What did you misunderstand about launching your product?
Eithiriel DeMeré
36 replies
If you launched a product on Product Hunt (as one channel as part of your go-to-market channel strategy), what did you misunderstand about the process? What would you have done differently?
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Cassaundra Lincoln@cassaundra_lincoln
Actually, today is my first-time to submitting my product on PH. I once thought PH was a place for product managers to communicate but now I realized it was a platform for finding valuable products for living or working. I've always worked for AI-based image editing tools like BGremover and AI image upscaler. If you are photographer or designer, you shouldn't miss out!
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For me, it was probably more of an opportunity to promote than actually making sales. I did get some momentum. I just did it without a lot of planning. There is a place for that for sure.
I may do it again, and I would be more strategic. I have heard of others launching again on PH, so that may be something I do.
I think a big issue is product / audience fit. A lot of folks on PH are tech/entrepreneurs and my product had nominal appeal.
For our most recent product launch, we learned that we needed a clear definition of MVP upfront and early; development started while requirements were still being defined. Date-based goals were our driver, requiring key tradeoffs to ensure team size and staffing levels enable success. We needed to continue to strike the right balance between product scope and speed-to-market. Finally, we missed an opportunity to more clearly set aligned goals for launch that make it easier to assess ROI.
@richard_juknavorian Can you please help me, I am new here..
https://www.producthunt.com/@spo...
No preparation before the launch/not creating a hype around the product.
I thought so many product launches everyday, who would care about us!
I launched WhiteLabel - Branded games for businesses without any preparation.
Two days later, saw a sale and started wondering where it came from. We didn't do any marketing or paid ads.
Logged in to PH and saw 75+ upvotes.
PH is truly an amazing platform to get early adopters.
@ashrahman what is the importance of an up vote the numbers seem small am i missing something. PS im new
I uploaded product on producthunt, however, I can't edit or create process flow.
We didn't prepare enough so didn't have a proper understanding of Product Hunt and what it can do. We were shocked (and excited!) to see that so many new users came from PH.
@inesfenner what was your product's position on PH at the end of the launch day?
@inesfenner @jimmy_spikes Hi Jimmy, for the company I am working for now. We got the first batch of seed users from PH. And we were the 2nd product of the day. We are proud to put the badge on our homepage.
@inesfenner @jimmy_spikes Be more specific with your question to get an answer. It depends on so many factors and what type of product in what phase that giving a good answer to a generalized question is too time consuming.
Just helping out, not criticizing. :)
@inesfenner @ranee_zhang thats awsome but what does that mean, and where does that get you i guess is my question
@inesfenner @cristinaimre i always value all options thank you , im sorry very new to this and ill do my best just not sure what to ask.
That we needed to wait until things were perfect before we launched. We missed out on an opportunity to launch early because we wanted to add just one more feature, which turned into 10 more features. We should have just launched right away, and then launched again six months later.
During the first launch, we focused too much on getting everything ready and making sure the tech works and didn't get a chance to plan the alunch itself, build a community for it or think what to do with the traffic we would get once the product is announced. Since then, we've learned it's important to plan, set goals, and have a mapped out customer journey.
Honestly, we launched on PH and waited for people to upvote and try it out... This time we will try to be more proactive. Understanding the PH playground, connecting with other makers, asking for help from the community, and more...
In my next launch need more marketing activity when you only started. Because you need to be in TOP 5 all day. TOP 5 products have a lot of organic traffic
I am yet to launch my first product, so not sure if I am qualified to comment, But I been through the discussion on this thread.
There are few things I would like to add -
1. Producthunt copy - This is amiss in many many product launches, and I have seen copies with even grammatical mistakes. This is super important for the first impression. Keep your copy super simple, crisp and make sure your product USP is easily understood by your target audience.
2. Landing page - Why do you direct the traffic to a landing page or generic home page? How much time does it really take to set up a PH specific landing page?
3. Objective of launching the product - I see many founders are confused about why they need to launch on Producthunt. Are you looking for few first customers, then create a launch offer. Are you looking for feedback on your product, then offer a free trial and clearly ask for feedback. Are you looking to just create awareness about your product or educate the market - Add educational videos and content on your landing page. Better not to mix multiple objectives I feel.
@giri @devaonbreaches I wonder if someone build a PH special landing page and run google ads campaign for pre-launch of the PH?
@devaonbreaches @ranee_zhang Not everyone is your target market is using PH. IMO, an email campaign will be quick to setup and targeted. If you need to promote, better put money on PH itself.
Great discussion. We're just about to launch our app Plezi One and we're organizing the last details before we'll market it here on Product Hunt... can't wait! I guess launches never happen the way you expect them and that the whole secret is to be very attentive during the first days + keep track of things happening (numbers, feelings, top reactions...). Also to "dedramatize" the "one and only launch" - instead, do several "launches" each time you release a new feature, with a retro time with the team to challenge the ways things were done and learn for the next releases ;) #test&learn
That it is an expensive paid service..
Customer engagement is everything!
Hi, I'm actually preparing our launch (6th of July, search for Plezi One in the upcoming products :p). And I was lost with the hunter/no hunter thing. Using the Ship feature they encouraged me to "schedule launch", which I did. I ended up with my product page created, as well as the launch page. And I couldn't go back or I'd loose the shiny URL...
Not a big thing, but as everything's new, I feel like loosing time and not being efficient. I guess Product Hunt is really a long term game now, so let's do this first launch, there are 3 products coming after this one, they may be better 🤣
@benoit_collet so whats your overall view of PH if you dont mind. IMnew looking for answers untill i can post
@jimmy_spikes it's definitely powerful and a really nice place to get your product rocking worldwide!
We launched on Product Hunt today (https://www.producthunt.com/post...) and quickly realized that the number of upvotes isn't directly proportional to your position on the leaderboard. Also, it has no bearing on whether or not you'll get early adopters. At the end of the day, the product needs to shine, because that's what all of this is really for. Curious to know what others think about this.
I misunderstood the prep pre launching and how to take advantage of the new adoption. In future I would engage with potential adopters prior, engage with the community more, ship fast. Something I am trying prior launching my next project this week