I review hundreds of products daily and try to demo as many as I can - what do you want to learn?
I'm a product nerd. I love demoing and testing out products and am blessed that I can do this as part of my work here at Product Hunt but I sometimes forget to share my thoughts and impressions from testing products with the community....and I want to change that!
What would you like to see if I were to start sharing some reviews, product comparisons, and first impressions of Products that are launched or discovered? What aren't you currently seeing in reviews!
Throw any ideas, ask me anything, this is ultimately for you all!
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Replies
Product Hunt
I'd love to hear what you think the most common elements are for products that don't immediately click. I know I've tried a bunch that seemed uninteresting or even kind of bad at first, but ended up being really solid once I finally got it.
And on the other side, what are some things that almost always work when it comes to getting you excited about a product?
Product Hunt
@jakecrump oooo, great question.
Most common elements that don't immediately click
Little to no onboarding..or way too complicated
Trying to do/explain too much at once
Not great landing page (or launch!)
Uses copycat language of a competitor but it's actually way more.
Things that almost work
Focus on one key idea that makes them unique and drives that home to the user
Great onboarding experience
Some sort of design element that captures the user... looking at you @Dia Browser
Immediately shows you the value of the product (why you'd use it)
@jakecrump @gabe Thanks for sharing these important points Gabe. I think onboarding is too important. Means how you are describing your service plays an important role. It's the first step why user should pay for your service.
RetroTerminal
Hey Gabe, appreciate you checking out RetroTerminal during launch, that meant a lot.
If you ever get the time, I’d genuinely love your unfiltered take on it. Not just the good, I’m more interested in what feels off, what doesn’t land, or what’s holding it back from being great.
I’m too close to it to see the cracks, and I know you’ve seen hundreds of launches. Would really value your perspective.
Product Hunt
@paramjot_singh will keep that in mind and add to my rotation again to play around with again!
Hi Gabe! Appreciate the outreach here.
Something I have been wondering about is how experienced testers demo out tools without really trying to incorporate them into their workflow. For instance, if I try to create a landing page in a landing page tool, but don't really connect it to anything like I would if I were trialing to buy it for my company, is that a fair enough degree of testing to give a useful review?
Product Hunt
@cholden_lewis good question! I actually try to incorporate it into my workflow. Whether it's Product Hunt or my personal projects. If I really can't incorporate it into my workflow, I'll try to ask someone in our team or someone I know that could test it properly. 99% of the time I'm able to get it into my workflow or have someone within Product Hunt give me their POV on it!
@gabe Haha! Guess it's only fair to give it the most realistic appraisal possible. That is really helpful to know for certain. I'll bear your POV in mind. Thanks again!
Hi Gabe,
Thank you for sharing. I'm curious when you review a product, do you only check the public facing pages on the website, or do you actually sign in and explore the product itself?
What happens if the product doesn't offer a free plan? Do you just skip it? We're planning to launch in a month or two, so I'd love to understand how you typically approach reviews.
Thanks again!
Product Hunt
@shelly_myers1 I always try to test the product, meaning signing up and using it. If it's paid, I try to see if there are demos either on X or YouTube. Typically there's always a way for me to at least get a glimpse of how the product works.
If there aren't any videos, or demos, AND I can't demo it. It might be hard for it to be featured as we can't communicate it's value clearly for the community. If there's something really interesting or unique, I do try to reach out to the makers to see if they can add a demo vid!
Most users are not getting engaged with the tool, even if the UI/UX is EXCELLENT and all of them understand it.
How much time does it take you to probe products for the launch day?
Product Hunt
@busmark_w_nika oh boy.... it really depends on the product and the sign up flow. I also take into account the sign up flow during my feedback process but I'd say I try to give each product at least 5min. If it's longer than 5min, it must be good....or a long sign up process.
@gabe Wow :D I am about to really try a maximum 5 products. :D You need to be pretty fast then! :D
Product Hunt
@busmark_w_nika when I first started I did not make it through the day and barely got through ⅓rd of the products haha.... just ask @jakecrump!
Over time I built up a process that I'm pretty happy with to give me a good view of the product. Now with @Dia Browser I'm slowly starting to optimize even more.
