How we hit top #1 on Product Hunt— and what I’d change next time to achieve way better results

Hi PH community,

My team and I just launched Byterover – a self-improving memory layer for coding agents on AI IDEs like Cursor, Windsurf, and more.

We’ve been sitting at #1 for the past 18 hours since launch. Super grateful – but I also think we could’ve done a lot better with better prep.

So I wanted to reflect and share some lessons while they’re still fresh:

1 – Pre-launch should be at least a week (ideally two)

If I could rewind, I’d start pre-launching earlier.

Here’s what I’d do differently:

• Make the PH “coming soon” page live early

• Start engaging on Reddit, PH forums, Discords, etc.

• Don’t just promote – start conversations around the problem you’re solving

  People are tired of pure promo. What works now is meaningful discussion, authenticity, and showing your thinking. That builds trust before launch day.

2 – Share something every day (or twice),

Even if it feels like shitposting, post

• The problem we’re solving

• Our story and how we came up with the idea

• Lessons, failures, behind-the-scenes

• Screenshots, user feedback, even random thoughts

This helped get people invested in us, not just the product.

There are many things more that you can share to get people's interest about you and what you are building.

3- Reddit and Hacker News are truly goldmines, if you prep early

• Don’t rush into self-promo — that’s how I got 5 Reddit accounts and 1 HN account banned 😅

Instead:

• Engage in comments early to build karma

• Join discussions naturally

• Then drop your launch when you’ve built some goodwill

I got lucky this time — had one Reddit account left that could still post. Learn from my pain 🙃

4- A creative campaign to get people engaged with and share about our product will create a surge.

One great example: Wordware’s Twitter app launch last year, which made history on PH.

They dropped a free AI tool analyzing your Twitter personality. That surge helped their main launch explode.

I didn’t manage to prepare something like that this time, but next launch, I definitely will, and I hope you will!

5- Last but not least, some typical tips for PH (but I dont think many people know, so I will share them here)

Your ranking is mostly determined in the first 4 hours after the launch. After that, your position is likely to stay fixed on the Product Hunt's launch page.

So get your core audience to show up early. Use that momentum wisely.

That’s all for now.

I hope this helps someone who's prepping a launch!

Do you have any more tips to share or any questions, feel free to share below.

Btw, our launch is still live today. Hope to get your upvotes!