How to launch checklist
People often email us ( hello@producthunt.com ) and individual members of the team to tell us about their product and asking for tips. We’ll go into why this is not a very effective way of getting featured on the homepage later in the post, but tips we’re happy to give! 😺
Below is a list of things you should do when launching on Product Hunt:
Get it on Product Hunt
If the product hasn’t been hunted it cannot be featured. You can post something new here . To post a product, signup with a personal account (no company/branded accounts please!) and then follow these steps .
You don’t need to reach out to “top hunters” or influencers to get your product hunted. Ultimately the community upvotes products they like and find useful, so it’s far more important to build something awesome and clearly communicate its value to the world.
Links
Add your product or company website as the primary link, followed by links to the App Store, Google Play, and other places where people can download or use the product where applicable.
Title
Just the name of your product. No descriptions or emojis here.
Tagline
Describe what your product does in under 60 characters. Be specific! Communicate the value your product provides to the people you’re trying to reach, even if that means leaving out 95% of the features. Avoid slogans, optimize for how users search for products after launch day.
Quick slogan check: if your tagline starts with “the world’s best…” you should probably come up with something new. 🙃
Eric’s tweet communicates the value prop well, and that he’s launching a new product.
Pieter’s tweet communicates that he’s launching something new, what it does, and includes a GIF that helps it stand out and illustrates the value prop well (bonus points for perfect emoji usage). 💯
Thumbnail
Describe the product visually. This might be shown best as a static image, or subtle GIF to help capture attention. For some products the entire value prop can be communicated through a GIF animation (see Jack Dweck’s Pitch with a GIF collection).
P.S. We recommend using 240x240.
Gallery
This is the best real estate to show off your product and the first thing people see when entering your post. Upload at least two assets at a minimum — the order is important. If you upload a video (via YouTube link) it will always show up first. Have at least one image/GIF that’s “tweetable” — that is, rectangular (roughly 2:1 ratio) that shows up well on social. The recommended size for images in the gallery is 635x380. Make it easy for people (and us) to promote what you made.
P.S. Images/GIFs should be under 3MB.
Description
Add a 1–2 sentence description of your product that appears under the gallery images to give users a little more information about you’re working on. Short, to-the-point sentences work best!
Topics
Only choose 3–4 topics for your product. While your product might have a great user experience, please don’t add “User Experience” as a topic. An iPhone camera app might include “iPhone” and “Photography Tools,” whereas a product management app might include “Productivity,” “Designer Tools,” and “Developer Tools.”
Makers
When possible, always add the usernames of everyone that worked on the product — personal accounts only. This allows them to join the conversation and receive recognition for their hard work. As an added bonus, followers of each maker receive a notification on launch day, resulting in more discovery so make sure to add all your teammates. You need to have a Product Hunt account to be added as a maker.
P.S. It’s better to link your account to both Twitter and Facebook so more of your friends can find you.
An email is sent out to the maker’s followers about the launch, including the maker’s comment.
Media
You can now add links from around the web related to your product. Add any news publications, Medium articles, product reviews, or funding announcements in in this section to help people learn more about your product/company.
Maker Comment
Briefly introduce yourself, the team, and the problem that you’re solving. In a total of 3–4 sentences explain what the value prop is, what’s the use case, who its for, and why you are building it. If this is the second time you’re launching on PH (i.e. a big product update or huge feature announcement), explain what’s changed. Tip: Make it as easy as possible for people to care.
For example, if you’re a 16 year-old launching your first product and answering questions in the middle of math class… THAT is what you should lead with. If you have a business background and taught yourself to code — tell people. Create a narrative that makes people relate and want to help you.
Bri introduces herself and the product (Gboard) well, and lets the community know she’ll be around to answer questions throughout the day. A great example of an opening comment from the maker. 👌
Social links
You can now add your company’s Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Medium, and AngelList profiles to your post! They’ll show up right on the sidebar, and if you have any open job listings on AngelList add those as well. The best time to attract new candidates is launch. 😉🚀
Launch Now/Schedule
If you’re ready for the post to go live right away, you can select the ‘Launch Now’ option. The site operates on PST so your post will go live on the site according to PST. If you’d like your post to appear in a few days, you can use the scheduling option to pick a time and date that works best for you.
Bonus Tips
Offers
PH users love a good deal. Feel free to include a special promotion or offer in your opening comment. These special launch day offers can increase engagement, help capture people’s attention, and encourage people to try what you’re working on (e.g. 20% off for 6 months).
P.S. Giving community members early access by distributing promo codes via the comments can work wonders. ✨
Ask for Feedback
Conversation is important. To get the discussion going and solicit feedback, ASK. Let the community know what kind of input you’re looking for (e.g. Let me know what you think about X, Y, Z features). Products that have active conversations generate more interest and tend to do well overall.
Add a Badge
Let visitors to your website know that you’ve been posted on Product Hunt. You can include a badge to directly link visitors to your post on Product Hunt.