Launch lessons I learned in Q2
Including the dumbest mistake I didn’t realize I was making 🙈
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If you’ve been around here since year start or before, you’d know I finally packaged my strategy service into a product-led content library and launched it last quarter.
If you are new, well… now you know.
The launch vibe?
Me wearing my big girl pants and getting out of my own way.
A lot of excitement. But equally, a lot of nervous energy. It almost felt a lot like holding my breath (yeah, think that’s the best way to put it).
Anyway, the launch got better traction than I expected. Bringing in 7 perfect-fit offer takers, ideal for a high-ticket service.
Of course, I learned a bunch of lessons too — some mistakes, some observations around making a launch better if I were to release something again.
And I figured they were worth sharing, especially considering how many of you are rolling out new features lately 👀
I have a hunch a lesson or two will hit home. Send a quick reply and tell me if I’m right.
On we go:
1. A launch is only as successful as the story behind it
Because the story makes people feel like they’re in it with you, helping you show your human side.
And gives you a way to explain your why, which you can’t really skip if you want people to care.
And yess, sharing the story means getting more vulnerable than you’d expect.
I told you about how I was holding myself back, didn’t I? That wasn’t easy — opening up like that.
Which brings me to the next lesson learned.
2. Get comfortable with the uncomfortable
Back in the day, I never sent more than one email per week.
I’d occasionally pull back the curtain to share a peek behind the scenes.
But the launch?
I sent more emails than I ever had — and it made me squirm.
Because didn’t that mean I was asking for more of your time? Taking up more space than usual?
And I didn’t just share a peek. I took you on a full behind-the-scenes tour. From cracking the curtain open… to tearing the whole railing down.
Not going to lie, it FELT LIKE A LOT.
But it also brought in way more connections, replies, and traction than I'd expected.
So yeah, getting uncomfortable paid off.
Now, I get it: the instinct might be to play it safe. But in B2B, the discomfort is usually where the attention lives.
P.S. You’ll never have every last detail wrapped in a bow before the launch — I sure didn’t.
Heck, I didn't even have the right software to let people opt out of the launch emails (unless they unsubscribed entirely).
In fact, someone had just subscribed — the kind of person I’d hoped would find this offer useful — and got swept up into the launch emails. And I cringed hard on their behalf.
Turns out? They were the first to take the offer.
Well, damn!
3. That assumption you’re making? You’re probably wrong (and that’s fine)
My biggest assumption, everyone knows what product-led content is, was the dumbest mistake I made.
And I only realized it after the launch!
This, despite 8+ years in the industry, I still assumed.
Also, halfway through the launch, it finally sank in:
I wasn’t just repackaging a service — I was building a category.
I’d been doing this work for years. But now that I was naming it, shaping it, and giving it structure, it needed way more explanation than I’d expected.
(Which, ironically, my coach had already warned me about!)
The cost of that assumption? The launch didn’t land as well on LinkedIn, especially compared to how well it did here, in the newsletter.
But you’ll only get that part when you read the next, related mistake.
4. Channel nuance is real (ignore it and you’ll miss the mark)
I’ve done a lot of content repurposing for better distribution over the past few years.
And I’ve always stressed the importance of channel-fit — matching what you say to what each platform’s audience is actually hungry for.
But in the thick of launch fog? I almost forgot that.
It wasn’t until after the launch that it hit me:
You already have a fair idea of what product-led content is.
But LinkedIn folks? It’s mixed there. Some people are familiar.
Others need more context, especially around what product-led content actually means, not just why it matters.
5. The launch is not the finish line
Since I’ve been doing this work before officially launching it, I thought I already knew who’d benefit from a product-led content strategy and execution the best.
(PLG companies without mature content teams — where marketing leads are juggling content with a writer or two, but no strategist to plan the big picture).
And I wasn’t wrong.
But boy am I glad I didn’t stop there.
Because when a Director of Content at PLG company said she’d love to work with me, I did a double-take.
It literally caught me off guard — I’d assumed content leaders already had the structure to build a product-led library themselves.
Turns out, not always.
But you see that, don’t you? I didn’t have that insight on launch day. And I wouldn’t have learned it if I hadn’t stuck around to catch the post-launch signals.
By sticking around after the splash, you don’t just get more interest — you get sharper intel.
You see who’s raising their hand, how they’re interpreting the offer/new feature, and where your assumptions were off.
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Alright, I think that’s enough reflecting out loud for one launch.
Did any of this resonate? I’d love to hear what landed — or what you’re learning from your own launch lately.