Three Steps for a Successful Launch

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Creating a successful launch in business can be overwhelming and intimidating. Listen as launch and systems expert Kari Roberts from Kari & Company breaks it down into three easily implementable steps for a low stress and high reward offer or service launch.

Kari & Company is an Online Business Services agency that creates, implements, and manages simple systems for coaches and consultants so that they can expand their impact. Our vision is to create impact, deeper connections, and a great place to work for our team members and the female-owned coaching and consulting companies we serve.

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The episode:

Katrina Widener: Hi, everyone it's Katrina and I'm very excited because this week we are here with Kari Roberts. Kari and I met through one of the previous experts, and she is an online entrepreneur who helps make systems for coaches and consultants. So I'm really excited to have her talk today. We're going to be like really digging into planning for a successful launch. But before we get into all the nitty-gritty details, Kari if you wouldn't mind introducing yourself really quickly to all of the listeners.

Kari Roberts: Hello, Katrina and all of the listeners. Thank you so much for checking out this amazing podcast. My name is Kari Roberts and I'm actually the CEO and lead online business manager for Kari and Company. And Kari and Company is an online business support company. We provide online business management with creating systems and SOPs, ongoing support launch strategy, helping with hiring teammates, letting them go if we have to, and also administrative VA support for coaches and creatives that really need help with the back end of their business so that they can show up more fully for their clients and consultants and also expand their impact.

Katrina Widener: Thank you so much for sharing that. I also want to just really quickly let you know that I think what you guys do is really amazing because so many entrepreneurs start their business being like, "I know how to do the thing, but what's all this business shit I need to take care of?"

Kari Roberts: Exactly.

Katrina Widener: "How do I do all of that?"

Kari Roberts: And especially when people start, you are always in a position where you have to do everything. And so I find that there's a mental shift especially when you're crossing that "Okay, I really shouldn't be doing all of these things. I might've been doing all of these things to get here, but I don't need to to get there. So let me start finding somebody that can help me. So I can get there.

Katrina Widener: Yes, that makes so much sense and it is just one of those things that can be super, super impactful by just getting a little bit of help. So what you guys do is amazing and I'm here to toot your horn.

Kari Roberts: Thank you.

Katrina Widener: So today as I mentioned, Kari and I are going to be talking about planning and really clearing the noise and getting ready for a successful launch. She's talking a little bit about three different steps to take. So I wanted to just immediately dive right in and ask you, what is that first step? What is so important to tackle when we're really looking for a successful launch?

Kari Roberts: So the first thing is kind of like they say in AA, the first step is acknowledging you have a problem. So it's like acknowledging like, "Okay I want to do this launch, but obviously something is keeping me from doing it." Right? Because if you knew what to do, you would have already done it by now. So acknowledging there's something going on. And I used to run track in high school, so it kind of reminds me of when we would do those outdoor runs. When you have a run or a 5k or whatever, early in the morning it's usually crisp and gloomy. Sometimes it's foggy. And that fog to me is like that noise, all of that distraction that gets in the way of us going down that path. So we have to acknowledge it's foggy outside. There's definitely noise around me. And then figure out what is the noise, then try to do things to adjust it.

So in the world of business, the noise is going to be whatever is keeping us stuck. So it could be comparing ourselves to others. It could be something I suffered from as a long time when I was side hustling, is I would see mentors that had a whole different business model and want their success. So it's like, "I want to do what she's doing." But it's like, "No sweetie, you're not there. You need to stay in your lane." Or sometimes we might've had a failed launch and what's keeping us stuck is the fear of doing it again. Not hitting our numbers, not having the impact that we want. So really identifying that noise is seeing what is keeping us from propelling forward. And then whatever's keeping us from moving forward we have to do the opposite of it so that we can get it out of the way.

Katrina Widener: I think that that is such an important thing. And I'm glad that you started there because I feel like when people are thinking about launch that fear always comes up, but no one immediately thinks of "This is why I'm not doing it." They're just like, "I have these other things to do." Or I'm leaning into distractions or leaning into that noise that you're talking about. And so it really makes a ton of sense that when we are looking to have a successful launch to ask ourselves why we're not already taking the steps to do it.

Kari Roberts: Right. Cause once we have the successful launch, then we kind of shift into rinse and repeat. And then why aren't we launching? Oh, cause we just had a successful launch. We want to give it some space and increase the awareness, maybe do another runway. But until we get to that point, it's like there's obviously a reason why I haven't pulled the trigger yet.

