From Zero to Eyeballs: Scrappy Growth Tactics and Community Marketing Lessons for Makers

Hey everyone!

Been heads-down for the past 3 months, somehow managed to churn out nearly 300k words (my fingers are tired! 😅), and gathered a small-ish following on my WeChat Official Account and Zhihu.

During this grind, I stumbled upon something pretty interesting:

when I post articles on Zhihu and submit them to relevant, highly-discussed questions, the engagement in the Q&A section often blows the article itself out of the water! 🤯 This was a real lightbulb moment, reminding me of some "old-school" (maybe even a bit crude?) marketing tips I heard on a podcast, and suddenly, it all clicked!

So, why am I even bothering to create this "Guide to Writing Eye-Catching Product Hunt Reviews"?

Honestly, it's because I want to break down these "aha!" moments:

1、Go where the leverage is high: For instance, launching on Product Hunt isn't just about getting developers' attention; it's often a play to get noticed by KOLs on TikTok or X for that sweet secondary spread. A bit of a "detour to success," right?

2、Dive into community hubs: Places like Jike groups, Douban groups, or Reddit, where everyone has an equal voice, are perfect for us underdogs to find our first "allies." I've noticed on Reddit that crafting high-quality, insightful replies can really create a bit of FOMO and draw people in.

3、The magic of long-tail keywords: Xiaohongshu is basically the search engine for Gen Z these days, right? Those suggested keywords when you search for a product, and the long-tail traffic on Reddit, are pure gold!

Where am I at with this now?

To be frank, this "guide" is still very much a work in progress – more like a collection of messy notes and half-baked ideas as I figure things out. I'm trying to string these scattered thoughts together, hoping it can help others who are also on their "building" journey.

I'd love to hear what you all think: Do these "crude methods" make any sense to you? Or, when you've been promoting your own little projects, do you have any secret sauce or pitfalls you've encountered? Don't be shy!

Genuinely keen to hear your perspectives. Let's make this "process of doing things" more fun and effective together!

Please drop your thoughts, suggestions, or even your own tips in the comments – let's co-create this! 👇