MegaMaker - How'd that launch go?

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Last week, Jon, Jason, Helen, and I launched Transistor's first new product since 2018: a free website builder for podcasts.

Many of you helped us with our launch on Product Hunt (thank you!).

We had two primary goals for our launch:

1. Be in the top 3 on Product Hunt
2. Get at least 100 people to build a podcast website

So, how did the launch go?

We were able to be #1 on Product Hunt for the day. 👍

And, here's how many free websites have been created:

Here's the traffic since the launch:

Is it worth launching on Product Hunt?

Absolutely.

Launching on Product Hunt is still the best way for tech products to "make it official," even if your target customer isn't necessarily on their platform.

It also generates a lot of word of mouth because your fans, friends, and customers share the launch on social media.

This is the primary advantage of having a launch event: it galvanizes attention. It gives your customers and fans a reason to talk about you publicly. For example, Andrew Warner (of Mixergy fame) posted this about Transistor:

In many ways, testimonials like this make the whole launch event worthwhile. Plus, it's nice for a small team like ours to get encouragement like this.

Finally, a Product Hunt launch can generate good PR. We noticed a variety of newsletters and blogs in the podcasting niche picked up the story after our launch. This means more backlinks for Transistor and Free Podcast Websites.

Generally, I see the purpose of a Product Hunt launch as making "a big splash." All that work helps create awareness and gives you a foundation that you can build on.

Why launch a tool like this in the first place?

We built Free Podcast Websites for people like Dilantha:

Currently, he's on Anchor but can't customize his website (and their player is kind of rough).

Using our tool, he can generate a free website he can use forever. He can even connect his custom domain to it (we also provide SSL).

Over time, we're hoping that this builds goodwill for Transistor's (paid) podcast hosting service. As people sign up for the free tool, they'll see Transistor's interface for the first time:

Once people sign up with their podcast feed, it's relatively simple to switch their podcast to Transistor (it's one-click for them to upgrade to a paid plan and import their podcast).

We've already had an Anchor user create a free website and then switch to Transistor for podcast hosting. 🎉

Cheers,
Justin Jackson
​@mijustin​

PS: did you have a chance to hear my podcast with Patrick Campbell? He just sold his company (ProfitWell) to Paddle for $200M. 🤯 It's also on YouTube.

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