/technical-launch-planner

name: technical-launch-planner
description: Plan and execute technical product launches for developer tools, APIs, and technical products. Use this skill when technical PMMs need to "plan a launch", "create a launch strategy", "coordinate a product release", or "prepare for GA/beta launch".

Technical Launch Planner

Overview

Plan and execute successful launches for technical products, developer tools, APIs, SDKs, and platforms. This skill provides frameworks, checklists, and templates specifically designed for technical audiences and developer-focused products.

**Built for:**

• Developer tools and platforms
• APIs and SDKs
• Technical infrastructure products
• B2D (Business-to-Developer) products
• SaaS with technical buyers

---

Quick Start

1. Assess Your Launch Tier

Run the interactive assessment:

scripts/assess_launch_tier.sh

This determines if your launch is:

• **Tier 1** (Major/GA) - New product, major version, significant expansion
• **Tier 2** (Standard) - New features, integrations, regional expansion
• **Tier 3** (Minor) - Updates, improvements, small features

2. Generate Launch Plan

Create your comprehensive launch plan:

scripts/generate_launch_plan.sh

Provides structured plan with:

• Timeline and milestones
• Stakeholder responsibilities
• Developer enablement checklist
• Go-to-market activities
• Launch day playbook

3. Validate Readiness

Before launch, check readiness:

scripts/validate_readiness.sh

Validates:

• Documentation completeness
• Technical assets ready
• Stakeholder alignment
• Messaging finalized
• Metrics instrumentation

---

Core Launch Framework

Launch Tiers

Different launches require different levels of investment:

| Tier | Type | Examples | Investment | |------|------|----------|------------| | **Tier 1** | Major | GA launch, new product, major version | Full GTM, events, PR | | **Tier 2** | Standard | New features, integrations, SDKs | Selective GTM, blog, docs | | **Tier 3** | Minor | Updates, improvements, patches | Changelog, in-app |

See `references/launch_tiers.md` for complete framework.

---

Developer-Focused Launch Components

1. Developer Enablement

**Critical for technical launches:**

**Documentation:**

• Getting started guide
• API reference
• Code samples
• Integration guides
• Migration guides (if applicable)

**Code Assets:**

• SDKs/client libraries
• Sample applications
• Starter templates
• Code snippets

**Developer Experience:**

• Sandbox/playground environment
• Interactive tutorials
• API explorer
• Debugging tools

See `references/developer_enablement.md` for complete checklist.

---

2. Technical Messaging

**Speak developer language:**

**Avoid:**

• Marketing jargon
• Vague benefits
• Non-technical superlatives

**Include:**

• Concrete technical details
• Performance metrics
• Code examples
• Architecture diagrams
• Integration patterns

See `references/launch_messaging.md` for templates.

---

3. Launch Channels for Developers

**Where developers discover new tools:**

**Primary:**

• Developer documentation
• GitHub/GitLab
• Developer blog
• API changelog
• Release notes

**Secondary:**

• Dev.to, Hacker News, Reddit
• Technical Twitter/X
• Discord/Slack communities
• YouTube (tutorials)
• Developer newsletters

**Tertiary:**

• Webinars/workshops
• Conferences
• Podcasts
• Case studies

---

Launch Planning Workflow

Phase 1: Planning (T-12 to T-8 weeks)

**Objectives:**

• Define launch tier
• Set success criteria
• Align stakeholders
• Create timeline

**Activities:** 1. **Launch Tier Assessment**

   scripts/assess_launch_tier.sh

2. **Stakeholder Kickoff**

• Product/Engineering
• Developer Relations
• Sales Engineering
• Marketing/Comms
• Partners (if applicable)

3. **Define Success Metrics**

• Developer adoption metrics
• API usage/calls
• SDK downloads
• Documentation traffic
• Community engagement

4. **Create Launch Timeline**

   scripts/generate_launch_plan.sh

---

Phase 2: Build (T-8 to T-4 weeks)

**Objectives:**

• Create all launch assets
• Prepare documentation
• Build demos and samples

**Activities:**

**Documentation:**

• [ ] Getting started guide written
• [ ] API reference complete
• [ ] Integration guides ready
• [ ] Migration guide (if needed)
• [ ] Troubleshooting FAQ

**Code Assets:**

• [ ] SDKs built and tested
• [ ] Sample apps created
• [ ] Code snippets prepared
• [ ] Sandbox environment ready

**Marketing Assets:**

• [ ] Technical blog post written
• [ ] Demo video recorded
• [ ] Announcement email drafted
• [ ] Social media plan
• [ ] Press release (Tier 1)

**Sales Enablement:**

• [ ] Technical battlecard
• [ ] Demo script
• [ ] FAQ/objection handling
• [ ] Pricing materials
• [ ] Competitive positioning

---

Phase 3: Prepare (T-4 to T-1 weeks)

**Objectives:**

• Review and refine all assets
• Train teams
• Pre-launch validation

**Activities:**

**Internal Enablement:**

• [ ] Sales team training
• [ ] Support team training
• [ ] Partner briefings
• [ ] Internal demo day

**External Prep:**

• [ ] Beta customers briefed
• [ ] Partners coordinated
• [ ] Developer advocates prepared
• [ ] Community moderators ready

**Technical Validation:**

scripts/validate_readiness.sh

**Pre-Launch Checklist:**

• [ ] All docs published to staging
• [ ] SDKs tagged and ready
• [ ] Demo environment tested
• [ ] Monitoring/analytics configured
• [ ] Support escalation path defined

---

Phase 4: Launch (Launch Day)

**Launch Day Playbook:**

**Morning (9 AM):**

• [ ] Publish documentation
• [ ] Release SDKs/packages
• [ ] Deploy blog post
• [ ] Send announcement email
• [ ] Post to social media
• [ ] Update website/product pages

**Midday (12 PM):**

• [ ] Monitor metrics dashboard
• [ ] Respond to community questions
• [ ] Share to external communities
• [ ] Engage with social mentions

**Afternoon (3 PM):**

• [ ] Post to H