💸 $1,500 in ads vs 1 Product Hunt launch — here's what actually worked for my SaaS
I spent $1,500 in ads across Meta, Google, and TikTok to get traction. The results? A few trial signups, minimal conversions, and honestly, a lot of learning — but not much momentum.
Then I launched on Product Hunt.
I prepped for a week. No agency, no ad budget. Just my landing page, a short demo, and some outreach. ClickySignature hit #8 Product of the Day — and a few days later, #5 of the Week in the Marketing category. In 24 hours we got more signups than we did in an entire month of paid ads.
We ended up with over 150 new users, inbound leads from agencies and startups, and more than anything: real validation.
# What worked:
* Real user examples – I just take what actual users create on the platform (with permission) and showcase them on the landing page
* Clear value proposition – “a professional upgrade” through motion design in email
* Free 3-day trial (no credit card) (this is huge)
* Personalized welcome emails – not just automated onboarding, but actual connection
If you're building a product and wondering where to focus: → Ads are fine, but only once you’ve nailed your funnel and positioning → Product Hunt is 100% worth it — especially for early validation and user feedback → Storytelling, examples, and real value beat ad budgets any day
If anyone wants to see how I structured the landing, email flows, or PH strategy, happy to share!
Replies
Raycast
Tell us more about your email flows and PH strategy!
Clicky Signature
Hey Chris!
Appreciate you jumping in 🙌 For the emails, I kept it super personal — if someone signed up with @company.com, I’d research their biz, check their site, and see how ClickySignature could help. Then I’d send a short, value-first email (sometimes with a free demo).
Eventually, I built a GPT to help draft those faster — still tuning it to sound natural and thoughtful.
For the PH launch, no agency, no spend. Just a clean landing, real user examples, a story behind the product, and a bit of manual outreach. That mix made the difference.
minimalist phone: creating folders
We had a different experience, but the fact is, our ads are managed by an external agency, and the budget is larger, so there’s a lot of testing involved, and the process is more demanding to achieve results in terms of trial sign-ups.
Anyway, congratulations, and thank you for the mini case study.
Like Chris, I’m also interested in the email flow, sequences, and related details.
Clicky Signature
@busmark_w_nika Thanks so much, Nika!
I love hearing how others do it too — and yeah, I totally get the agency/testing process. What worked for me was going personal: I’d analyze each user, especially businesses, and send a tailored message that spoke to them directly. Sometimes I’d include a free sample just to break the ice.
No fancy flows — just thoughtful 1:1 emails. I did build a GPT to help me scale that personalization as more users came in.
Happy to swap notes anytime!
minimalist phone: creating folders
@rafalee Thank you! Would love to connect :)
Launching on PH is worthwhile, but paid ads are effective too. Could you tell us which strategy you used for paid ads? Thank you!
Clicky Signature
@eljo_prifti Hey Eljo!
Great question. I tried Meta, Google, and TikTok — mostly short demo videos + benefit-driven messaging. The biggest issue? I hadn’t nailed my funnel yet, so the clicks didn’t convert. Learned a lot though.
After that, I paused the ad spend and doubled down on Product Hunt, organic outreach, and onboarding flow. Once I refine those more, I’ll go back to ads — but this time with way more clarity.
Product Hunt
I'd be interested to hear about the learning from the failed ads. Do you think there's an opportunity there for @Clicky Signature in the future? Or just a dead end?
Clicky Signature
Hey @steveb — really solid question.
I actually left a small budget running on Google Ads during all this, and surprisingly… it performed way better than Meta and TikTok. Lower spend, more qualified traffic, and people who were actively looking for something like ClickySignature — so definitely not abandoning ads altogether.
The early failures just highlighted how much I needed to fix my funnel: weak onboarding, unclear value, no real user proof on the site. Now with stronger positioning and validation from PH, I see paid ads as a huge opportunity — just one I’ll approach more strategically this time.
So yeah, not a dead end at all — just a detour with a lesson. 🚀
Product Hunt
Love to hear it! Real examples + a clear USP is crucial imo. Really curious about the personalized emails, what did you find worked well in them to help onboard and convert users?
Clicky Signature
@gabe Hey Gabe!
Loved your comment — totally agree: real examples + clear USP is everything. For the emails, personalization was key. I'd research the user, reference their brand or site, and show how a custom signature could elevate their email game.
Sometimes I’d send a preview made just for them (free, no strings). That alone sparked replies and conversions. I also included a small discount code to nudge action — but honestly, just showing I cared made the biggest difference.
Thanks again for the kind words!