Will your SaaS survive? Mine didn't
There are lots of SaaS directories out there, but they're simply for marketing purposes. As an indie maker who spent years building before validation, I wanted to do something that helps others refine their own ideas before GTM.
The name is not a coincidence. Product Hunt is a great idea, but I think the execution is terrible. It's not actually built for product discovery — only the featured products get highlighted.
On Validate Hunt, to submit a product you have to review 3 others. This creates a cross-validation loop that might spark some insightful feedback for founders.
Everything's free.
The "review 3 products before submitting your own" rule is the part that stuck with me. It changes the mindset from collecting upvotes to actually paying attention to other founders.
I kept picturing someone hearing about Validate Hunt after getting disappointing launch feedback elsewhere and quietly checking whether the comments feel like they came from people who actually read the product. That's the moment where they'll decide if it's worth coming back with their next idea too.
I'm curious if you've noticed founders returning just to review others even when they don't have anything new to launch yet.
What stood out to me is that you're changing the incentive, not just building another directory.
Requiring founders to evaluate other products before submitting their own turns feedback into part of the product itself. If the quality of those conversations stays high, that network effect could become much harder to copy than the directory.