Publicizing Your Launch

If your launch is somehow unique, (done by high school students, sending something of interest up into space) you might want to market your launch.

Before You Start
If you're doing a single launch and don't plan on doing any more in the future, then ignore the next section.

If you are, you'll need a group name. Make sure that that name isn't already being used for non-personal reasons. Design a logo that gives a good idea of what you do and is recognizable. Try to affiliate your group with other, related groups or organizations that already have some kind of presence, preferably online.

What You'll Need
Before you start marketing your launch, you'll need at least one of these:

Website
A website is one of the most important things you can have. Pages and accounts on social networking sites like Facebook are great additions, but a website is by far superior because it allows you absolute freedom to edit your content and is much easier to track traffic with using tools like Google Analytics. Make sure your site has an about page as well as pages to upload any photos, videos, or other data you've collected and a contact page with an email address and link to your other prescenses online such as a Facebook page, YouTube account, or blog. A comprehensive guide to building your own website can be found here.

Facebook Page
A majority of people around the world have a Facebook account, and it's one of the best ways to reach a large amount of people in one step. Best of all, most of the content from your website can and should be copied onto your Facebook page. Make sure your description is similar if not the same, and upload the pictures and videos featured on your site. Be sure to update often, and with quality posts, especially ones that update your fans and/or ask for their participation. There are also lots of applications you can integrate with your page, or you can create one yourself. You can create a page here, and here is a guide to make your page stand out.

YouTube Channel
You're going to have footage from your flights, which will need to be edited and uploaded. The best place by far to upload is YouTube. Youtube not only makes it easy to share and embed your videos on other websites, but also counts the number of views and allows users to comment, like, and favorite your videos, as well as subscribe to your channel. Make sure that every single video you have uploaded to the internet is uploaded to your YouTube page, unless you have a specific reason not to. Here is a guide for running a successful channel.

Other Blogging or Social Networking Sites
Want to add more to your online prescence than what's listed here, such as a Tumblr or Twitter account? Go ahead, but before you begin, do research on how to market effectively on those sites so that you can maximize your results.

Generating Press
Now that you've already created an online presence, you're ready to really begin publicizing your launch. Building a prescence beforehand ensures that when people hear about you, they'll have a place to go to find out more about you.

Writing a Press Release
A press release is a basic but vital marketing tool which allows you to spread news of whatever you're doing to as many media outlets as you want to send it to. Some good guides to writing a press release can be found here and here. Make a list of all of the television, radio, magazine, newspaper, and online media in your area, or the area you'd like to target, and make sure that your release is appropriate for each of them (for example, don't sent a report about weather ballooning to a gardening magazine, etc.). Then research to see how each individual outlet accepts releases, if they have a preference. Most press releases are distributed through fax, though mail or email work as well.

Writing Emails
If you're sending, say, an Energizer Bunny up with your launch, don't you think Energizer would like to hear about it? If what you're doing pertains to a specific company, tell them about it! A friendly email letting them know what you're doing will probably land you some publicity, or even funding! Emails to the right online news sources can also do wonders. Just be sure to choose carefully, and not to make your email sound like spam.