{"id":737,"date":"2025-05-02T20:25:02","date_gmt":"2025-05-02T20:25:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.hudsonpcrepair.com\/?p=737"},"modified":"2025-05-03T16:21:59","modified_gmt":"2025-05-03T16:21:59","slug":"how-to-turn-beta-users-into-a-launch-marketing-engine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.hudsonpcrepair.com\/index.php\/2025\/05\/02\/how-to-turn-beta-users-into-a-launch-marketing-engine\/","title":{"rendered":"How to turn beta users into a launch marketing engine"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p><em>Hello and welcome to <strong>The GTM Newsletter by GTMnow <\/strong>\u2013 read by 50,000+ to scale their companies and careers. GTMnow shares insight around the go-to-market strategies responsible for explosive company growth. GTMnow highlights the strategies, along with the stories from the top 1% of GTM executives, VCs, and founders behind these strategies and companies.<\/em><\/p>\n<div>\n<hr \/>\n<\/div>\n<p>Often we think about a press release piece first when we think \u201claunch.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While this is often true, it\u2019s one part of the wave that is created around a launch.<\/p>\n<p>One part of that is creating a <em>hype train<\/em> \u2014 a coordinated effort to turn your earliest users into your loudest champions.<\/p>\n<p>In one of the company Superhuman\u2019s most successful campaigns to date, the team turned beta testers into a distributed marketing engine that amplified their messaging, created social proof, and drove a 60% increase in new seats. This was all done before any major paid push.<\/p>\n<h2>Why beta users are a hidden growth channel<\/h2>\n<p>Beta users are incredible feedback loops. Beyond the product build feedback loop, they can also be go-to-market accelerators.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s why they\u2019re so valuable:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>They understand your product deeply.<\/li>\n<li>They\u2019re naturally inclined to share tools they love.<\/li>\n<li>They\u2019ve opted in to be early, and often want to be part of the story.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The trick is to make it easy (and exciting) for them to do so.<\/p>\n<h2>The hype train framework: 5 steps<\/h2>\n<div class=\"captioned-image-container\">\n<figure>\n<div class=\"image2-inset\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"sizing-normal lazyload\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1000\" data-src=\"http:\/\/www.hudsonpcrepair.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/b73b048e-681c-4184-a3f1-95c546607e4e_1280x1000.png\"><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Step 1: Curate your beta list like a GTM asset<\/h2>\n<p>Start by segmenting your most aligned and influential users.<\/p>\n<p>Prioritize:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Power users based on usage data<\/li>\n<li>Ideal customer profile (ICP) matches<\/li>\n<li>Active social users (LinkedIn, Twitter, Slack communities)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If you\u2019re short on data, send a short survey:<\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cWould you be open to sharing feedback or posting about the product?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<h2>Step 2: Make the beta experience feel exclusive<\/h2>\n<p>This isn\u2019t just early access, it\u2019s a backstage pass.<\/p>\n<p>Things you can include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>A welcome note from the founder or an exec<\/li>\n<li>A clear list of what to try<br \/>\nAccess to a private Slack or user group<\/li>\n<li>Light gamification (unlockables, invites, perks)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Make it feel like a community.<\/p>\n<h2>Step 3: Launch the hype (with nudges, not nagging)<\/h2>\n<p>Carta\u2019s move into fund administration and private equity made technical expertise non-negotiable. Standing up a strong solutions engineering function became critical to navigating larger, more complex deals.<\/p>\n<p>Scaling without technical depth leads to slow deals and lost trust.<\/p>\n<p>Once beta users are active, it\u2019s time to encourage sharing. The ideal timing is 3\u20137 days after consistent product use.<\/p>\n<p>Channels you can use:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Personal emails<\/li>\n<li>In-product prompts<\/li>\n<li>Social messages from execs or marketing team<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Example message:<\/p>\n<p><em>\u201cHey [Name], you\u2019ve been one of our most active early users \u2014 we\u2019d love if you shared your experience so far. Your voice helps others discover us. Bonus: we\u2019re giving away swag to our top sharers this week.