Launch

by Jeff Walker

  Perhaps you’ve been in a similar place before, wondering about a potential fork in the road. Lots of times, I procrastinate when it comes to making decisions. But this was one time I acted. I suspended my disbelief, filled out the order form, and mailed it off.

  The Road Less Traveled

  Robert Frost has an elegant and very famous poem about paths taken and not taken. And it seems a bit silly and a little grandiose to invoke that poem when I’m telling you about answering a direct mail ad. But that one action made all the difference.

  The product was simple—it came on a single 3.5-inch floppy drive. It taught the basics of direct marketing for information products. It was mostly about selling stuff on CompuServe and AOL—a couple of old, online services that acted as something of a gateway drug to the Internet back in the early 1990s.

  It might have been old school, but that one information product opened up a whole new world for me—the world of direct marketing and creating an online, information-based business. And that world has been amazingly good to me. Of course, the money and success didn’t come instantly, or even quickly for that matter. But it did come . . . and you wouldn’t be reading this book if I hadn’t answered that ad.

  A number of years ago I sent an email to Sheila Danzig, the creator and publisher of “Turn Your Computer Into A Money Machine.” I told her what her product had done for my life, and the impact it had made on my family. It was a joyful email for me to send, and I heard back from her the next day. She was thrilled to get my email and hear how she had contributed to my success.

  I know that feeling, because I get those types of notes and emails from my PLF students and clients every week—and reading those success stories never gets old.

  Just this morning I received an email from Franz Weisbauer, a Fulbright Scholar and a doctor in Vienna, Austria. He’s an internist with a clinical specialization in echocardiography (ultrasound of the heart). In 2010, he created an online training platform (along with his colleague Dr. Thomas Binder) to teach echocardiography to doctors and sonographers. Normally, this type of training would require traveling to three weekend seminars that cost $500 each. The story of this launch is not unlike many you’ve already read in this book. When Franz and Thomas first released the program with “Hope Marketing,” they had few sales. They had a great product, but it wasn’t selling at a level to make it a viable, ongoing business. Then Franz heard me speak about product launches at an event. He enrolled in my PLF training at the next opportunity and relaunched his site with a full PLF-style launch. The launch was a huge success and completely transformed his business. And it didn’t end with his initial launch—the business has grown to ten times its pre-PLF level. But volume of sales is only one measure of the success of a business. It’s an easily calculable one, but numbers don’t always paint the whole picture. Another measure is the impact—the number of lives that have been saved by the doctors and sonographers who have gone through Franz’s training.

  It’s that ripple effect that gets me so excited that sometimes it’s hard to sleep at night. I taught Franz how to launch his product, then his training helped thousands of doctors to treat tens of thousands of patients (and saved lots of lives along the way). Who knows the positive effect all those patients, with a new chapter added to their life, will have on the world?

  Your First Launch

  The next step is up to you. My goal in this book was to show you the process. A secondary goal was to make you realize that you can do this. I’ve seen it work over and over for my students . . . students from every walk of life and from all around the world.

  The key is to take that first step and to keep taking baby steps. If I can go from Mr. Mom with zero entrepreneurial experience to tens of millions of dollars in sales, you can certainly do it as well. If John Gallagher can go from food stamps to a six-figure business, you can do it as well. If Tara and Dave Marino can go from heartbroken parents to a half-million dollars in sales, you can do it as well.

  Don’t expect to make a million dollars with your first launch. Don’t expect to equal some of the outsized results I’ve told you about in this book. Don’t compare yourself to my million-dollar launches. Compare yourself to my first launch that did a modest $1,650 in sales.

  Expect to make some mistakes and learn a lot. Expect it to be a lot more work than you anticipate. Expect some frustrations and some late nights.

  And expect your first launch to be unforgettable.

  A Long Strange Trip That’s Barely Started

  It’s been an amazing ride.

  And every step of the way I’ve been forced to keep thinking bigger. To keep finding a bigger vision for myself.

  I’m not sure where PLF goes from here. I continue to work with my PLF Owners as they launch their businesses and products in every niche and market imaginable. I’ve now got students who are using it in the nonprofit world. Others keep urging me to take it into the corporate world.

