Summary of "Go-to-Market Plays #1: When To Do a Launch" – The Marketing Millennials Podcast

Episode Release Date: April 2, 2025
Host: Daniel Murray
Guest: Tamara Graminski, Award-Winning Product Marketer & Former VP of Product Marketing at Kajabi

1. Introduction to the Episode

In the premiere episode of the "Go to Marketplace" mini-series, host Daniel Murray welcomes Tamara Graminski, an esteemed product marketer with over a decade of experience in both startups and scale-ups. The focus of the conversation is to dissect effective go-to-market (GTM) strategies, emphasizing practical tactics that marketers can implement immediately to enhance their product launches.

2. Understanding Demand Seeding

Demand seeding emerges as the central theme of the episode. Tamara defines it as a strategic approach where marketers cultivate anticipation, exclusivity, and curiosity before the official launch of a product. Instead of launching to a cold audience, demand seeding involves engaging a pre-interested and enthusiastic audience, ensuring a successful and impactful launch.

Tamara Graminski [02:48]:
"Demand seeding is the art of creating anticipation, exclusivity, and curiosity. If you start planting the right seeds early, on launch day it almost feels inevitable. You have people waiting, excited, and there's a lot of hype."

Key Insights:

• Advanced Engagement: Initiating marketing efforts well before the launch to build momentum.
• Avoiding Starting from Zero: Preventing the scenario where marketers begin with no audience engagement on launch day.
• Rolling Thunder Concept: Implementing a gradual increase in awareness leading up to the launch, akin to the buildup of a thunderstorm.

3. Case Studies: Notion AI and Superhuman

a. Notion AI's Pre-Launch Strategy

Tamara highlights Notion's successful demand seeding approach when launching Notion AI. Instead of a traditional launch, Notion employed a viral waitlist strategy that gamified the sign-up process.

Tamara Graminski [05:10]:
"They gamified access. You’d sign up for the waitlist and see your spot. If you referred others, you could move up the waitlist. This created urgency, FOMO, and encouraged word-of-mouth promotion."

Key Elements of Notion's Strategy:

• Viral Waitlist: Users could improve their waitlist position by referring others, fostering organic growth.
• Psychological Drivers:
  • Scarcity: Limited early access heightened the perceived value.
  • Social Proof: A large waitlist signaled popularity and desirability.
  • Gamification: Users actively participated in advancing their position, increasing engagement.
• Outcomes: The strategy generated substantial free press and viral buzz, ensuring a highly anticipated launch.

Tamara Graminski [07:11]:
"Launching around something relevant, like AI, added contextual importance. Additionally, leveraging superfans accelerated initial sign-ups."

b. Superhuman's Exclusive Launch Approach

Superhuman, an email application, adopted a distinct demand seeding method focused on exclusivity and personalized onboarding.

Tamara Graminski [08:30]:
"They had an invite-only waitlist with over 275,000 sign-ups. Access required a 30-minute one-on-one onboarding call, making each spot feel like a coveted opportunity."

Key Features of Superhuman's Strategy:

• High Exclusivity: Limited access created a sense of prestige and desirability.
• Personalized Onboarding: The mandatory onboarding call ensured users were genuinely interested and invested.
• Revenue Generation: Despite being a $30 product in a free-dominated market, Superhuman achieved $18 million in revenue by 2021 through this strategy.
• Customer Retention: Early users felt privileged, fostering loyalty and positive word-of-mouth.

Tamara Graminski [10:10]:
"The 30-minute call wasn't about scaling but about demonstrating value and collecting feedback, which translated into real revenue."

4. Actionable Strategies for Marketers

Drawing from the discussed case studies, Tamara presents three actionable strategies to implement demand seeding effectively:

a. Find Your True Fans

Identify and engage with your superfans—individuals who are already enthusiastic about your brand or product.

Tamara Graminski [11:10]:
"Don’t wait for launch to get people excited. Tap into those who are already excited today. Give them behind-the-scenes access and make them feel like insiders."

Implementation Tips:

• Engage existing customers through exclusive previews or beta testing.
• Solicit feedback to make superfans feel valued and involved.

b. Build in Public

Adopt transparency by sharing your product's development journey, sneak peeks, and progress updates.

Tamara Graminski [11:10]:
"Tease progress and involve your audience, even the non-superfans. When people feel connected to your story, they're more likely to engage on launch day."

Benefits:

• Enhances connection and investment from the audience.
• Encourages organic sharing and word-of-mouth promotion.

c. Play with Scarcity and Exclusivity

Create limited access or VIP opportunities to heighten interest and urgency.

Tamara Graminski [11:10]:
"Create a reason for people to want in early. Maybe they get VIP perks or access to something everyone else wants. Position the launch as an opportunity, not just a product release."

Strategies:

• Implement time-bound offers or limited edition releases.
• Offer exclusive content or features to early adopters.

5. Conclusion

In this insightful episode, Daniel Murray and Tamara Graminski delve deep into the nuances of demand seeding as a pivotal GTM strategy. By examining the successful launches of Notion AI and Superhuman, listeners gain a comprehensive understanding of how anticipation, exclusivity, and genuine engagement can transform a product launch from ordinary to extraordinary. The actionable strategies provided empower marketers to craft their own demand seeding campaigns, ensuring they don't just launch a product but do so with a prepared and eager audience ready to embrace it.

Daniel Murray [12:44]:
"If you're launching a product soon, don't just wait to build demand on the day of the launch. Demand seed."

Final Thoughts:
"Go-to-Market Plays #1: When To Do a Launch" serves as a valuable resource for marketers aiming to refine their product launch strategies. By emphasizing the importance of early engagement and strategic planning, the episode equips listeners with the knowledge to achieve more impactful and successful market introductions.

For more insights and actionable marketing strategies, tune into upcoming episodes of The Marketing Millennials podcast.