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Superhuman ran a campaign using similar outreach and it worked extremely well. Their marketing leader breaks this down below.<\/p>\n<h3>Case Study: Superhuman\u2019s \u201cNew Year, New Inbox\u201d campaign<\/h3>\n<p>In January, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/harmony-hickman-anderson\/\">Harmony Anderson<\/a>, marketing leader at Superhuman, launched a full-funnel campaign centered around a timely and relatable theme: <em>\u201cNew Year, New Inbox.\u201d <\/em>The campaign aligned with the fresh-start mindset that often comes with the new year.<\/p>\n<p>The team leaned heavily into user-generated content. Existing customers, many of whom were already sharing their experiences organically, were encouraged to post on social. Harmony\u2019s team reached out directly to engaged beta users, providing them with suggested copy and creative assets to make it easy to spread the word.<\/p>\n<p>To build additional momentum, Superhuman hosted a virtual event tailored to both customers and prospects. They also ran coordinated paid and organic campaigns across multiple channels, all tied together by clear, outcome-focused messaging, like <em>\u201csave 4 hours per week with Superhuman.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n<p>The results were impressive: a <strong>60% increase in new seats month-over-month<\/strong>, a significant uplift in social shares (without needing to ask in many cases), and a clean transition into evergreen messaging once the seasonal hook had run its course.<\/p>\n<h2>Step 4: Make sharing effortless<\/h2>\n<p>To get more people talking, lower the barrier to entry.<\/p>\n<p>You could provide:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Copy-paste tweet and post templates<\/li>\n<li>Beautiful images or GIFs they can use<\/li>\n<li>A simple referral link (optional)<\/li>\n<li>A lightweight \u201ccampaign-in-a-box\u201d with everything included<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The easier you make it to participate, the more likely your users will contribute.<\/p>\n<h2>Step 5: Reward and recognize champions<\/h2>\n<p>This is where flywheels are born.<\/p>\n<p>Ways to show love:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Feature their posts in your company channels<\/li>\n<li>Send a personal thank-you or DM<\/li>\n<li>Offer exclusive swag, early access, or shout-outs<\/li>\n<li>Invite them into future beta programs<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>People support what they help build. Make them feel like insiders, not just users.<\/p>\n<p>\u2014<\/p>\n<h3>You don\u2019t need a massive ad budget to launch big.<\/h3>\n<p>You just need 100 engaged users, a few good prompts, and a clear invitation to help. Let your biggest believers do the talking and your launch will go a lot further.<\/p>\n<div>\n<hr \/>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"button-wrapper\" style=\"text-align: center\" data-component-name=\"ButtonCreateButton\"><a class=\"button primary\" href=\"https:\/\/thegtmnewsletter.substack.com\/p\/how-to-turn-beta-users-into-a-launch?utm_source=substack&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_content=share&amp;action=share\">Share<\/a><\/p>\n<h6 style=\"text-align: center\"><em> Tag GTMnow so we can see your takeaways and help amplify them.<\/em><\/h6>\n<div>\n<hr \/>\n<\/div>\n<h4><strong><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\u2705\" class=\"wp-smiley lazyload\" style=\"height: 1em;max-height: 1em\" data-src=\"https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/15.1.0\/72x72\/2705.png\"> Recommendations<\/strong><\/h4>\n<div>\n<hr \/>\n<\/div>\n<h4><strong><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\ud83d\udc42\" class=\"wp-smiley lazyload\" style=\"height: 1em;max-height: 1em\" data-src=\"https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/15.1.0\/72x72\/1f442.png\"> More for your eardrums<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/ojiudezue\/\">Oji Udezue<\/a> is the former CPO of both Typeform and Calendly. He\u2019s a veteran product executive who has led product strategy at some of tech\u2019s most iconic companies, including Twitter, Atlassian, and Microsoft.<\/p>\n<p>Listen on <a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/in\/podcast\/gtm-144-how-ai-is-rewriting-product-and-gtm-playbooks\/id1369291464?i=1000705449098\">Apple<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/episode\/3JixpakkHxZXbLZlkTitNn?si=doof3fshR-WxoE1ZH-xr6g\">Spotify<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=l8FTR_EGZ_g&amp;t=11s\">YouTube<\/a>, or wherever you get your podcasts by searching \u201cThe GTM Podcast.