Run sheet · 2-3 weeks to launch day, plus the week after
Launch a product (or Product Hunt)
“We have a launch date and no plan for the days around it.”
A team shipping something public in the next month.
You end up withThe one sentence the launch is arguing for.
You end up withA hook and a format people can pass on without explaining.
You end up withA run sheet: which surface does what, by the hour.
You end up withA playable link. No demo form between the post and the product.
You end up withA follow-up loop so launch day feeds the week after it.
You're done when
- Someone who wasn't asked posted about it.
- The link goes straight into something usable.
- You had content ready for the three days after launch day.
- On Product Hunt: you got featured on the homepage, not just upvoted.
It's not working if
- The spike lands and nothing happens the following week.
- Your own team is the only source of comments.
- You're explaining the product in the comments because the post didn't.
- You chased upvotes for weeks and skipped the craft the curators actually grade: useful, novel, well-made, a bit playful.
Everything you'll copy in this track
Steal this · Wedge statement
Fill this in. One sentence each, no adjectives. Everyone in [category] assumes: ______________ We think that's wrong because: ______________ So we do this instead: ______________ Which means [buyer] finally gets: ______________ The people who won't like this: ______________ Test: read the last line out loud. If nobody would object, the wedge is too safe.
Steal this · Creative teardown grid
Run this on 5 posts that worked in your space this month. Post / link: The hook (first 8 words): Who it makes feel seen: The specific detail that made it credible: The emotion (annoyed / proud / relieved / vindicated): The format (list / story / before-after / screenshot): Your version, same structure, your detail:
Steal this · Surface map
One row per surface you actually maintain. Delete the ones nobody owns. Surface | Job it does | What good looks like | Who owns it LinkedIn page | | | Founder LI | | | Homepage | | | Email | | | Docs / changelog| | | Rule: one job per surface. If two surfaces have the same job, kill one.
Steal this · Time-to-value audit
Time yourself doing your own onboarding with a stopwatch. 0:00 Landing page - what do they click? ____ Signup - how many fields? ____ First screen - is there anything to do, or is it empty? ____ First moment the product is obviously useful (the aha) ____ First thing they'd want to show someone Target: aha under 5 minutes, and nothing between the link and the product except a name. Every field you removed: ______________
Steal this · Loop map
Write your loop as one sentence per step. If you can't, you don't have a loop yet. Input: a new [user / reader / signup] arrives from ______________ Action: they do ______________ (takes them ___ minutes) Output: that produces ______________ that other people can see Return: which brings back ___ new people per ___ turns Leak: the step most people drop at is ______________ Fix the leak before you add traffic.
Run it yourself with the sheet above.
Or I run this track with you - same steps, I do the work.
Launch / Product Hunt sprint