  The one thing I know is that I would love to hear about your launch. As I said above, hearing those personal success stories never gets old.

  I long ago made enough money where I could take my foot off the gas pedal and coast into semi-retirement. But here I am, somewhere around 70,000 words into this book—because I wanted to reach more people. I wanted to reach YOU.

  PLF is proven. It will work for you. Just follow the steps I gave you in this book. Start building your list. Tap into the extra resources I have for you on our membership site for this book. Follow along on my blog. Plug into the PLF community.

  And then write to me and tell me about your success story. You can reach me at jeff.plf@gmail.com.

  Links and Resources:

  Your membership site for this book: http://www.thelaunchbook.com/member

  My personal blog: http://www.jeffwalker.com

  Acknowledgments

  The 18 years since I started my first business have been an amazing ride, and I often wonder how I got so lucky. But I didn’t get here alone. I’ve had so many people help me on this journey that it humbles me . . .

  This book is dedicated to my wife, Mary, who has always believed in and supported me so fiercely that it shocks me to this day . . . and to my two incredible children, Daniel and Joan—I don’t know what I did to deserve you.

  To Mom and Dad, who gave me such an incredibly loving, strong foundation for my life . . . and to Jim, Jean Marie, and Jon. I love you and thank you for who I am.

  Thanks to Virginia and especially Joe Jablonsky, who believed in me when everyone else was wondering why I was home taking care of the kids. And a special thanks to Catherine Jablonsky who was an unwavering supporter in so many ways in those early uncertain years.

  I’ve got so many other amazing people to thank . . .

  Reid Tracy, Brian Kurtz, and Rick McFarland gave me great feedback on this book and helped shape the early chapters. Scott Hoffman, Brendon Burchard, Michael Hyatt, and Chris Haddad helped me with feedback on the overall book concept.

  Thanks to Victoria Labalme for being so darn relentless with her bigger vision of this book. Thanks to my entire Plat Plus group who helped me brainstorm so many aspects of this book . . . and held me accountable through its long and painful birth.

  This book wouldn’t have been possible without my publisher Morgan James, who gracefully dealt with every curveball and missed deadline I threw at them. Thanks to David Hancock, Rick Frishman, Margo Toulouse. And a big thanks to my editor Vicki McCown, who killed dozens of my most grievous clichés before they made it to print.

  So many people helped me along my path in the early days of my business, including Sheila Danzig, Mike Reed, Frank Collar, Paul Myers, and Don Cassidy.

  John Reese and Yanik Silver told me I needed to start teaching people my product launch techniques, and John named PLF for me. That advice changed my life, and it changed the world.

  I’ve had so many incredible partners, teachers, and coaches over the years—and most of them have become close friends: m
y coach Dan Sullivan and his wife Babs, Tony Robbins, Eben Pagan, Frank Kern, Paulo Coelho, Jeff Johnson, Rich Schefren, Ryan Deiss, Dean Graziosi, Mike Filsaime, my muse Andy Jenkins, Steven Pressfield, my DWD buddy Lisa Sasevich, Tom Kulzer, Chris Knight, Chalene and Bret Johnson, Brian Clark and Sonia Simone, Don Crowther, Marie Forleo, my study buddy Dean Jackson, Joe Polish, John Carlton, Mike Koenigs, Kenny Rueter and Travis Rosser, Jason Van Orden and Jeremy Frandsen, Chris Zavadowski, Jason Moffatt, Yaro Starak, Perry Belcher, JB Glossinger, Randy Cassingham and all the Hotshots, Audri and Jim Lanford, John Rhodes, Clay Collins, Ray Edwards, Jeff Mulligan, Ed Dale, Dave Taylor, Tim Carter, Eric Wagner, Martin Howey, Greg Poulos, Jason Potash, Pam Hendrickson, my HW community, Charles Richards, Greg Clement, Trey Smith, the FT-Talk community, Holly Lisle, Beth Walker, Shannon Waller, Anne-Marie Pratt, Denise Gosnell, Brian Sacks, Tellman Knudson, Marlon Sanders, MaryEllen Tribby, David Frey, Chris Attwood, Janet Attwood, John Jantsch, Mike Hill, Jonathan Mizel, Jay Abraham, Dan Kennedy, and Gail Kingsbury. And, of course, the Buddies (LFODMF).

