Short answer: yes, if you can. Most Product Hunt launches have a video and some only have images, so a good one helps you stand out. Use your main launch video: open with a hook people relate to, show the solution, a few wow features, and end with what to do next.
Why a video helps on Product Hunt
On the launch page, the gallery sits right under your tagline. Most launches put a video there. Some only have images.
Standing out on Product Hunt is still possible, and a good video is the easiest way to do it.
What has to happen in the first few seconds
A hook. Something people relate to, in what they see or hear, so they stop scrolling or clicking away and start watching.
Your video sits in a carousel next to static images, so the first frame has to look as strong as a designed image. Big product name, a clear visual, readable at a glance.
How to structure the rest
Once they're watching, keep them to the end:
- Hook. Something they relate to, so they stop and watch.
- Solution. Show clearly what you've built, in a way that excites them.
- Wow features. Go slightly deeper and show a few standout features.
- CTA. What's next, what to do, how to do it.
Length, format and sound
Same rules as any launch video. Horizontal, 60-90 seconds. Add subtitles so it works with the sound off.
Use your main launch video
You don't need a separate Product Hunt video. Your main launch video goes up as it is.
Product Hunt is for your product, not your funding round. A funding announcement video is about vision and keeps features out. Here, the features are the point. Show them.
Mistakes to avoid
Only uploading images when most launches around you have a video. Opening slow, with nothing people relate to, so they click away. Ending without telling people what to do next. Making a separate Product Hunt edit when your launch video already does the job. And using Product Hunt to announce your round.
Corti's launch video - "It ran the conference circuit, and held up for a public launch later." - Ryan Ackell, Growth Lead at Corti
Got a launch coming? Tell us the date and we'll plan backwards from it.