IndieHackers - 🗞 What's New: Try launching on Discord

Have you considered launching on Discord?

• Since Discord is a chat system, you can easily speak to people directly. Find the right servers and mention your product, but don't lead with self-promotion.
• You can become a YouTuber without worrying about how you look, speak, and act on camera. Find a niche and start a faceless YouTube channel.
• $2.5K MRR from roasting landing pages. Ollie Efesopoulos built his roasting platform in a single night, and iterates constantly.

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by Alexander Chen

Last week, I launched my powerlifting app, 1000 Pound Club, on Discord. It was very different from every other launch platform I've tried, and had surprisingly effective, unique results.

Launching on Discord increased my user base by 50%!

What makes Discord different

Most other launch platforms are kind of "post and forget." You:

1. Post on the platform.
2. Hope the post does well.
3. Respond to comments.

This leaves a lot up to chance. We often see people skyrocket from these platforms, but the vast majority of products don't get any traction.

All of these platforms are a forum system, while Discord is a chat system.

Discord is made up of a lot of different chats. While even the biggest forum platforms get several posts an hour, Discord chats have several messages a minute, making it a very fast-paced environment for a product launch.

This can be a difficult environment for the unfamiliar, but very effective if done right.

Finding the right Discord server

Similar to subreddits, Discord is split up into many servers. These servers are created by any user, and are communities of people connected by one topic.

For example, there may be only a few powerlifting subreddits, but 20 powerlifting Discord chats, all with a different set of people. This is a great opportunity to try different methods on different subsets.

You can search Disboard for a topic, and it'll give you many Discord servers under that topic.

Promoting your product

Like any other platform, Discord users do not like ads, and most servers do not allow product promotion.

Discord chats are just like real life. If you were at a powerlifting convention and you walked up to someone asking them to check out your product, they would probably just walk away from you. It's the same thing here.

I approached this by telling people I was into powerlifting and wanted to join a community. This usually made them very welcoming towards me.

At some point, I mentioned that I was building a powerlifting app, and wanted to talk to people to get more ideas for it. When I mentioned this, I'd sometimes be asked to link my product.

Since these are just conversations, not everyone will be as open. There was one chat where I kept hinting at my product, hoping the person would ask about it. I got impatient, and just linked my site. He then called me out for self-promoting. It was a pretty funny chat!

But one server was unbelievably supportive, and told me to promote it in one of their public channels where typically only admins can post. Then, they tagged all of the powerlifters in the channel. I was blown away by this! It got me a lot of users.

I plan to use Discord for future launches, and also for product research.

Discuss this story.

from the Growth Trends newsletter

🌎 Top marketplaces for multichannel selling worldwide.

💵 Five free money management templates.

📊 AI can create these six essential marketing charts for you.

💻 The majority of Gen Z teens watch and recall YouTube ads.

📗 A guide for all things onboarding.

Check out Growth Trends for more curated news items focused on user acquisition and new product ideas.

from the Trends.vc newsletter

Problem

Speaking on camera raises the barrier to entry for YouTube creators.

Solution

Faceless YouTube channels rely on stock footage, virtual characters, animation, audio, and editing skills.

Players

Faceless YouTube channels:

• TheThings Celebrity: Celebrity news and gossip.
• Weird History: Untold parts of history.
• Tasty Recipes: Daily and holiday food recipes.

Video creation tools:

• TubeBuddy: Optimize your channel to get more views and subs.
• Storyblocks: Get unlimited stock video, audio, and images.
• Powtoon: Create videos with animated characters, templates, backgrounds, and audio.

Predictions

• Faceless YouTube channels will use generative AI.

• We'll see million-dollar, one-person faceless YouTube channels.

• Faceless YouTubers will use AI to keep anonymity, while preserving human looks.

Opportunities

• Make YouTube Shorts. They are easier to create, and yield better return on effort.

• Animate your videos. This is more appealing than stock footage.

• Cross-promote your YouTube channel on social media, using discovery platforms to reach a wider audience.

