Writing a product announcement seems easy at first. Just describe the new product and put your business name at the top of the page. The reality is a bit different, however. A new product announcement has to be both targeted and persuasive to be genuinely fruitful.
Take a look at what’s needed for a successful new product announcement.
#1 Know Your Target Audience
Who is the most likely buyer of your new product? A teenager isn’t going to want to buy a new set of kitchen knives, while a heavy metal music lover isn’t likely to want to hear your new classical music CD.
Knowing your target market allows you to tailor your product announcement to the people who are most likely to be interested.
#2 Open Straight to the Announcement
Don’t bury your announcement amidst your sales pitch. The first sentence of your product announcement needs to go straight to the point. “XYZ Paint announces our new line of premium interior paints and primers.” “John’s Knives now carries the supreme line of ABC Knives at our Main Street location.”
Leave the sales pitch for later in the announcement.
#3 Offer a Point-By-Point Description
Identify the benefits or highlights the new product offers to the target audience. Keep the description focused on those benefits. Run them down point-by-point. “Superior sharpness due to the high-quality steel used.” “35 new colors in flat, matte, and gloss finishes.”
Use descriptive language that conveys what’s unique about this new offering.
#4 Don’t Get Too Descriptive
A common mistake made in product announcements is adding too many details. Think of a product announcement like a movie preview. You want to pique a consumer’s interest, but don’t want to tell the whole story. Make the announcement easy to read and easy to skim. Offer the main highlights only. You don’t need to include all the ingredients in a new food product or all the song names on a new album.
Adding too many details will make many people stop reading before they get to the call-to-action.
#5 Create a Call-To-Action
This is where you do your sales pitch. You want to guide the consumer to take a specified action: buy your new product. “Stop by the store to see the entire color palette of XYZ Paints!” “The first 100 customers get 20% off.”
Always include details on how, when, and where to get your new product. They can’t buy it if they can’t find it.
#6 Distribute It
The final step is a successful new product announcement is to get it out to the public. An online press release distribution service is an effective way to do this. They will take the announcement and distribute it to news outlets and other entities that can spread the word.
Creating an effective new product announcement does take a bit of research and time. However, when you start to see the new product fly off the shelves, you’ll think it’s well worth it. When is your next product coming out? It’s time to get started on that announcement.