Guide

How to make a Product Hunt launch video

What the video has to do, how long it should be, a shot list and script you can fill in, and a checklist for launch day.

By the Overnight Cut studio · Updated 3 October 2026 · 8 minute read

1. Decide the one job of the video

A launch video is not a tour. People on Product Hunt scroll through dozens of launches, so yours has seconds to answer three questions: what is it, who is it for, and why should I care. Write that as a single sentence before you open any editing tool.

A useful test: show the finished video to someone who has never heard of your product, with no context. Ask them to say what it does. If they can't, the video has more than one job.

2. Length and formats

Shorter wins when the product is simple. Only go past 40 seconds if people need the extra time to understand a complex product. Anything longer belongs in a separate demo film.

3. The structure that works

Almost every good launch video follows the same four beats. Plan the first one first, because it decides whether anyone watches the rest.

4. A script template to fill in

Read it aloud. If a line takes more than a breath, shorten it. Roughly a third of a second per word is a good rule for on-screen text that people have to read.

5. Show the real product

Viewers trust a real interface more than a generic animation. A few habits make screen recordings look professional:

• Use a clean demo account with believable, not lorem ipsum, data.
• Turn off notifications, close other tabs, and hide anything personal.
• Record at the highest resolution you can, then zoom in on the part that matters. Tiny text is unreadable on a phone.
• Move the cursor with purpose. Slow, deliberate movement reads better than fast hunting.
• Cut the waiting. If something loads for two seconds, cut it and show the result.

Only show what your product really does. Don't invent customer numbers or quotes. If you don't have them yet, leave them out.

6. Captions and sound

Most feeds start videos muted, so assume the sound is off. Burn captions into the picture, and keep a separate subtitle file for platforms that support it. Then add sound for the people who turn it on:

• Music: use a track you have the rights to, or one made for your film. Keep it under the voice, never over it.
• Voiceover: optional but it makes the film feel finished. Make one version with a voice and one with music only.
• Level: don't let the music or voice distort. Play it on a phone speaker as well as headphones.

7. The first frame is your thumbnail

On many platforms the first frame is what people see before they press play. Make it a frame you'd happily post as a still: readable text, the product visible, nothing half-animated. Save a poster image from the strongest settled moment, and check the video's opening and closing frames for stray flashes.

8. Launch day

• Have every file ready the day before: the main film, the 15 second and 6 second cuts, captions, and a still or GIF.
• Launch at 12:01 am Pacific Time if you're planning ahead, as Product Hunt recommends.
• Post the video in your first comment and in your own posts the moment you go live.
• Use the short cuts to answer people throughout the day, instead of repeating the same link.
• Check Product Hunt's current launch guide for the exact image and media sizes, since they change.

9. Common mistakes

• Starting with a logo animation or a long intro.
• Listing features instead of showing one outcome.
• Interface text too small to read on a phone.
• No captions, so the film means nothing on mute.
• Music louder than the voice.
• Claims you can't back up.

Checklist before you publish

• A stranger can say what it does after one viewing.
• The first 3 seconds would stop me scrolling.
• Every line on screen stays long enough to read.
• Captions are burned in and correct.
• It works on mute, and the sound is fine on a phone speaker.
• The first frame works as a thumbnail.
• I have 16:9, 9:16 and 1:1 versions, and a 15 second cut.
• Every number and claim is true.

Questions

Free tools for your launch

Launch checklist and date planner puts every step on a calendar. Launch time converter shows when 12:01 am Pacific is for you. Script and storyboard builder drafts the film. Launch copy writer drafts the tagline and first comment. See all free tools.