Go-to-market plan
Builds on Topic 11.
What you'll produce
A go-to-market (GTM) plan for launching your feature: the audience, the one-line message, the channels, the launch type and rollout, and the post-launch plan. This is the final capstone deliverable and proves the Topic 11 skills: launching deliberately, containing risk, and learning after release.
Instructions
- Audience & message: who this launch is for, and the one-sentence message — why they should care (a benefit, not a feature list).
- Channels: the 2–3 channels you'll use to reach them (in-app, email, social, blog/press, sales) and why those fit your users.
- Launch type: soft launch / beta / full GA — matched to the size and risk of the change, with a reason.
- Rollout & safety: how you'd release (e.g., feature flag, gradual 1%→10%→100%) and how you'd roll back if a problem appears.
- Success metric: the metric that tells you the launch worked (reuse Deliverable 4), defined up front.
- Post-launch plan: what you'll watch, how you'll gather feedback, and how you'll decide to iterate, double down, or roll back. Note team readiness (who needs briefing — support/sales).
Worked example
(Feature: personalized "why you started" reminder)
- Audience & message: New users in their first weeks — "Stay motivated: a nudge that reminds you why you started."
- Channels: In-app announcement (they're already here), a one-time email, and a short blog post for SEO/discovery.
- Launch type: Soft, gradual — it touches notifications, which are sensitive, so no big-bang.
- Rollout & safety: Behind a feature flag; roll out 1% → 10% → 50% → 100%, watching week-2 retention and opt-out rate; roll back instantly via the flag if opt-outs spike.
- Success metric: Sustained lift in week-2 retention with no rise in notification opt-outs.
- Post-launch: Watch the metrics for two weeks, read support tickets and reviews, ship copy/frequency fixes if needed, then share an honest recap (wins and misses) with the team. Brief support on the new reminder before rollout.
Rubric
Levels: Needs work (1) / Solid (2) / Excellent (3). Passing = every criterion at Solid or above.
- Audience & one-line message — 1: vague/feature-dump · 2: clear audience + message · 3: sharp audience and a benefit-led message.
- Channels fit the audience — 1: random/none · 2: reasonable channels · 3: well-justified channels for these users.
- Launch type matched to risk — 1: not addressed · 2: picks a type · 3: type clearly matched to change size/risk with a reason.
- Rollout & rollback safety — 1: big-bang/no safety · 2: mentions gradual rollout · 3: feature flag + gradual rollout + clear rollback.
- Success metric defined up front — 1: missing · 2: names a metric · 3: a clear, pre-defined success bar (tied to Deliverable 4).
- Post-launch plan — 1: "ship and move on" · 2: watches metrics · 3: measures, gathers feedback, iterates, briefs the team, shares results honestly.