10 ways to celebrate the launch of a new website

10 of my favourite ways to celebrate the launch of a new website

A new website, you say? Yaaas kween, yaaas!

You've put in the hours and are now the proud owner of a brand new website. Your business finally has an online home and you should be thrilled that you made it happen. Kudos, my friend!

Getting a new website up and running is just the tip of the iceberg because once it goes live, the real fun can begin. Now you get to share the exciting news with your audience (even if it’s just your best friend or pet, we’ve all gotta start somewhere) and celebrate in style. You spent loads of time and money on your new website and you want to kick things off with a bang, am I right!?

I’ve worked with loads of clients to build and launch new websites and I always love seeing how creative they are in celebrating the achievement. There are so many ways to celebrate the launch of your new website and let everyone know that the latest version is live, and these 10 tips and ideas are some of my favourite!

Tell me, how will you celebrate your new site?

Celebrating the launch of your new website

Click “play” to watch the video above or on Youtube.

1. Announce in on social media

This is a no brainer! Take to social media and create special posts for Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat, LinkedIn - basically any platform that you’re active on. You’ll get the best results and higher engagement with video but a simple website mockup will totally do the trick in a pinch! Bonus tip: I’ve noticed that clients get the best results when they use the Stories feature to show off their new website to their audience.

2. Share it with your email list

In the days or weeks leading up to the new website launch, you can tease that something exciting is happening and that they should check back soon with the update. This helps build anticipation and ensures that your followers stick around and check in. Once launch day happens, send out a special email blast sharing the news with your list and invite them to visit your site and share their thoughts. You’ll probably get a bunch of traffic to the site this way since email subscribers are generally pretty engaged with your brand & business and they want to see what all the hype is about.

3. Host a webinar or live video

Show off your site in real time and let everyone see how awesome it is! You can schedule a webinar in advance (Crowdcast and GoToMeeting are popular platforms) or else hop on live video (Facebook and Instagram are great options) to celebrate the new site and go through the exciting features and offerings. Focus on how the new website helps and better serves your ideal audience and customers instead of just talking about technical elements or design features. Make it all about THEM even though it's really all about you ;)

4. Record a video walkthrough for Youtube and share it on your blog

You can do this quickly and easily by simply recording your screen and audio and giving a virtual walkthrough of your website. If you're using a Mac, Quicktime player will get the job done. Save that video, publish it to Youtube, then embed it into a blog post that covers the same content! That’s cross platform promotion, y’all.

I often do something similar for new client websites launches, you can see examples here and here.

5. Hide a promo or bonus on your site

If you really want people to visit your new website, might I suggest creating an incentive? I’ve seen businesses “hide” a promo code/offering or bonus somewhere on the site which users can claim by reporting the location to the business via email or social media. This is a fun way to get people to search and click through the content and pages of your website in order to find the goody and this type of gamification in web design always gets great results.

6. Flash sale

A sale is basically a universal cause for celebration so why not host one in tandem with the launch of your new website? A short sale is especially valuable and effective because it’s directly linked to the launch of the new site and comes with a sense of urgency. If you put people in a celebratory mood and offer them a sale to go along with it, you can bet that they will take action. Cha-ching!

7. Rally your Biz Besties

Make use of your network and throw that celebratory net as wide as possible! If you’re in business, I’m guessing you have some sort of network or group of peers that you interact with so get them to share the exciting news of your website launch with their audiences for extra promotion! Remember, you have a beautiful site that you should be proud to show off and your biz bestie are probably thrilled to help you spread the news. As the saying goes, a rising tide floats all boats :)

8. Participate in your designer/developer’s case study or portfolio post

If you worked with a web designer/developer on your new website, odds are they are going to want to show off the finished product. Like you, they worked hard on the new website and are ready to celebrate the project by adding it to their portfolio. you can make this extra special by taking an active part in it! Help them to record a Q&A video, offer up a killer testimonial, share your thoughts on the finished product - whatever. The more your participate in the project launch, the more public your results will be and this means more eyes on your site and a wider reach. It's basically free PR and extra backlinks to your website are great for SEO. There’s no downside!

Here's a great example from GO LIVE and MWP.

9. Create a “celebration” playlist

Use an online music platform like Spotify or Soundcloud to create a free playlist with songs that celebrate the launch of your new website and share it publicly with your audience! Be sure to include information/context about WHY you created this playlist (i.e., to celebrate the launch of your new website) and OBVIOUSLY link back to your website in the playlist’s description . Have some fun with it and crank those tunes around the office, even if it is just your living room!

Need a little musical inspiration? I've got your back.

10. Throw a party!

Yes, a real life party! Invite all employees, clients, partners - heck, you can even extend the invite to other businesses in your building/co-working space or your neighbours on the block to get a real crowd together. Stop work a little early and set out some appies, stock the fridge and put on that celebratory playlist. You’ve earned it, my friend. It could be fun to demo the new site to your guests, set up a laptop/iPad station where people can see the new site in action, or even project rotating website slides somewhere at the event!

Final Thoughts

No matter how you celebrate the launch of your new website, be sure to pat yourself on the back because all your hard work has paid off! It's a major undertaking to launch a new website and I firmly believe that it’s something to be celebrated. Spread the word that your new website is live, make the most of those extra page views, wow your audience and let them participate in this exciting chapter of your business.

Remember that people WANT to see you and your business succeed and it’s totally OK to brag about this! You put in loads of time and effort to launch your new website and if this isn’t a good enough reason to celebrate the milestone, I don’t know what is.

Whether you’re planning to launch a new website anytime soon or you’re working on a redesign project now, I can’t wait to see how you celebrate and spread the news! Be sure to leave me a link to your new site in the comments down below so that I can check it out and see you a virtual high-five.

Now it’s your turn to tell me, how are you going to celebrate your new website? What’s your favourite way to shout it from the rooftops so that the whole internet can hear? Will you try out any of these tips for your own website launch celebration? I’d love to know so leave me a comment below!