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"youtube2-l8FTR_EGZ_g\" class=\"youtube-wrap\" data-component-name=\"Youtube2ToDOM\">\n<div class=\"youtube-inner\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<blockquote>\n<p><em><a href=\"https:\/\/gtmnow.com\/gtm-144-oji-udezue-how-ai-is-rewriting-product-and-gtm-playbooks\/\">GTM 144: How AI is Rewriting Product and GTM Playbooks | with Oji Udezue (CPO \u2013 Typeform, Calendly)<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Listen on <a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/in\/podcast\/the-gtm-podcast\/id1369291464\">Apple<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/2SA1dgQ2Yc5t4V5GcBLnD2\">Spotify<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=4BDfZ1BiTPQ&amp;list=PLGXnz4Tyz3-SfJ5DPByHtUOQOFB3yJ6zZ\">YouTube<\/a>, or wherever you get your podcasts by searching \u201cThe GTM Podcast.\u201d<\/p>\n<div>\n<hr \/>\n<\/div>\n<h4><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\ud83d\ude80\" class=\"wp-smiley lazyload\" style=\"height: 1em;max-height: 1em\" data-src=\"https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/15.1.0\/72x72\/1f680.png\"><strong> Startup to watch<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/posts\/adamschoenfeld_sales-marketing-activity-7323001876235354112-Ti4a?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=member_desktop&amp;rcm=ACoAAB-zOXwB7j95XB6LBuQURXJ8m_cTOBDTz_U\">Keyplay<\/a><\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/posts\/adamschoenfeld_sales-marketing-activity-7323001876235354112-Ti4a?utm_source=share&amp;utm_medium=member_desktop&amp;rcm=ACoAAB-zOXwB7j95XB6LBuQURXJ8m_cTOBDTz_U\"> \u2013 introduced Keyplay AI agents to help companies leverage AI for ICP targeting<\/a>. The result is 20-30% less wasted non-ICP spend, higher conversion, and a competitive advantage with unique targeting. The video linked provides a great visual example.<\/p>\n<div>\n<hr \/>\n<\/div>\n<h4><strong><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\ud83d\udc40\" class=\"wp-smiley lazyload\" style=\"height: 1em;max-height: 1em\" data-src=\"https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/15.1.0\/72x72\/1f440.png\"> More for your eyeballs<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fivetran.com\/blog\/why-fivetran-and-census-are-joining-forces\">Fivetran to acquire Census, creating the first end-to-end data movement platform for the AI era<\/a>. The deal positions Fivetran as the only fully managed solution for bi-directional, governed data movement \u2013 powering real-time, AI-driven insights across warehouses and business apps.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/shorts\/oRD5pKrAvKI\">Your sales playbooks need to adapt or die<\/a>. It\u2019s not that playbooks don\u2019t matter, it\u2019s that you have to build a new one everywhere you go. You just can\u2019t bring that same playbook with you.<\/p>\n<div>\n<hr \/>\n<\/div>\n<h4><strong><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\ud83d\udd25\" class=\"wp-smiley lazyload\" style=\"height: 1em;max-height: 1em\" data-src=\"https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/15.1.0\/72x72\/1f525.png\"> Hottest GTM jobs of the week<\/strong><\/h4>\n<ol>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/jobs.gtmfund.com\/jobs\/gtmfund\/c4e32612-ef23-41cc-a23c-20514a6f7522\">Marketing &amp; Events Associate<\/a> at GTMfund <em>(Vancouver, CAN) \u2013 come join the team behind this newsletter! <\/em><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/jobs.ashbyhq.com\/capchase\/21d7b1d3-c523-4c9f-8b2f-5815bcca9ce2\">Customer Success Manager<\/a> \u2013 Enterprise at Capchase <em>(Hybrid \u2013 San Francisco \/ New York City)<\/em><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/jobs.ashbyhq.com\/amper\/67a10c97-ff84-4e1a-a73c-ceada698a3d2\">Director of Marketing<\/a> at Amper <em>(Hybrid \u2013 Chicago)<\/em><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/apply.workable.com\/userevidence\/j\/281A55749D\/\">Sales Development Representative (SDR I)<\/a> at UserEvidence <em>(Hybrid \u2013 Jackson Hole \/ Denver preferred; Open to Remote)<\/em><\/li>\n<li>Director of Revenue Operations at Gorgias <em>(Hybrid)<\/em>\n<ol>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/jobs.ashbyhq.com\/gorgias\/5865ddf4-bfb9-4181-aa06-b2024ae76697\">New York City<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/jobs.ashbyhq.com\/gorgias\/f463e4e5-1944-43ce-94f3-ed2e8b9c8f69\">San