Risks

• Impersonalization: It can be hard to build personal connections without showing your face.
• Platform risk: You're subject to YouTube monetization and content policies.

Key lessons

• Faceless channels have lower production costs.
• Consistent branding can help you stand out from other faceless channels. Use a recognizable logo, color scheme, and visual style.

Haters

"YouTube is saturated."

It's big enough for you to carve out your niche.

"Faceless YouTube channels have limited brand recognition."

Consistent branding can help you get noticed. Becoming a VTuber is another option if you want to put a face to your channel.

"Becoming a VTuber won't stop copycats."

That's true. Copycats can copy your virtual avatar, scripts, and assets. A better way to defend yourself is to move to the real world.

"It can be hard to build personal connections if I'm running a faceless YouTube channel."

No choice is without tradeoffs. While channels "with a face" tend to get more engagement, you can sacrifice bonding with your audience for lower key-person risk and production costs.

Links

1. 116 Best Faceless YouTube Niches.
2. Complete YouTube Automation Guide.
3. The Ultimate Guide to YouTube Monetization.

Related reports

• Personal Brands: VTubers are personal brands with distinct personalities and reputations.
• The Creator Economy: Faceless YouTube Channels operate in an ecosystem of creators, consumers, and advertisers.

More reports

Go here to get the Trends Pro report. It contains 200% more insights. You also get access to the entire back catalog and the next 52 Pro Reports.

Subscribe to Trends.vc for more.

from the One Page Love newsletter

Strengthen your landing page with these design, development, and conversion tips:

Remove your main website navigation.

If your landing page sits within a bigger website, hiding your navigation will prevent a potential customer from wandering.

Your landing page has only one objective, and sending visitors to another page is not it.

Subscribe to Rob Hope's One Page Love newsletter for his favorite UI, design, and development finds.

by Ollie Efesopoulos

I whipped up Roastd in a single night (check out the initial Indie Hackers post here!). It started with a text, a roast, and a landing page built on a whim. Now, here we are, a few months down the line!

The wins

• Financial milestones: I have now hit $2.5K MRR!

• Adoption: At first, getting customers was tough. Over time, as my reputation and credibility grew, so did the types of customers.

• Roasting YouTubers: This one was a little unexpected, but I've seen an uptick in the number of YouTubers purchasing a roast for their personal landing pages or businesses. Being a part-time YouTuber myself, I understand the funnel of going from video to a product or service, and how important that connection is. All of my YouTube customers have been awesome to work with!

• Diverse customers: From startups to established businesses, the variety of my customers has been vast. But, the goal is always the same: Helping them level up their landing pages to reach their conversion targets.

The bumps along the way

• Marketing woes: I've lost count of the hours spent brainstorming marketing strategies. Some worked and some didn't, but each taught me something new.

• Constant iterations: The Roastd landing page has seen more versions than I'd like to admit. I'm meticulous in tracking the number of conversions with each iteration, but it can definitely get tedious at times.

• The low profit months: Not every month had me seeing green. There were times that my profits dipped, and I questioned every decision I've made. So far, I've just been reinvesting everything I've made back into the service, so it's bound to have a few bumps every now and again.

• The uncertainty: Things can be unpredictable. Waiting for the next customer to come knocking definitely gets old.

Here's the raw truth: Building something from scratch is a rollercoaster. I've had my moments of doubt, days where I questioned everything, and times when the next step was super foggy and unclear, even to this day.

But I've also had small victories, lessons learned, and the joy of seeing Roastd make a difference for people. If you ever want an honest take on your landing page, I'm here!

To check it out, use ROASTD10 at checkout for a 10% discount. We all could use a little brutal honesty, right?

Discuss this story.

by Tweetmaster Flex

I post the tweets indie hackers share the most. Here's today's pick:

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Special thanks to Jay Avery for editing this issue, to Gabriella Federico for the illustrations, and to Alexander Chen, Darko, Dru Riley, Rob Hope, and Ollie Efesopoulos for contributing posts. —Channing