Does delaying your Product Hunt launch lead to better traction? What’s your experience?

Question

I’ve seen a lot of founders debate whether delaying their Product Hunt launch is beneficial for building anticipation and ensuring a stronger impact, or if it’s better to launch as early as possible and iterate based on feedback.

Have you delayed your launch for more traction or visibility? Did it pay off, or was the initial hype lost? Looking for insights, experiences, and lessons learned!

Nicholas Ryan Carter · Accepted Answer

Hey Bilal, interesting question! IMO it can definitely help to delay a bit to build anticipation and polish things up. But you're right, it's a balancing act. Keeping people hyped during the wait is key. If you do decide to delay, maybe drip out some teasers or behind-the-scenes looks to maintain excitement? Just a thought! Let us know what you end up deciding and how it goes. Rooting for your success!

Hamza Afzal Butt · Answer

Bilal, I’ve been down that road! I delayed a launch once to build anticipation, and while it gave us time to polish things, it was a balancing act to keep the hype alive. It worked out, but keeping the audience engaged during the wait was key. It’s definitely a tough call.

Umm, you were supposed to launch today, have you decided to delay it?

Bilal Asif · Answer

@hamza_afzal_butt yes our feature which we wanted to make it part of the launch could not be completed so we have pushed the launch

Bilal Asif · Answer

@danieljosephbennett yes we delayed it we were supposed to launch on 24th because of a feature not getting completed we pushed for a later date now

Bilal Asif · Answer

@karthik_tatikonda yes but i think the hype needs to be maintained

Daniel Joseph Bennett · Answer

I've tried delaying a launch once and it was hit or miss. Gave us extra time to squash bugs and polish things up which was great. But yeah, keeping people hyped during the wait was tricky. Did some preview blog posts, behind the scenes peeks on social to stoke anticipation. Overall I'd say it helped a bit with traction on launch day vs. if we rushed it out, but not like a massive difference. Guess it depends on your product and audience. Are you thinking of delaying yours?

Karthik Tatikonda · Answer

I delayed our our launch by a week as the product is not finished.

The hype didn't go away.

Answer

Delaying a Product Hunt launch can lead to better traction if the extra time is used to refine the product, build a community, and create anticipation. A well-prepared launch with strong marketing, user feedback, and strategic timing often leads to greater engagement. Since I don't have a product on Product Hunt, I don't have direct experience, but many startups find success with a carefully timed release. What has been your experience so far with your AI app launch?

Does delaying your Product Hunt launch lead to better traction? What’s your experience?

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