The One Mistake to Avoid When Launching New Enterprise Products
Bringing a new enterprise product to market is a high-stakes gameâmissteps can cost millions, slow adoption, or even derail a launch entirely. But whatâs the one mistake you must avoid? Join us for an exclusive conversation with Lara McCaskill, Principal PMM, Enterprise Strategy & Planning at Atlassian, who has successfully led multiple enterprise launches, including a rent category-defining launch. Weâll dive into the critical insights gained from real-world experience, breaking down what works, what doesnât, and how to set up your launch for success.
Launching a new enterprise product is one of the most complex and high-stakes initiatives a marketing and product team can undertake. Itâs not just about making a splashâitâs about ensuring long-term adoption, aligning teams, and proving product-market fit.
During a recent Game Changers session, Lara McCaskill, Principal PMM, Enterprise Strategy & Planning at Atlassian, shared her firsthand experience launching Atlassianâs new strategic planning tool and the key lessons marketers and product leaders can take away.
Why Enterprise Launches Are Different
Enterprise product launches operate on a different playing field compared to SMB or consumer products. The stakes are higher, sales cycles are longer, and customers expect a seamless experience with clear value from day one.
According to Lara, the key factors that make enterprise launches unique include:
- Multiple decision-makers: C-suite executives, IT leaders, and end users all need to buy in.
- Higher complexity: Enterprise tools integrate into broader ecosystems and workflows.
- Longer adoption curves: Revenue impact isnât immediateâadoption and activation metrics matter first.
- Personalized outreach: ABM and targeted engagement play a critical role in success.
1. Build a Launch Strategy That Prioritizes Engagement Over Hype
Atlassian took a phased approach to their latest launch, ensuring they had real customer engagement before making a major marketing push.
Key steps in their launch strategy:
- Soft Launch: They introduced the product to select customers and tested messaging before the full release.
- Customer Conferences as a Launchpad: Atlassian leveraged its major Team Conference to introduce the product in October, ensuring they had a built-in audience of engaged enterprise customers.
- Beta & Early Access: Rather than launching blindly, they used beta programs to gather critical customer feedback before scaling up.
Takeaway for Marketers: Instead of launching with a massive campaign on day one, consider phasing your launchâallowing you to test, adjust, and improve messaging before going big.
2. Define Success Metrics That Evolve Over Time
Many enterprise teams make the mistake of defining launch success purely in terms of revenue generated in the first few monthsâbut enterprise adoption doesnât work that way.
Lara emphasized that success metrics should evolve through different phases:
Early Indicators (Pre-Launch & Beta Stage)
- Number of engaged beta customers
- Time-to-onboard
- Key product usage metrics
- Early qualitative feedback
Post-Launch Success Metrics
- Adoption Rates (Are existing customers using it?)
- Expansion Metrics (Are inactive accounts engaging again?)
- Net-New Interest (Are prospects interested in learning more?)
Long-Term Metrics
- ARR Growth & Retention (Is it driving long-term value?)
- Customer Feedback & NPS (How do users feel about the product?)
Takeaway for Marketers: Enterprise launches require patience. Make sure you’re tracking early indicators of success before focusing on revenue impact.
3. Use Customer Feedback to Shape Your GTM Strategy
Your customersânot just your internal teamâshould help define your messaging.
Lara shared how Atlassian actively uses early customer insights to refine their positioning before full-scale marketing:
- Asking beta users how they describe the product in their own words
- Identifying the pain points that resonate most with customers
- Understanding the alternatives they were using before adopting the new product
By incorporating real customer insights into their hero videos, landing pages, and sales enablement, Atlassian ensures that its GTM strategy is based on real user needs, not assumptions.
Takeaway for Marketers: Don’t wait until after the launch to refine messagingâlet your early customers guide your GTM strategy from the start.
4. Be Ready to PivotâBecause Things Will Change
No launch ever goes exactly as planned. Lara highlighted some of the unexpected changes Atlassian had to navigate:
- Launch dates shiftingâboth pushed back and pulled forward
- Adjusting target customer segments based on early traction
- Refining the messaging and positioning as customer insights evolved
The key to handling these challenges? Having contingency plans.
âHave all the templates and frameworks in place, but also be ready to pivot when things change,â Lara explained. âAsk yourself: âWhat if this changes? How do we adjust?ââ
Takeaway for Marketers: Donât assume your original plan is final. Build in flexibility so you can adapt based on real-time feedback.
5. Donât Make This Common Mistake: Scaling Marketing Too Soon
One of the biggest pitfalls in enterprise launches is going all-in on marketing before confirming product-market fit.
Lara cautioned against prematurely ramping up marketing efforts:
- Flooding the funnel with unqualified leads before knowing who your ideal customer is
- Spending big on paid campaigns before understanding the productâs true differentiators
- Over-promising capabilities that arenât fully built yet
Instead, Atlassian focused on building momentum within existing customers and trusted enterprise accounts before expanding further.
Takeaway for Marketers: Ensure strong product-market fit before scaling demand generation. Otherwise, you risk burning budget and creating friction in the sales cycle.
6. Engaging the C-Suite: A Challenge Worth Solving
Since Atlassianâs latest product is designed for enterprise executives, Lara is actively exploring how to engage the C-suite effectively.
Traditional marketing channels donât work the same way for senior executives. Instead, Atlassian is testing:
- Account-based marketing (ABM) to drive more personalized engagement
- High-touch executive events to build direct relationships
- Thought leadership content tailored to CXO priorities
This approach ensures that marketing efforts align with how executives actually discover and evaluate new products.
Takeaway for Marketers: When targeting busy decision-makers, generic campaigns wonât work. Focus on relationships, personalized outreach, and credibility-building efforts.
Final Thoughts: Enterprise Launches Are a Long Game
Launching an enterprise product isnât just about making a splashâitâs about driving long-term value, adoption, and customer success.
As Lara and her team at Atlassian have demonstrated, a strategic, phased approach that incorporates real customer feedback, evolving success metrics, and team alignment is key to winning in the enterprise space.
If youâre planning an enterprise launch, focus on engagement, track meaningful metrics, and be ready to pivot when needed.
