The first Product Hunt launch experience

Roman Agabekov - Jun 7 - - Dev Community

Hey everyone,

We recently launched our database performance management tool on Product Hunt for the first time and I want to share our experience and results. It might be valuable for those founders who are going to launch Product Hunt.

Here's a summary of this launch:

1. Why did we decide to launch our product on Product Hunt?

  • To build more trust with our current audience who visit the site for the first time.
  • For long-term SEO benefits.
  • To reach a new audience.

2. Why did we decide to launch on the weekend? Our hypotheses were:

  • Lower competition on weekends should increase our chances of being featured (We're not afraid of competitors, but the target audience for a Database Performance Management tool is different from that of sales GPT assistants, which is broader).

  • The Product Hunt audience that intersects with our target audience is busy during the weekdays with their startups and might try new technologies on the weekend 🙂

3. What were the goals for the launch?

  • 200 Upvotes.
  • 1000 Visitors (in 1 week).
  • 10% Conversion - 100 Signups (in 1 week).

4. How did we prepare?

  • We created a video, images, and a clear description.
  • Collected a list of friends and channels to share information about the launch.
  • Prepared the product page on Product Hunt.
  • Asked our families to give us 24 hours over the Saturday 🙏

5. How did we launch?

  • Published posts on social media.
  • Sent messages to friends.
  • Sent emails to 4000 users.
  • Sent messages to a few public database-related groups.
  • Throughout the day, we responded to questions and feedback.

We faced some challenges:

  • We didn't prepare emails, messages for friends and users, and content for social media and it took a lot of invaluable time during launch day.
  • Lesson learned: Messages should be prepared in advance to save time during the launch day.
  • We didn't know that after 00:00 Pacific time, Product Hunt could cut upvotes and change your position.
  • Lesson learned: Keep pushing till the end.
  • We received many upvotes after the launch day.
  • Lesson learned: Users, friends, and the community need time to support you, so it's important to inform them right after the start.

Results we achieved:

  • 4th Product of the Day and featured in the Newsletter.
  • 5th Developer tool of the week.
  • Featured in the ProductHunt newsletter.
  • Upvotes: 247.
  • Visitors: 459 (in 5 days).
  • Signups: 26 (5% conversion).
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