Francisco<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/jobs.ashbyhq.com\/gorgias\/2807e680-af53-41b4-8971-ee8e77fa7129\">Toronto<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/jobs.lever.co\/NoibuTechnologies\/44317ddd-f43e-46be-827b-11003e9c1266\">Mid-Market Account Executive<\/a> at Noibu <em>(Ottawa,ON)<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>See more top GTM jobs on the <a href=\"https:\/\/jobs.gtmfund.com\/jobs\">GTMfund Job Board<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><em>If you\u2019re looking to scale your sales and marketing teams with top talent, we couldn\u2019t recommend our partner <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pursuitsalessolutions.com\/gtm\">Pursuit<\/a> more. We work closely together to be able to provide the top go-to-market talent for companies on a non-retainer basis.<\/em><\/p>\n<div>\n<hr \/>\n<\/div>\n<h4><strong><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" alt=\"\ud83d\uddd3\" class=\"wp-smiley lazyload\" style=\"height: 1em;max-height: 1em\" data-src=\"https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/15.1.0\/72x72\/1f5d3.png\"> GTM industry events<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p><em>Upcoming go-to-market events you won\u2019t want to miss:<\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.saastock.com\/blog\/saastock-usa-whats-new-for-2025\/\">SaaStock USA<\/a>: May 13-14, 2025 <em>(Austin, TX)<\/em><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.saastrannual.com\/\">SaaStr Annual<\/a>: May 13-15 <em>(San Francisco, CA)<\/em><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/vancouver.websummit.com\/\">Web Summit<\/a>: May 27-30, 2025 <em>(Vancouver, CAN)<\/em><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/events.bizzabo.com\/cro-summit-2025\">Pavilion CRO Summit<\/a>: June 3, 2025 <em>(Denver, CO)<\/em><\/li>\n<li>GTMfund AGM: June 5-6, 2025 <em>(NYC, NY)<\/em><\/li>\n<li>GTMfund Dinner: June 11, 2025 <em>(London, UK)<\/em><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/attendgtm.com\/\">Pavilion GTM Summit<\/a>: September 23-25, 2025 <em>(Washington, DC)<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div>\n<hr \/>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"button-wrapper\" style=\"text-align: center\" data-component-name=\"ButtonCreateButton\"><a class=\"button primary\" href=\"https:\/\/thegtmnewsletter.substack.com\/subscribe?\">Subscribe now<\/a><\/p>\n<div>\n<hr \/>\n<\/div>\n<h6 style=\"text-align: center\">This newsletter was written and edited by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/sophiebuonassisi\/\">Sophie Buonassisi<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/maxaltschuler\/\">Max Altschuler<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/paulsirving\/\">Paul Irving<\/a> and the <a href=\"https:\/\/gtmnow.com\/\">GTMnow<\/a> team (not AI!).<\/h6>\n<\/div>\n<p>The post <a href=\"https:\/\/gtmnow.com\/how-to-turn-beta-users-into-a-launch-marketing-engine\/\">How to turn beta users into a launch marketing engine<\/a> appeared first on <a href=\"https:\/\/gtmnow.com\">GTMnow<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hello and welcome to The GTM Newsletter by GTMnow \u2013 read by 50,000+ to scale&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":739,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-737","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sales"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.hudsonpcrepair.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/737","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.hudsonpcrepair.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.hudsonpcrepair.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.hudsonpcrepair.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.hudsonpcrepair.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=737"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/www.hudsonpcrepair.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/737\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":740,"href":"http:\/\/www.hudsonpcrepair.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/737\/revisions\/740"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.hudsonpcrepair.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/739"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.hudsonpcrepair.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=737"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.hudsonpcrepair.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=737"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.hudsonpcrepair.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=737"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}