How to promote your launch: the Product Debuts playbook
Most of a good launch happens around the listing itself. Here is what to do, stage by stage, with Product Debuts.
Getting ready
Make the listing complete
Complete the listing and the founder profile now, while there is time. Clear words and a named founder do more than a long list of features. Your founder profile
Show the product
Show, do not tell: real screenshots of the product, a crisp logo and, if you have one, a short demo video.
Choose your timing
Check your calendar first. A launch goes best when the founder can reply to comments the same day. See the launch calendar
Write your messages in advance
Draft your launch post and a short email before the day. Let the people who already know the product hear about it first.
On launch day
Share the page
Post on X, LinkedIn and Bluesky with your launch link and one screenshot. Pin the post and use the link in your profile.
Answer questions quickly
Check your listing and your posts through the day and reply to everyone, including the critical comments. Your listings
Write to your users
Email your list with the launch link. For the week, add a line and the launch image to the welcome email new users receive.
Share in communities with care
Post in communities you already take part in, as yourself and within their rules. On Hacker News, Show HN is for something people can try right away.
Keep it honest. Votes can never be bought, each person has one, and asking for votes from borrowed or extra accounts is against the rules.
During launch week
Keep the page current
If people keep asking something, the page should answer it. Edit the listing during the week as questions come in. Edit your listing
Place the badge on your site
Add the launch badge to your website footer or launch post. It links to your listing, so visitors can see the launch for themselves.
Keep the story going
Repost on LinkedIn later in the week with a fresh angle, such as a question people asked or a fix you shipped.
Plan your next listings
Launch directories differ in price, link type and the kind of product they list. Pick the ones that suit yours and list there too. Choosing launch directories
After the launch
Come back with something new
Relaunch after a major release or a milestone. Lead with what is new since the first launch. Relaunch from your account
Read your own data
Compare the places you shared using your analytics. Links with tracking tags show which posts and directories brought sign-ups. See the launch receipts
Keep the page up to date
Check the listing every few months and update anything that has changed, from pricing to screenshots.
Choosing launch directories
Best Launch Directories compares launch directories, startup directories and AI tool lists, with each one's Domain Rating, pricing and link type, so you can pick the ones that fit.
Want a hand with your launch?
Optional, and only if they suit you: the extras Product Debuts sells, with what each one is and what it costs.
- Featured launch $19
Featured on the homepage for 7 days from your launch week, marked Featured, and never counted as a vote.
- Multi-site bundle $99
Your listing is written once, by you. We put it live on 49 other launch and discovery sites, reworded for each, and every edit you make from then on flows to all of them automatically.
- Done-for-you listing $149.99
We list you on 49 other launch and discovery sites for you, write a different description for each one, and email you every link once they are live.
- Opening Page Window $49
A 7-day run in the homepage Sponsored slot: your company name, logo, tagline and link.
- Category Window $19
Your company at the top of your listing's category page for 7 days, labelled Sponsored.
- Newsletter Window $29
Sponsor one issue of the weekly newsletter: your company in its Sponsored place.
- Billboard from $5
Money contributed decides the order, highest total on top. The Billboard says so, and it has nothing to do with votes.
- Product review $19
A structured review drawn from your listing and website pages, labelled on your listing as commissioned by the maker. It never counts as a vote or a rating.
- Editorial founder feature $29
A founder feature written from your story, profile and listing, then edited by one of our editors. No invented facts.
Prices are in US dollars; VAT is added where it is due.
Questions
- Should I share on launch day or later?
- Share on the day your listing goes live, then post again during launch week with something new. Be around to reply on the first day.
- Can friends and colleagues vote for my product?
- You can tell people about the launch and let them decide. Each person has one vote, votes can never be bought, and votes from extra or borrowed accounts are not allowed.
- Should I submit to other directories too?
- Pick directories that match what you have built, compare their price and link type, and give each listing its own description.
- How should I follow up my launch?
- Keep the listing accurate, note which places worked from your analytics, and relaunch with your next big update.
Good luck with your launch. If you have a question, the Product Debuts help centre is a good place to start. Open the help centre