Notes from a failed Product Hunt launch
After hours of reading best practices, crafting the perfect assets and assembling what felt like a bulletproof plan, we were ready to launch on Product Hunt. We worked so hard and genuinely believed we’d wake up to thousands of sign ups and the Product of the Day badge.
The reality was very different. We saw a tiny boost in sign ups, got stuck at around 200 upvotes, and to top it off, finished below a food blender.
Thankfully the story didn’t end there. Since then, we’ve launched two more times and the results were way better: two top 5 finishes, hundreds more upvotes, and a big uptick in users. I've been reflecting on why the first one fell flat and what changed in the more successful attempts. Here are my biggest lessons:
Get clear on your goal. At first, we were chasing the recognition of a top spot. But honestly, the most valuable outcomes are feedback, usage and long-term users. The leaderboard only tells part of the story.
Don't reinvent the wheel with assets. You probably have limited time and a small team. Take inspiration from launches you admire. There are some great websites that curates top-performing assets from past launches.
Be clear and human. Say what your product does in simple terms and share why you built it. People connect with clarity and real stories more than clever copy. Stay clear of buzzwords and don’t be afraid to show some personality.
Use social proof in your visuals. Screenshots are fine, but what really helps are testimonials, logos from investors or partners, and any external validation you’ve got. Trust builds interest.
You can launch more than once. We were terrified of getting it wrong, thinking we only had one shot. But it’s completely normal to launch again later with updates, new features or big milestones. The first launch is just the start.
Early momentum is everything. If you don’t get traction in the first few hours, it’s easy to get buried. Most people scroll through the top few and ignore the rest. Get your support lined up in advance and be ready to push hard from the first minute.
Build your network early. In the early days of Product Hunt, a great product could carry you. That’s no longer the case. Success now relies heavily on the community you’ve built before launch day. Start building that list and showing up in the community ahead of time.
I think the last two (number 6 and 7) are the most important. Would love to know what you would add/change from this list?
Replies
Great points all around! We’re about to dive headfirst into our first PH launch this week, and your blender story just simultaneously terrified and inspired me. 🍹
Completely agree about momentum and community, though hearing "you can always launch again" feels a bit like being told, "there's always next season," by a coach after losing the big game. Comforting, but also...ouch?
We're definitely feeling #7: the best time to build your network was yesterday. The second best time is right after reading your post.
Thanks for sharing your battle scars so openly. Here’s hoping our product at least finishes above a toaster.
Any other last-minute wisdom before we jump in?
Would like to add — Getting more people to follow your pre-launch / teaser page.
Meco
@charvibothra Yes this is a great one!
@charvibothra Good add, Charvi!
I'd like to add that actively engaging with and responding to every comment after launch is crucial. I've found this really helps win more support for the product.
Also, I completely agree with the last point, building a community in advance is extremely important, as it helps accumulate potential upvotes for the launch. I recently started trying to build a community to prepare for our product launch in the future, but I’m struggling to attract attention. Can you share several tips?
Meco
@feliciana_liu Giving genuine feedback and support to other products that are launching each day is a great place to start! Engaging in these communities is also helpful - can see you are doing that already :)
minimalist phone: creating folders
I wouldn't write it any better.
+ HONEST connections and feedback matter the most – I had a trillion people who messaged me one day before the launch and behaved like long-life friends, "faked" interests in my services just to hunt their product... :D
Meco
@busmark_w_nika Yes love this! What do you think the best way to make more honest connections from Product Hunt?
minimalist phone: creating folders
@sean_mccarney1 True connections last more than just a few weeks before/after the launch :)
Meco
@busmark_w_nika Truer words have never been spoken!
Bucket
great write-up, Sean! you're spot on. Product Hunt pays off in the long term. keep launching.
Meco
@fmerian It really does! Keep launching is the way :)
Thanks for sharing your experience! After the launch, I think it’s also important to make summary of the launch, like what experience can we learn from this launch so that we can do better next time.
Meco
@evakk Yeah you're right! Reflection is so important to improve in future
Thanks for sharing your real experience! It's great to see that you didn't give up after a failure and found out the points to improve.
If I may add, having a community is a big plus for new launches, especially on Product Hunt.
Meco
@isibol01 Yup really good point! Community support is one of the most important indicators of a successful launch :)
Love this real feedback and honest insights! Can confirm that its 100% what I have discovered from this forum, the other guys and makers. But what really excites me is that each launch of the product is truly unique. I know some that have been launched without prior community built about the PH, and it was successful enough!
Do the teams stay on PH after the successful launch? Please share your insights.
Meco
@theonebroker I naturally find myself most active on PH before and after a launch but I think it is important to try keep engage with people in the community as much as possible outside that!
@sean_mccarney1 What other channels do you find affective to build a community? I understand that it depends a lot on product's specific, but it should be the common way to start with, right? By the way this thread made me to discover your launch results)
Great advice across the board.
Did you use pro hunters ever?
Meco
@matt__mcdonagh We don't! It seems having someone hunt your product is lost some importance over the years, used to be huge but now you can definitely get away without one!
wooow @sean_mccarney1 This is so valuable! Thanks a lot! Just a quick question, what are your strategies to built up the community before the launch? Thanks again!
For building out the network - how much time did you spend on PH per day? I'm semi new to the platform, hear creating the community / followers pre-launch is everything, but see some names on here CONSTANTLY to the point where I'm convinced it's their full-time job or involves levels of automation.
Would love to hear how much time you actually spent engaging
Graphify
Thanks for the tips, will keep them bookmarked for my next launch 🤝
This writing helped me alleviate my current worries and anxieties.
Thank you sincerely.
Since numbers 6 and 7 are the most important, they seem to be the hardest.
Do you have any good tips?
We launched for the first time last week and had a similar experience.
Next time, we would try to increase our network and get our community ready for the launch a bit sooner.
I'm really surprised how important it is to be chosen as a featured product as well. You don't stand a chance if you're not featured. I wish that products that aren't deemed to meet the guidelines stood a fairer chance by not being hidden from view in all places, but it is what it is.
I believe our product met the guidelines, but probably many founders think the same. Our mistake there was probably that we rushed the launch a bit. The product was ready but the product hunt page and the website were only finalised a day or two in advance.
So in summary, I'd make sure the page is ready weeks in advance and create a coming soon page + contact as many people as possible 1-1 to make it work.
PS: we got beaten by 3D Uno
Thanks, @sean_mccarney1 Sean. Would keep this as my reference for my launch, soon.
"Be clear and human" and "Get clear on your goal" really vibe with me. IMO quality beats hype, unless you have massive resources to create artificial hype. By quality, I mean constantly investigating / dissecting the product against user feedback, user needs and painpoints, the market landscape, etc, to determine that your offering really is something unique and impactful.
Wow, really appreciate this! I've been trying to be patient with curating our PH journey to get it right so #5 was very helpful. It's fine balance between good enough and perfect.