Your company has decided to introduce a new product or service and has put in place a team of individuals from all over the country to coordinate the launch. Since this will be the first time everyone is working together, it is decided among the group that a series of meetings is in the best interest of all concerned in order to have a successful launch. But are all those meetings really necessary?

"We want all our A-list customers to be aware of our new product offering."
 

"We desire to have 100 customers place a product pre-order at the launch."
 

"We will show our customers and prospects how we dominate over our competitors with this new offering."

• Who should be invited and why would they want to hear our message? 
  Having a defined target niche and identifying why they would want to attend your meeting will help garner how many invitations need to go out and the messaging on the invitation. 
   
• What venue makes the most sense? 
  If you are holding a small meeting with a few select clients, it may make sense to hold it at the office or an upscale restaurant. However, if the meeting is going to be large and you want to take advantage of interactive technology tool rentals, an offsite property is going to make the most sense. 
   
• How will you measure the success of the launch? 
  Determining if attendees liked the product and understood the message can be easily assessed through wireless audience response systems. In addition, going back to your objectives and seeing if they are met one week, month or year after the event can help you track the success of this event and set the bar for future launches. 
   
• When should you hold your launch? 
  Sometimes, these decisions are made for you by the company and other times you will have a say as to when they happen. For example, holding a launch in the middle of winter in a snowy state like Ohio is probably not a good option. Try to hold it when you can maximize attendance and keep outside obstacles, like the weather, out of your way.