  Thanks to Diane Walker, who has been my amazing event planner for every live event I’ve done.

  Can’t forget my PLF Coaches, especially Alan Davidson, James Klobasa, Mark Coudray, Ridgely Goldsborough, Hubert Lee, Kurt Koenigs, Lou D’Alo . . . and especially Marc Evans—you’ve all helped me help my students. Thank you.

  Special thanks to Ted Pasternack, who’s brought his special magic to every PLF event I’ve ever put on. And a huge appreciation to all the “PLF Live” and Plat volunteers, including Gail, Leslie, Mel, Anthony, Michael, Jeremiah, Matt, Rebecca, Erin, Cindy, Joan, and Garrett.

  And a big sanity thanks to Billy Foster, Bryan Dear, and Mac Thomson.

  Another sanity check to Chris Barnes, Paul Wheeler, Rick Routh, and I’ll never forget Jon Nicholas.

  I wouldn’t be where I’m at today, and I wouldn’t be able to bring PLF to the world without my incredible team, including Marc, Mary, Shereen, Daniel, Mac, Pedro, Joy, Chereth, Larry, JR, and Paul. Special thanks to Betty Sampson, who is the true face of the company and sets the standard for customer support in the industry . . . Kristen Arnold, who is my tireless backup brain who uses her best cat-herding instincts to keep me in line. And Jon Walker, who I’ve been working and playing with longer than anyone.

  And what can I say about my Platinum and Platinum Plus mastermind groups . . . my brothers and sisters who are in the trenches fighting the good fight with me through every epic win and seemingly insurmountable challenge. I’m blessed to have you in my life on a daily basis.

  And, of course, the real stars of the show are my PLF Owners . . . who continue to inspire me every single day. Thank you.

  Glossary

  Please note: Some of these terms have multiple meanings and uses. This glossary gives definitions only as they’re used in this book.

  Affiliate Partner—a company or person who promotes another company in return for a commission on sales. Also see: Joint Venture Partner.

  Call to Action—when you ask or direct your prospect to do something. This is when you ask for some type of commitment—whether it’s subscribing to your list, leaving a comment, clicking a link, or buying your product. Typically, all communication you send to your list will have some type of call to action at the end of the piece.

  Circle of Awesome ™—system of alternating between Seed Launch, Internal Launch, and JV Launch so that the results build on each other.

  Client—someone who has already bought from you (as opposed to a Prospect, who is on your list but hasn’t bought yet).

  Conversion—the event where your prospect takes action based on your marketing. You’ve asked your prospect to take some action, and the conversion is when they commit to the action. It can refer to someone subscribing to your list, or it could be making a purchase.

  Customer—see Client.

  Internal Launch—a launch to your email list, where you don’t have any outside JV Partners or affiliates. This is the classic PLF-style launch as described in the first eight chapters of this book.

  Joint Venture Partner (or JV Partner)—almost synonymous with Affiliate Partner, although this term implies a closer working relationship with the partner.

  JV Launch—a launch that is primarily driven by Affiliates and Joint Venture Partners sending traffic into your launch sequence.

  Launch Conversation—the interaction between you and your prospects (as well as directly between your prospects) that naturally occurs during your Prelaunch Sequence. This interaction can give you enormous insight into your market—including the big objections to your offer and what parts of your messaging are resonating with your prospects.

  Launch List—the email list you build during your Prelaunch Sequence.

  Launch Sequence—your overall launch, including your Prelaunch Content and your Open Cart.

  List—your database of people you’ll be marketing to. Lists can be based in direct mail, social media, or email. However, in the context of this book we’ll focus primarily on email lists.

  List Host—a service for hosting and sending email to your email list. For recommended services, see my Resource Guide here http://thelaunchbook.com/resources.

