up some time to chat. You can also learn more about it on our website here >> [Insert Link].
Let me know if you have any questions or want to talk more.
Thanks!
[Your Name]
Internal Product Launch Email Subject Lines
Need a good email subject line for your internal product launch announcement email? Try one of these on for size.
- It's Time! [Product] is now live. Click to learn more!
- We just launched [Product] – And we need your help
- [NOW LIVE]: [Product] is available to the public
- [Product] launches today. Here's what you need to know.
- The moment you've all been waiting for: [Product] is here.
- [PLEASE READ]: Everything you need to know about [Product].
- [Product] goes live today. Help us spread the word!
Internal Product Launch Update Email
The internal product launch update email is best shared with direct stakeholders in the product launch. For example: product marketers, product managers, designers, and social & PR.
These emails should be sent routinely leading up to the official product launch (every week, every other week, etc.) and provide readers with actionable steps on what has happened since your last email, what needs to be done, and whether or not you're on track for launch.
Here's an outline of what your internal product launch update email should look like. You can also download it as a template with more details.
1. Subject Line and Preview Text. Keep the subject line at or under 12 words. We'll provide a list of examples below.
2. Days Until Product Launch. Reiterate the scheduled date of the product launch in addition to how many days remain.
3. Major Updates. List out any major updates that have occured between the previous email and this one. For example: a bug was fixed, final designs were approved, or you secured placement in a leading circuit on announcement day.
4. Resources. Link out to shared documents, the campaign planning spreadsheets, or any other resources that your team may need to reference this week.
5. Progress Against Goals. Remind your team of the overarching campaign goals in this section and provide a status update (complete, meeting, exceeding, or lagging).
6. Updates by Team. Run through brief status updates and developments from each team. This is also a great place to share each team's focus for the upcoming week.
7. Questions or Comments. Encourage recipients to reach out to you directly with any questions.
Internal Product Launch Update Email Subject Lines
Choose a subject line for your internal product launch update emails and make it the standard for whenever you send out your updates.
- [Date] Bi-weekly [Product Name] Update
- [#] Days Until [Product]: This Week's Update
- [Product] Launch Status: Today's Action Items
- New from [Company]: A Solution for [Main Problem]
- [Product]: A Solution to Your [Problem]
- Available Now: [Product], the Solution to [Problem]
- [Product] is Now Available. Here's How You Can Get it.
- Problems With [Problem]? Try [Product] – New from [Company]
- At Last – A Solution to Your [Problem]
- Meet [Product]: A New Product to Help You [Benefit]
External Product Launch Email
The time has come to share your exciting new product with the world.
If you have an established list of loyal contacts in your CRM, create a list of the recipients you think would benefit from the product launch email. While you can send out a mass email to all of your contacts, it makes sense to group your contacts together by their lifecycle stage or their interests so that you're prioritizing customers who would be most interested or ready for your new product.
Here's how you might want to format an email to your contacts to encourage them to buy or learn more about your new product.
1. Subject Line and Preview Text. Keep the subject line at or under 12 words. We'll provide a list of examples below.
2. Greeting and tl;dr. Like your fellow employees, your customers are also very busy. Don't bury the lede — start the email off with the big news! Buzzwords like "new," "big news," or "now available" would be good to implement here, alongside a quick overview of what the product is called, what it does, and an image of the product.
3. Overview of the Product. Provide a high-level summary of what the product is, why it was made, and what it does.
4. Key Features. List the key features or benefits of this offer. If you have a product demo video, you may want to link to it here.
5. Call-to-Action. Leave your contacts with an actionable next step. Do you want them to reply to you with questions? Sign up for a demo? Check out the new product page on your website? Whatever your desired next step is, make it abundantly clear with a link or by bolding the action.
External Product Launch Email Subject Lines
Want to grab the attention of your contacts? Try one of these product launch email subject lines:
- New from [Company]: A Solution for [Main Problem]
- [Product]: A Solution to Your [Problem]
- Available Now: [Product], the Solution to [Problem]
- [Product] is Now Available. Here's How You Can Get it.
- Problems With [Problem]? Try [Product] – New from [Company]
- At Last – A Solution to Your [Problem]
- Meet [Product]: A New Product to Help You [Benefit]
Product Launch Email Sequence
To spread the word for your product launch more efficiently, consider enrolling your contacts into an email sequence in your email marketing software. Here are the steps you might want to follow:
Internal Product Launch Email Sequence
- Introductory Email: Alert the employees the product development is in progress and why.
- Pre-Launch Email: Let employees know when the product is set to be launched and what is expected of them on launch day.
- Launch Day Email: On the day of the product launch, alert all employees the product is available to the public and provide share links.
- Follow-up Email: After some time has passed, send employees an update of your performance against goals, and a reminder of how employees can help the product launch be more successful.
External Product Launch Email Sequence
When you want to build anticipation among your contacts, consider an external product launch email sequence. This can be used to gradually increase your prospects' interests before and after the product comes out.
Remember: you may only want to enroll people in this sequence that meet certain qualification criteria.
1. Pre-Announcement Email. This email comes once you feel the product is in a good place and you're comfortable announcing its release date to the public. It should include a basic description of the product in addition to an expected time frame. We'd suggest not identifying an official launch date unless you are absolutely confident the date you have chosen is accurate — you never know what could go wrong between now and then, so it's best to play it safe.
2. Announcement Email. This email should be the official email announcement of your product. We've outlined what should be included in this email in the section above, but remember to keep the content in this email short, informative, and actionable.
3. Follow-Up Email. This email should be sent to the contacts you feel would be a good fit for your new product but didn't follow up with your original email. Kindly remind them that you think they would benefit from this new product and you're excited to hear if they're interested.
How to Know When to Delay a Product Launch
To understand when, and why, you might hold off on a product launch, I spoke with Alex Girard, a Product Marketing Manager at HubSpot. Girard told me there are three key reasons why you might want to delay a product launch, including:
- When your product itself isn't ready, and you need to change your timeline to create the best customer experience possible.
- If a situation occurs where your current customers are having a less than optimal experience with one of your current products. Before launching and promoting a new product, you should make sure your current customers are satisfied with your existing product offering.
- If something occurs on an international, national, state, or local level that requires your audience to readjust their priorities and shift focus away from your company and its product launch. Make sure that when the time comes to launch, your target audience is ready to learn about your new product.
Product Launch Email Templates
Remember, you can save time by using product launch planning and email templates. You can download free product marketing email templates here in our Product Marketing Go-To-Market Kit.
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