a single source, nothing corroborates it

Ship every month so there is something to send

A release the list can be told about is a standing reason to mail without it feeling like promotion, which keeps the audience warm for the month you actually need something from them. That reverses the usual priority: aim releases at changes worth announcing, record something to show, hold back an update shipped at a dead time, and keep talking about the product long after launch.

The method

1. 01

   Use feature releases as your recurring promotion vehicle: commit to shipping something notable every month specifically so the update email to your list has a reason to exist.

2. 02

   Ship a small release every month as a marketing rhythm, since the cadence signals the product is alive, gives you something to talk about, and earns you a monthly email to your list that does not feel like spam.

3. 03

   Keep a monthly release cadence partly as an excuse to email your list every month, so the list stays warm for the months you actually need it.

4. 04

   A release full of small improvements gives you nothing to market, so deliberately aim releases at changes you can announce.

5. 05

   Record a short screencast for each release so the announcement has something to show rather than a changelog to read.

What it returned

• Zue adopted this from Derrick Reimer's approach with SavvyCal, calling it marketing by shipping, and made a substantial monthly Pegasus release a standing goal.

• Zue treats a roughly monthly Pegasus release as a way to demonstrate continual improvement and to justify emailing the Pegasus list each month

• Zue names keeping his email list warm as a major reason for shipping a Pegasus release each month, and skipped the November release only because the sale emails would cover it.

• Zue graded a release that improved many things in small ways as giving him little to market, and set marketable features as the focus for the following month.

Sources

• The complete guide to making a full-time salary from one bookNathan Barry · nathanbarry.com · New content and small launches · 2014-08-06
• Self-doubt and launch statsNathan Barry · nathanbarry.com · What now? · 2013-05-28
• An update on The Audience Building ChallengeNathan Barry · nathanbarry.com · A few numbers · 2013-12-12
• RedirectionCory Zue · coryzue.com · Ship a substantial Pegasus release: A · 2022-01-14
• DiversificationCory Zue · coryzue.com · Ship a substantial pegasus release: A · 2021-08-02
• ComplacentCory Zue · coryzue.com · Ship a major Pegasus release: B+ · 2022-06-01
• My New Secret LifeCory Zue · coryzue.com · This Month’s Goals · 2021-11-01
• Sailing into the futureCory Zue · coryzue.com · Last Month’s Goals · 2020-10-02