Katrina Widener: I also wanted to like really quickly pause in the midst of these steps because I'm curious myself, how did you get started really focusing in on launches in the first place? Because it seems like you have a ton of amazing insights into this process and it makes a lot of sense for what you do. But as we're talking about this I was like, "Ooh, this is so interesting!" So how did you really get started focusing in on that?

Kari Roberts: So I don't specifically focus in on launch per se. I do a lot of launch strategy and support for clients. But I am a trained physical therapist and I've done that for over a decade and a half. And so as a physical therapist, you take in a ton of data, you analyze it and you create goals and plans for your clients or your patients. And so I feel like a lot of times that's what launching is in business. You've got to get enough data to figure out what to do. And then you need a plan which is usually like a launch strategy or runway, all of those things. But it's like kind of taking those skills that I learned in my corporate world and being like "Hmm, folks over here in the online space, I can see how they can benefit. And since my brain is already wired to analyze and be strategic, it just kind of fits together."

Katrina Widener: That makes so much sense. Thank you for breaking away from our topic for a second to satisfy my curiosity. Cause I was just like, "Oh my gosh, how did all of this come to be?" But anyway reining myself back in...

When we're talking about this three-step process, so we have that first step as really just admitting to ourselves why we aren't already doing it. How would you recommend people get started actually getting that self-awareness and sitting down and journaling about it, having a conversation with a coach or a consultant. There are a lot of people who are like, "I love all of these ideas, but I want to know the how."

Kari Roberts: It's going to be very specific for me personally, I'm an extrovert. I love to talk. So I usually need someone in my space that I can verbally process it too. So if you're someone like me, you might need to have a business buddy, or you might need to have a mentor that's maybe a step or two ahead. And I need that space to be able to just talk. And then once I talk about, "I don't know why I haven't set a date when I want a launch yet." "Well, why not?" "Well, it could be this or that." And by the time I talk through it now, I've put the answer out there.

Some people are very introspective and they might need that quiet space. They might need to be at a park or they might need to be in the room with the music on low, or you might have your calm app going and journaling might be a way. Journaling for me doesn't work because too much quiet, then I'm thinking of, "Oh I need to do this. Or I wonder when it's next time I need to water my plant or whatever." Some people with journaling that's where they really get centered. So it's going to be a little bit different, but I think as entrepreneurs if we take a step back and see "What's the activity that I do when I need clarity?" that's the activity that you should do when you're identifying what this noise is and what needs to change.

Katrina Widener: I appreciate you answering that question because I'm similar to you. I'm an extrovert. So I'm like, "Let me talk it out with people. Let me ask everybody to just reflect back to me what I'm saying to them."

Kari Roberts: Right.

Katrina Widener: But I am always trying to be cognizant of the fact that not everybody's quite as talkative and that they're going to be other people who process things differently. So thank you so much for going over that.

Kari Roberts: I have a client and she's on pace for her first seven figure year. But when she's looking for clarity as her OPM, she's like, "Give me the questions." So I will type her the questions and that's kind of what she uses as a springboard to journal through. But she can't just journal on her own and she can't just think through on her own. But it's like when she's got those prompted questions, someone that's strategic in her business, then usually she can come back in a couple of days and it's like, "Okay now I've got the clarity. Now I know what I'm working with."

Katrina Widener: That makes a lot of sense. And to everyone listening this is why it's beneficial to have someone like you in your corner. To just be like, "Okay, like let's figure this out together."

So when we're looking at the next step in the process, we've kind of figured everything out, gotten the clarity, and why we haven't been taking the steps forward. What is the action that we're going to be taking next?

Kari Roberts: So the next thing is we need to figure out who's going to be doing it. Are you going to be doing it yourself or are you going to be outsourcing or bringing someone on a project basis? And the example I use is last year I hosted my own summit and I knew I didn't know what I was doing so I kind of did a hybrid. I invested in help. I invested in a program that was going to walk me through all the steps that I needed, but then also my mom was just retired and I was dealing with some scarcity issues myself, and I didn't want to bring on a team member if I couldn't pay them the whole time. So I hired her to be my interim VA. So I kind of did a lot of it on my own, but I did outsource as far as getting information to help me do it on my own better. And then also took some stuff off of my plate. So that's the next step. Who's going to be running the ship. Are you going to be outsourcing?