Do you follow a check list i.e. the key aspects on which you evaluate i.e. your framework? -- would be great to see that and accordingly comment further.
But following for sure:
1) Value for users -- score from your perspective
2) Uniqueness
3) UX
4) User adoption
5) Implementation timeframe /Installation requirements
6) Pricing
Product Hunt
@manu_goel2 this is actually a great question. I don't have it written down but it generally is a combination of
User experience
Clear value prop
Uniqueness (either product or experience)
Implementation
vibes
That last one might sound weird but essentially is someone launching a copycat cash grab or is it a honest maker that made something super niche but you can see their flavor throughout the product and build.
Optibot
I would love to see you review onboarding flows and possibly even keeping a count of aha moments during your tests/reviews. Over the past year most platforms have shifted from doing really good onboarding to having open ended prompt box UI or moved from guide based onboarding to a self exploratory approach.
Product Hunt
@syedahmedz oh man, maybe I should record myself going through demos and review process. @Burner is one that I didn't think much of until I saw their launch, landing page, and the maker/experience! true aha moment
Optibot
@gabe that would be amazing. I've been waiting for someone to do break downs of products (from the lens of product and design). Possibly a youtube video or even shorts. You folks get 200+ launches a day, its a treasure trove.
Product Hunt
@cristian_stoian_urzica thanks Cristian, appreciate it!
LiveDemo
Would you say product demos on landing pages are helpful in understanding the product?
Product Hunt
@gapostolov 100% The more context you can give a user or community member, the better.
I'd love to see honest first impressions—what works, what’s confusing, and whether you'd actually keep using it. Side-by-side comparisons with clear pros/cons would be super helpful too. And don’t shy away from calling out where things fall short!
Product Hunt
@george_parker3 it's funny cause I talk to myself out loud about this and even tell some team members internally! These are great callouts, will keep in mind :)
What about registration?
I can see that some users download the app but are not registering. I spoke with few of them and they said that when they see the request to registered they feel thrown away. What's your take on it?
Product Hunt
@aleksandra_trueme I can't really comment on the whole experience but personally when I review, I do try to register. If I register and end up not using the app it's either
Onboarding was too complicated
Instantly hit with a Paywall
Product didn't work/froze/bug/waitlisted
If people are downloading the app but not registering, might need to look into the product's flywheel and rethink about how you're engaging new users.
@gabe thank you!
That sounds like a lot of work. Perhaps we will benefit by interviewing you on a monthly podcast. :D
It may not always be possible and may raise unnecessary support requests, but PH should consider a feedback field on the launch dashboard for makers. If some products could make it to the featured list by some simple tweaks, we can inform them. Example, add a demo or confusing value prop.
I am not sure on which product I saw it, but a decade ago, Ryan used to leave one-liner notes sometimes.
Product Hunt
@rohanrecommends showing feedback is something we've discussed internally. We definitely want to communicate more with makers and I've been experimenting manually, now trying to make it scalable.
@gabe Awesome! Looking forward :)
Review are "hidden". i'd love to see them in post launch phases. Makers once their products become popular don't have an easy door to fellow-maker feedback. PH could serve that purpose and have this relationship with makers to keep participating with the community here
Love that you're opening this up to the community! I'd be excited to see behind-the-scenes thoughts on what makes a product "feel" polished, and maybe even breakdowns of how you evaluate user experience in the first 5 minutes.
1- What’s the first thing you notice when trying a new product?
2- What are red flags that instantly turn you off from a product?
Let me know your genuine answer.
Product Hunt
@sania_khan10 this would actually make for a great short "first experience", thanks for the inspo! And regarding your questions:
It really varies depending on the product but I'd say onboarding and design
Same as the top, onboarding and design. If it's hard to understand what you're trying to do or if I have to jump through a lot of hoops just to be met with a paywall, ngmi.
@gabe Well described — you’re right, friction in onboarding or unclear value kills trust fast. We’re working on simplifying the experience so users can explore first, understand the value, and only then decide to commit. Your feedback’s noted — thank you.
What’s the first thing you notice when testing a product? UI, onboarding, or something else?
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