Essentials for launching a product
There are a lot of products being hunted, launched, and competing for attention here.
But I still see some makers missing the very basics.
It got me thinking about putting together an "essentials package" of things that, in my opinion, every maker should have in place before deciding to launch their product on this platform.
My Product Hunt launch essentials would include the following (these should be done before launch, btw):
a properly filled-out profile
a finished landing page for the product (the one beyond PH)
a hunter
gathering relevant people who will be stated under the launch (e.g. as makers + products/stack used for building)
a first comment prepared in advance
choosing the right launch day
appealing visuals and compelling copy
Is there anything you'd add to this essentials package that I'm missing?
Replies
Uselink
a launch-day engagement plan, meaning someone (probably you) online from 12:01 PST ready to reply to every single comment. share the launch to your network, and have a few of your friend in other time zone support the launch as well lol
engagement velocity in the first few hours feeds the ranking pretty well, that's what I learned from 8 time launches
by the way, here is my checklist: https://uselink.app/@nathan/ph-launch-essentialsh?
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@nathan_tran2 wow, you did a pretty good job of summarising everything! Solid!
Uselink
@busmark_w_nika the previous link was broken so I updated!! and yeah I have some experience after launching and supporting over 10 products ദ്ദി(˵ •̀ ᴗ - ˵ )
@nathan_tran2 Thank you for sharing the link!
I am new to Product Hunt. Is a hunter just a person who endorses a product?
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@withmarlowe It is a person who makes it more visible because of his/her reputacy.
Solid list you got there.
One thing I'd add: warm up your network at least a week before, not just the day of. A lot of makers blast their community on launch day when everyone's already distracted and the algorithm has already started ranking. The people who got early traction in the first 2-3 hours tend to be the ones who had conversations going beforehand, replies lined up, supporters already bought in.
Also underrated: responding to every comment on launch day, even a short reply. It signals the maker is actually present and that tends to pull in more engagement from people sitting on the fence.
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@nolan_vu It is most crucial to do it when you have a launch day on the weekend (I mean, reminding several days before), because many people are not so active here on weekends.
@busmark_w_nika Thanks for the reminder, so like I should notify about the launching a few days before. So how about after the launch, what to do to approach more people to examine and leave review for the product, since I am struggling with that a lot, especially that I am launching an AI-assisted product
A demo video that shows the core feature in under 60 seconds. Everything else can be rough — if people don't get what the product does in the first minute, the rest doesn't matter.
Launching Fluxerv in about two weeks and this list is basically my checklist. The first comment is the one I keep rewriting — it sets the tone for the whole launch day.
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@mpanpalli This checklist for the 1st PH comment may help: https://www.producthunt.com/p/producthunt/how-to-write-a-product-hunt-comment-during-the-launch-day :)
@busmark_w_nika Thanks, going through it now. The first comment pressure is real — glad there's a guide for it.
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@mpanpalli You are welcome :)
FuseBase
Sorry, my dear hunters, but half of the launches that make it to the top don’t have a hunter at all. So I wouldn’t say having a hunter is compulsory, but it’s definitely a great addition if they’re actively helping with preparation and promotion - not just hunting, taking the money, and disappearing.
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@kate_ramakaieva Interesting finding. Did you notice it from your own research, or is there any public report reflecting that phenomenon?
Launching PopBoost on PH today. The thing most people skip: seed your own discussion threads before launch day so the page isn't dead when people land on it. An empty comments section kills momentum faster than a bad product.
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@vladsf415 More people should use this one! :)
@busmark_w_nika This is a great checklist. Thank you Nika. We are gearing up for a launch and this came right in time.
I've been saying about a launch for quite some time now. I personally had some life crisis which delayed my startup journey.
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@ajinsunny I have my fingers crossed for you – when is your launch day?
@busmark_w_nika We are waiting on finishing our launch video which has a customer testimonial. We are hoping to make this a real substance filled launch.
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@ajinsunny Customer testimonials (like a video) could increase the trust, neat move :)
I just launched my very first product here as well, so this thread is gold! One thing I'd add: having a follow-up plan ready for after launch day. The traffic spike is temporary, but how you capture and nurture those visitors — whether through an email sequence, onboarding flow, or retargeting — determines whether the launch actually translates into retained users. A lot of makers put everything into the launch and nothing into what comes next.
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@amer_khalil Have you tried it? How many users did you catch after that by following-up?
@busmark_w_nika Not yet — this is literally my first launch! But your point hit home. I have a waitlist email set up but no real follow-up sequence after that. Going to fix that today. Thanks for the reminder — this is exactly the kind of practical advice I needed to hear on day one!
Your list couldn't have come at a better time @busmark_w_nika thank you! I'm new here (and new to building in general) and have a launch coming up in August and another one in September.
I've been learning a lot in the time I've been here but honestly, having a checklist I could work through would be super helpful. I've launched webinars and such over on LinkedIn and I know that prep is key.
I'm currently working on my landing page and mostly trying to grow a network here. I feel like I have some of the things you mentioned in place, but have no idea what to expect on launch day (does anyone on their first launch?! lol). I'll definitely be following this thread and learning from you all!
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@anna_ludwinowski Welcome to this platform. I think you can benefit from it pretty well! :)
@busmark_w_nika Thanks so much - I already have!
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@anna_ludwinowski Happy to hear that!
Thank you @busmark_w_nika for sharing this, I wish I had this before.
While I had most of it done, I was missing a hunter, the community, the right launch day.
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@johnsongill Next time, it will be much better :)
@busmark_w_nika Thank you so much. Truly appreciate it :)