  Offer—what you’re promoting to your prospects. Your offer includes your deliverables (including bonuses), your price, your payment terms, and your guarantee.

  Pre-Prelaunch Sequence—also known as Pre-Pre, this is the warm-up period before your prelaunch sequence starts.

  Prelaunch Sequence—a series of high-value content released before you launch to build excitement and anticipation for your product. The content can be in a variety of formats including video, PDF report, email, blog posts, etc.

  Natural Search Traffic—the visitors who come to your site through your listings in the search engines. Also referred to as “organic” or “natural” traffic.

  Open Cart—the time when you release your product for sale. Open Cart can refer to the actual day and time when you start taking orders and also to the entire period when your launch offer is available.

  Order Page—the page where your prospects actually make their purchase. This is where they put in their contact information and payment details and click the buy button. Typically, your Sales Page will have an “Add To Cart” or “Buy It Now” button, and that button will lead to your Order Page.

  Organic Search—see Natural Search Traffic.

  Paid Search—paid placement at or near the top of the search engine rankings. This advertising is generally sold on a quasi-auction basis.

  Paid Traffic—similar to Paid Search, except it’s on non-search engine sites, such as social media sites.

  PLF—Product Launch Formula®.

  Prelaunch Content (or PLC)—the material you release during your Prelaunch Sequence. It can take a variety of formats including video, PDF report, email, blog posts, etc.

  Product Launch Formula ® (or PLF)—pure awesomeness.

  Prospect—someone who is on your list or who is looking at your marketing, but who hasn’t bought yet. Once they buy, they become a Client or Customer.

  Rank—where you appear in the Organic or Natural Search listings for a given search term. Can also be used in a generic global sense—e.g., “great content can help you rank in Google.”

  Sideways Sales Letter ™—a key component of the Product Launch Formula that refers to the serial, sequenced nature of the Prelaunch Sequence and the entire PLF sales process.

  Sales Letter—a written sales message that makes the offer for a product.

  Seed Launch™—a simple PLF-style launch that is primarily used if you don’t have a product or a list. Can also be used if you have a concept for a new offer or product and would like to market test the idea before you spend a lot of time creating the product.

  Sales Page—the web page that hosts your Sales Letter or Sales Video.

  Sales Video—a video that makes the offer for a product.

  Squeeze Page—a simple page on your web sit
e that has a subscription form for your list. Visitors to the page have only one choice—they can either subscribe to your list to see more content, or they can leave the page. For recommended services for easily building squeeze pages, see my Resource Guide here http://thelaunchbook.com/resources.

  Teleseminar—a conference call where the host can present to a large number of people. Everyone calls into a number and enters a PIN code to access the call. The host of the call has controls that can mute everyone while he or she presents during the call. Teleseminars can be used to teach or present material, and they’re also great for making sales presentations. For recommended services for teleseminars, see my Resource Guide here http://thelaunchbook.com/resources.

  Web Host—a service for hosting your web site. For recommended services, see my Resource Guide here http://thelaunchbook.com/resources.

  Webinar—similar to teleseminars but presented over the web so attendees can see the presenter’s computer screen. Most often used to display a Powerpoint or Keynote presentation. For recommended services for webinars, see my Resource Guide here http://thelaunchbook.com/resources.

  About the Author

  Jeff Walker has literally transformed the way stuff is sold online. Along the way he’s become one of the top entrepreneurial and marketing trainers in the world.

  Back in the old days before he started teaching his “Product Launch Formula”, almost no one in the online entrepreneurial world talked about “product launches” and the idea of a “million dollar day” seemed almost ludicrous. But now, in the post-Product Launch Formula world, the million dollar (and multimillion dollar) launches hardly raise an eyebrow. They’ve almost become routine.

  But his techniques are not just for big gurus—he’s taught thousands of students (who operate in hundreds of niches), and they’ve generated more than $500 million in sales (and that number grows every day.)

  Jeff lives in Durango, Colorado where he pursues his passions for all kinds of outdoor fun. He lives with his wife Mary and their dog Jenny. And even though the children are out of the house, Jeff still has lots of adventures with them (especially on skis and mountain bikes).