What to do the week after you launch
George · 4 min read
Launch day gets all the attention. You prepare for it, you worry about it, and then it is over, and the next morning feels oddly empty. A lot of products stall right there, because nobody plans the week after.
That week is where a launch turns into something, or does not. This is how I would spend it.
Day one and two: talk to everyone who showed up
However few people tried your product, each of them just did something rare: they gave a stranger's product a chance. Write to them. Not a survey, a real message. Ask what they were hoping it would do, and what almost stopped them.
Ten honest answers will tell you more than any dashboard.
Day three: fix the first thing that tripped people
There is always one. A confusing sign-up, an unclear first screen, a button that does not look like a button. You will see it in the questions people ask and in the place where they give up.
Fix that one thing and ship it, then tell the people who mentioned it. "You said this was confusing, I changed it" turns a visitor into someone who roots for you.
Day four: look at the numbers, but only three of them
- How many people came.
- Where they came from. This tells you where to spend time next.
- How many did the main thing. Signed up, tried it, paid. This tells you whether the product or the pitch needs the work.
Many visitors and few sign-ups means the page is not clear. Few visitors and many sign-ups means the product is fine and it needs more people to see it. They are different problems with different fixes.
Day five: write about it
A short, honest post about how the launch went: what you expected, what happened, what surprised you, with real numbers. These posts get read and shared far more than announcements, because every builder wants to know what a real launch looks like.
Small numbers are fine. A post that says "41 visitors, 3 sign-ups, here is what I learned" is more useful, and more believable, than one that only shares wins.
Day six and seven: launch again
Take the improved product to the next place. A different launch site, a community, a newsletter that covers your field. You now have a better first screen and a few real users, which makes the second launch easier than the first.
I listed the kinds of places worth trying in Product Hunt alternatives for solo founders.
Why I made the launch itself a week
On ShipDesk.dev a launch stays on the board from Monday to Sunday. That is on purpose. It means the fixes you make on day three are seen by the people who arrive on day five, and the launch and the week after it become the same thing.
A launch is not a verdict. It is the start of a conversation with the people your product is for, and the week after is when you get to answer.