Most launches are announcements: silence, silence, TA-DA, please buy. The launches that work are documentaries, the audience watches the thing get built, weighs in on decisions, and by launch day they're not prospects, they're invested characters in the story. Bad boys move in silence; good launches don't.
“Bad boys move in silence, so do bad product launches. Tell people the launch is coming so they get their money ready.”
The documentary playbook
- Bank 10 to 20 behind-the-scenes posts before you announce anything: the sourcing, the mistakes, the samples arriving, the late nights. The build IS the content.
- Tease without dates: "it's coming soon" builds anticipation you control; a promised date you slip breaks trust you can't rebuild.
- Run polls as disguised market research: "here are five bonuses, which would you want?" Your audience designs the offer, and screenshot results go straight into the marketing plan.
- Capture emails in the comments: "drop your email and I'll send you first access." I've watched this work the same day it was posted, the algorithm rewards the comments, and you keep the list.
- One platform, done daily. The algorithm needs to be warm before launch day, and six thin channels can't compete with one hot one.
And the voice matters: I fired ghostwriters because no matter how skilled, the content just wasn't ME, now I record myself talking and build posts from the transcripts. A documentary only works if the protagonist is real. Let them watch you build it, in your own voice, and launch day stops being a pitch. It's a premiere.
Claire's own numbers
The framework, step by step
- 1
Bank 10–20 behind-the-scenes posts before you announce
anything: the sourcing, the mistakes, the samples arriving, the late nights. The build IS the content
- 2
Tease without dates
"it's coming soon" builds anticipation you control; a promised date you slip breaks trust you can't rebuild.
- 3
Run polls as disguised market research
"here are five bonuses — which would you want?" Your audience designs the offer, and screenshot results go straight into the marketing plan.
- 4
Capture emails in the comments
"drop your email and I'll send you first access." I've watched this work the same day it was posted — the algorithm rewards the comments, and you keep
- 5
One platform
done daily. The algorithm needs to be warm before launch day, and six thin channels can't compete with one hot one.
Claire's own framework from this essay, in the order she teaches it.
Source: Claire B. Soares, from her own travel business and live trainings.
Common Questions
How far before a launch should you start marketing?
Weeks. Bank ten to twenty behind-the-scenes posts about building the thing, so by launch day the audience is invested rather than being pitched.
Should you announce launch dates early?
Tease that it is coming without naming a date. Anticipation you control is an asset; a missed date is a broken promise.
How do you use polls in a launch?
As disguised market research. Let the audience choose between bonuses, then put the winning option in the offer and the results in the marketing plan.
Written By
Claire B. Soares
6× Condé Nast Top Travel Specialist, Certified AI Consultant, and founder of Travel AI University. $3.4B+ in enterprise travel software sold to Google, IBM, Boeing, the federal government, and the DoD; $16M+ in luxury travel sales with Up in the Air Life.
About Claire