I say, if you don't really know what you're doing, or you're doing a launch in a new way, or if you know, 100% your plate is full and there's no more room to give, or you're having an awesome year and you've got the cashflow -- even if you have the bandwidth, I would still outsource because you're going to allow an expert to come in and work in their zone of genius. And your launch is probably going to be that much better. Now if cashflow is an issue or you've done the launch before and you just need to do some minor tweaks and you've got the bandwidth, then I think doing it yourself is definitely an option. But again we're business owners, we're all about growing and being realistic and making the best decision for our businesses. So those are the things that you have to consider when you're deciding if you're going to do it yourself, or if you're going to outsource.

Katrina Widener: That is something that I think a lot of people need to hear because when we get into launches we're normally living in that scarcity mindset, right? I need to be making more money. I need to be making more money. This is why I'm doing the launch. Like I hope I get a lot of money from this. I hope that people sign up or buy or whatever it might be. And we don't often think that when we invest in something before the launch, it actually can bring us more money. Oftentimes people look at investing as something that happens after the money has been made and not necessarily as a way to make the money. It's just like a slight shift in how we're thinking about things. But I can always say that whenever I have invested in coaches or virtual assistants or experts or education, it has always at the end been what makes me more money. As opposed to what happens like I'm purchasing from them because I've made the money.

Kari Roberts: Right. And you know what? I've talked about this a hundred times, but it just hit me. It's like when you're applying for a corporate job. You usually invest in the time to get yourself prepared, making sure your clothes are ironed, you look nice and neat, you probably make sure you've got gas in your car. So those are investments that you do on the front end so that you can show up as your best self for the interview. And hopefully on the back end you're coming home with an extra revenue stream. So again, even in real life we should be looking at putting forth that investment of time and resources in the front end so that you can profit on the back end.

Katrina Widener: Totally. It even makes me think of when you're selling a house, right? You normally like invest in some paint and do the repairs that you've been putting off while you were living there and all of that kind of stuff. And then you sell the house. Definitely there are flippers out there who are like, I'm going to buy this house and fix things up. But normally when you're selling the house has been you finally get around to doing those things that you've been putting off. Yeah it just makes a lot of sense. There are so many parallels.

Kari Roberts: Yes. Yes.

Katrina Widener: Okay. So moving on to the next step, right? We've gotten the clarity. We've gotten the help. What's the third step?

Kari Roberts: The third step is kind of two-fold. It's to make a plan and hold yourself accountable. What do they say? A goal without a plan is just a wish. I think that's how it goes. So going back to my physical therapy mind it's like every step of that plan needs to have a due date on it. So when we get to that date, either it's done or it's not done and we might need to detour a little bit. And getting back to that 5k analogy. I don't know if any of the listeners have ever ran or walked a 5k, but you kind of get a dopamine hit. You see that first flag, like, "Oh 1k!" Then you see like 2k and then when you see that one mile mark, and then it's like 500 feet you're like, "It's the home stretch. I'm making it work."

Seeing those markers bolsters us up to keep going forward. It makes us see what all we've accomplished and then what we have yet to do isn't as great, because we've already done some of it. And I think that putting a plan in our business with specific due dates has that same effect where like, "Okay it's been three weeks. Look at what I've accomplished. Yeah, I've got this much more to go, but it's not as much. We're going to do it one week at a time, one month at a time." And then it's something that you can do. And that kind of keeps you accountable. Now, if you're one of those people where you're like, "Eh it still doesn't keep me accountable," then you might need to look at having a project manager or someone else on your team that's going to keep you accountable. So then that way that launch can be as successful as you want it to be.

Katrina Widener: I think that quote you said, "a goal without a plan is just a wish" -- so often entrepreneurs get decision fatigue too, where we're sitting down at our computer and we're like, I have this to do list that I've had for the last five days or even five weeks. You know what I mean? And I have to sit down and say, "Which is the thing that I'm going to do today?" And oftentimes if we don't have that plan or if we don't know what steps we're taking and when we want to do them by, we might get a couple emails answered. We might get like, "Oh like I updated this one thing on my website." But that's how that to-do list rolls over from day to day or week to week is because we don't have that set plan in place of, "Okay I want this done by this day. And then I'm going to do this as the next step after that." Right. Because everything builds upon itself.

