What should I do after launch, when the traffic is gone?

Week 1: sort out who came

Before you post anywhere else, write down what the launch produced, per source: visits, signups, and anyone who paid. The drop in traffic is normal; what matters is the ranking. One place usually sent most of the people who signed up, and it’s rarely the one with the most visits.

Then reply to everyone who wrote to you: comments, emails, feedback. People who took the time to write on launch day are the most likely to talk to you again.

Week 2: talk to the ones who stayed

Find the users who came back after the first day and ask two questions: what were you trying to do when you signed up, and what almost stopped you? Five short conversations teach you more than the whole traffic chart. Write down their words; they’re your next headline.

Week 3: fix what stopped the others

Look at where people dropped off: signed up and never finished setup, finished setup and never came back, reached the pricing page and left. Pick the one step that loses the most people and fix only that. Several small fixes at once make it impossible to tell which one worked.

Week 4: go back where it worked

Return to the one or two places that sent people who signed up and paid, with something new to show: what you fixed, a short story from a user, a number you learned. A second post in the right place usually beats a first post in five new ones.

Also tell your existing list what changed. People who signed up before launch and never tried it get a second reason to come back.

What not to do

• Don’t start a second product because the first launch was quiet. One launch is one sample.
• Don’t judge a channel by its visits. Judge it by the signups and payments it sent, after a month.
• Don’t add features for people who never used the ones you have.

With Nordva Launch

Insights keeps every visit’s source with the signups and payments that followed, so week 1 is a table, not an afternoon of spreadsheets. A funnel of your key pages and goals shows the step that loses the most people. The changelog (25 entries on Free) gives you something to link to when you post what changed, and on Indie you can email it to the people who subscribed.