15 Tactical Elements to Consider for an Integrated Business-to-Business New Product Introduction

Here’s a quick checklist that will be helpful when introducing a new product to the market. Keep in mind that proper planning can preclude disasters and production efficiencies can be gained when producing many elements concurrently. We will focus here on external tools. Internal sales training and other internal communications will be handled in another article.

  1. Sales tools. Develop content that speaks to customers’ pressing needs — such as speed to market, cost reduction, reliability, and reputation building. Consider foreign language version files to be supplied to regional offices for local printing and/or distribution. Elements could include the following:
    Product Brochure
    Product Data Sheet
    Product Safety Data Sheet
  2. Announce to the trades in the form of a press release at a minimum. A carefully written and placed news release, loaded with valuable content and high-resolution imagery, has a good chance of running in electronic and traditional media free-of-charge and provides a quasi, third-party endorsement.
  3. Print ad. Develop and consider placement in key target markets and regions. Consider language versions.
  4. Electronic banner ad. This can be placed on your website as a product feature or on paid electronic media with click-thru to more details on your website.
  5. Pull-up graphic. Prepare the file for a standard pull-up banner that can be taken in luggage to meetings/seminars/shows.
  6. Prepare quick-read announcement to email to customers and prospects.
  7. Rep/distributor tools. If the product is marketed through two-step distribution, reps need simple, ready-made tools to promote availability. A full complement might include ads, press release, literature, e-blast, and banner pull-up files that they can customize for their use.
  8. Update your website. Ideally, promote as a featured product on the homepage. You may consider a dedicated landing page if the announcement is significant. If part of a larger corporate site with less than ideal navigation, consider using a QR code in print materials or ads for easy access.
  9. Email signature/graphic. This can be a simple graphic and message like “Ask about the new XYZ product that may offer dramatic savings over what you are using now.” Supply to all sales personnel.
  10. Keep internal stakeholders aware of the new offering. The announcement can be packaged as part of an internal newsletter or e-blast announcement.
  11. Social media. Post on the appropriate social media your target audience participates in. Most likely you should include LinkedIn and Facebook.
  12. Simple video demonstration of key benefits can be posted on YOUTUBE. If salient benefits are difficult to see/convey, consider computer illustration or animation with exploded views of key details.
  13. If the product is solving a pain point in the industry, develop a webinar that objectively irritates the problem and presents the solution in a non-commercial manner.
  14. White paper. This piece should provide technical information about the product or technology in a non-commercial manner. Technical papers can be posted like trade media online as part of a lead generation program and/or posted on your website as part of your content marketing strategy.
  15. Case history/success/user story. Customers value hearing how the product solved a problem. Strive to get a customer to agree to share their story. Details on this are provided in other articles.