Yes, it's beneficial because it keeps us accountable and it makes us sure that we're on track and that we're getting things done at the right time. But also it eliminates that decision fatigue. It eliminates that overwhelmed feeling, it eliminates that, "Oh I have to sit down at my desk and do this work," where a lot of entrepreneurs feel burned out or feel overwhelmed or feel distracted. Having that goal in place really kind of reigns it in and says, "No this is the clear path from point A to point B. And now I know exactly what I need to do and when I need to do it by and I have to figure it out by this date." And that's what gives you the freedom then to say, "Oh I can close my computer at this point in time today. I know that I've done the work that I need to get done, and I don't have to give myself the guilt either of like, I'm going to work until 9:00 PM every single day."

Kari Roberts: So the Harvard School of Business did a study and it says that entrepreneurs that just take time to make the plan for projects and launches and stuff like this are 16% more successful. People don't have to have these grandiose like 120 item plans, it could legit be just five or six major things. And that could just take an hour. I've had clients, we strategize the whole launch or a new offer coming out in just a matter of an hour or two, but that can save you so much on when you're actually doing it. Especially if you're worried with decision fatigue, carve out two hours get those dates down. And then now you can just comfortably go through that launch process because you've already made the big decisions. Now you just have to implement or have a team member implement, which will free up your bandwidth. So you're not always having to make that decision when you don't have the plan in place. The decision fatigue gets astronomical because now you're having to make those decisions in real time that you're executing. And that's not fun for, I mean we've all been there, and it's not fun for any of us.

Katrina Widener: No. And as you were talking it was making me think too about, I had a big launch this past January. It was launching new branding, new website, new services, all of the things. And I kind of combined step two and step three, where I hired a launch planner, right? She sat down and she was like, here is exactly what you need to do this week, what you need to do this week, what you need to do this week. It's again, one of those things that I want to normalize for entrepreneurs, because oftentimes we know how to do the thing. We know if we're a photographer, we know how to take photos. If we're a coach, we know how to coach, right. If we are a strategist, we know how to do the strategy. But we don't always know every single other part of running a business.

It made it so much easier for me to say I hired a designer to create my branding. I hired a copywriter to create my copy. It's okay for me to also hire a social media strategist to create my social media launch plan. Right? We can combine steps two and steps three because it gives us that freedom then to not have to sit and worry or have anxiety and overwhelm around, "Am I launching properly? Do I know how to launch what even is a launch? How do I, how do I do this thing?" And instead it's sitting down creating a strategy together and being like, "This is why we're doing this. This is when we want to do this. This is how you do this." And that makes it so much easier.

Kari Roberts: It does! It really does.

Katrina Widener: This has all been absolutely amazing. I cannot believe this time has gone by so quickly. But before we completely finish, I just wanted to know if you have any final tips or tricks for people who are looking to have a successful launch and are like, "Yes please Kari, give me more!"

Kari Roberts: Yeah. So I have a time-blocking template and I think it's really good. It's kind of like step two, one and a half, two ish. You got to know what that noise is, but dealing with the noise and trying to figure out how you're going to do it, if you're going to get help or not... the best way to do that is really to take time and audit and see what you're really working with.

And the time blocking template I think is a great tool to help people audit their time. It not only helps you make sure you have enough time for like I put exercise is on there, break time is on there, growth activities is there, client activities, administrative like checking out your financials, all I've have all of those buckets. But when you kind of see what it could be in an ideal world next to the blank one that you can create yourself, that can help you take that time audit and see what your bandwidth is like and help you decide if you're going to do what you're going to do yourself and what you're going to give to someone else.

Katrina Widener: That's amazing. And just for everyone listening, I will link to that template from the show notes. So if you're interested in getting it, it will be super, super easy to find and super accessible.

Thank you so much, Kari, for coming on here. This has been absolutely amazing information. And I think a lot of people who are launching or going to be launching soon will find this really, really valuable.

Kari Roberts: Thank you.

Katrina Widener: Before we head off. How can people find you? Where are you on the interwebs?

Kari Roberts: I am mostly on Instagram. My first name is K-A-R-I, so it's @Kari.And.Company. And, I'm mostly on Instagram. I'm also on Facebook. If you want to find me there, it's The Kari and Company. And let me know if you listen to me on this podcast.

Katrina Widener: Thank you so much for coming on here. This has been amazing.

Kari Roberts: Thanks for having me.