Don't let your Product Hunt launch define you

The launch on Product Hunt seems to be a big one for any Indie Hacker. There is no shortage of articles covering a company's successful launch with a handful of tips and best practices. I did my best to learn from others' experiences but was it enough?

I made sure I had a neat animated gif, a clear description, nice screenshots, and of course, the 1st comment. Last night I decided it was time to stop overthinking it and get it launched. If it goes well, I will be brilliant, and if it flops, well, there will be plenty to learn from and work on for next time. It was 10:15 pm last night, and it was time to move on from my fears and paralysis. I scheduled the launch scheduled for 12:01 am PT. The result of clicking the schedule button was a flood of anxiety and unanswered questions that raced through my mind.

• Was there a spelling error?
• Are my photos the best they can be?
• Are the links correct?
• Is my first comment authentic?
• Should I stay up until midnight for the big "launch"?
• Did I launch on the wrong day?
• Should I have waited until my product had more traction?
• Will the time on Product Hunt forever define my product?

I was tired and needed sleep and decided that staying up all night waiting for upvotes wasn't the best use of my mental energy. I laid in bed, imagined what I might find when I woke up.

• Will there even be one upvote?
• Will the post be filled with comments from haters?
• Will it be magically trending?
• Have I been working on the wrong project?
• Will anyone even discover the listing?

Go to sleep, mind, and body...go to sleep. I finally fall asleep and had a restless sleep until I woke up at 4 am to go to the bathroom and decided to check my listing. Did I go viral? Haha, nope. Our product had four upvotes and was the second to the last listing for the day. Others already had 100s of votes. While I slept, others were promoting their listing to their audience. My mind filled with doubt and more questions like:

• Did I do enough?
• Does my product suck?
• Is this just a popularity contest?

I needed more sleep. I shut off my phone and woke up at 7 am. Is this where things changed for Re:loc? Had people discovered how great of a product we are? Have we blown up on social media? We received countless messages on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook, but it wasn't from who you think. It was from people who wanted me to pay for their service to get my listing to the top of Product Hunt. No thanks.

The day is still young, but it's clear we aren't winning any Product Launch prizes today. Is this the end? Nope, just the beginning. We will continue to improve and promote our product and focus on the correct audience. While we love Product Hunt for what it offers, it shouldn't define your product's success.

https://www.producthunt.com/posts/re-loc