Online Launch Process Step 5 - Designing Your Avatar's Journey

This is part of the series that is designed to complement the free download

Online Business Launch Strategy (21 step Process, Tech and Launch infographic).

If you don't have that yet, go to the download page to get it now before reading this post.

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Process Step 5 - Your Avatar's Journey

In Launch Process Step Three you created a funnel to guide your avatar into your world.

Then, in Launch Process Step Four you worked out your plan to bring traffic into your funnel.

If you've done that, then you should be rightly proud of your achievement, because most people don't get that far.

Take a breath and enjoy it, but don't stop, because that is not the end, it is the beginning.  Now it's time to get to work on step 5 - planning your avatar's journey.

What is Your Avatar's Journey

You are your avatar's guide and they are looking to you for guidance.

As their guide, you need to design a map from where they are now, through the solutions that you provide, from their first problem to the last problem you want to solve for them.

You are guiding your avatar as they write their online launch journey.

Starting The Journey

No two journeys are the same, and the starting position of your ideal avatar can be very different from even others in your same industry.  And so the map you design for them will depend on their starting position.  At the risk of over simplifying, these are the starting positions (and subsequent stages) we usually see.  (I've numbered these in reverse order, with 3 a later stage than 2 and so on):

3. Problem Aware / Solution Aware

This is someone who knows the problem and the solution.  Let's take for instance someone who wants to build a cubby house.  They have the project mapped out and have decide to join it together with screws, and will also need holes for fittings. They work out that they need to buy a power drill.  They may even know what brand and model they want, and be ready to buy with the final hurdles being things like price, warranty, specifications, bundle, speed of delivery etc.

Your job in this instance is to guide them to why your drill offer is the best one for them.

2. Problem Aware / Not Solution Aware

At other times your avatar may know they have a problem, but not yet be solution aware.  I come across this type a lot.  People come into my world knowing they have a problem getting the tech together to launch their course, but don't yet know the solution.  Problem aware, but not yet solution aware.

In this instance, you need emphasize with the problem, demonstrate how others have solved this problem before making an offer to sell your particular solution.

In our cubby example, they started thinking about how to join it together, but haven't yet done the research on whether to nail, glue, screw or sticky-tape.

1. Not Problem Aware or Solution Aware

For many of us with stuff to sell online, it's also quite likely that your avatar doesn't yet know the problems they are going to face.  They have some idea of what they want, and they may know the first problem, but not the whole list of problems that are going to come once that first one is solved (if indeed it is even the right problem to solve first).

As the expert, it is your job to educate your avatar as they interact with you, as you show them each problem, and how to solve them.  Along the way, your avatar gets more and more value from you, trusts you more and more, and has greater potential to stay with you and buy your products and services.

In our drill example, this is someone who has embraced the idea of building a cubby house, but does not yet know how to join the wood together, so they don't yet know that they need a drill (amongst the other problems that need solving). 

Where Does Your Avatar Start?

Your avatar may come in at 1, or at 2, or at 3.  It's really up to you whether you want to be helping your avatar very early in the journey, or later in the journey.

Continuing The Journey

The next step is to map out their journey.

As their guide, take them through each problem and solution they will face (known and unknown) to their goal.  Along the way, you provide some of this for free and some for paid products and services.  It's up to you to decide.

The following Avatar Journey diagram spells a typical journey in more detail.

This is how to read this diagram:

1. At the top, the Avatar is not very 'aware', but they do know they have some problem and are looking for a solution.
2. You provide an easily appliable solution to problem #1
3. Your interaction also shows them that they have another problem
4. You position yourself to solve it, or guide them to a solution
5. As you do this, you build expert positioning and trust as they learn from you
6. You then solve that problem too - possibly through a paid offer - and deliver more solutions to more problems

And on it goes as far as you want to guide your avatar.  You don't need to guide them forever, but do think about the exit ramp so when they do exit, they do so gracefully that leaves a lasting great impression.

I repeat that this is a typical journey that I see a lot, but with all generalizations, it should not be assumed to be the case in every situation or even in your case.

Which Problem and Solution?

Glad you asked.  That is not for me to tell you, but it is for you to decide based on the work you've done in understanding your avatar.

This is Where a Launch Fits In

We will get to this later, but a launch is simply a concentrated journey through the problem-solution-path.  Jeff Walker coined that phrase (as far as I know), which you may also see abbreviated as 'PSP'.  It's what I've described - taking your avatar through a journey from problem 1 to solution 1 to problem 2 to solution 2 to problem 3 and solution 3 (and so on for free or low ticket) until your paid offer comes in all through a concentrated structured process. 

But more on the launch detail later :)

So what's next?

Next we look at planning your avatar's journey through that process in what we call 'a launch'

Author:

Hi, I'm Guy Mullon.  I've been creating, building, mentoring, coaching and consulting online for many years.  But I spent too many of those spinning wheels and chasing rabbits, that never produced the results that those leads promised.  I've put this series together to help you cut through the noise and see the process step by step to building your online masterpiece, and getting to your first sale and growing from there. The Online Launch Strategy Info-graphic gives you the overview, and Kajabi makes it all possible in one place.  If you aren't using Kajabi yet, why not get a free trial and get started today.

P.S. a free Kajabi trial through us gets you USD$500 in bonuses included to speed your progress and stop overwhelm.