It was an interesting experience, of course, but I made one big mistake:

I kept watching the process for a week, then another week –

But I should have launched one after another, because there are dozens of Product Hunt alternatives.

And actually, not all of them are bad.

Some leading platforms have around 10,000–50,000 unique visitors per month.

For example: Uneed, Tiny Launch, Peerlist, and others.

There is a common opinion that all these platforms are mostly hype. But I think it’s also because not many people find the time to submit their product everywhere — so they don’t really have much experience with them.

Most likely, they judge everything by Product Hunt.

And Product Hunt is already heavily surrounded by all kinds of people who jump on you as soon as you post about your launch on social media — like flies — offering to push you up in the ranking for just $30–50.

Now I’m starting to look at these platforms more as amplification tools.

They won’t save a weak product, but they can create momentum around a good one.

A few things surprised me.

The value is not only in upvotes

Even paid placements started to look different to me once I changed my perspective.

I try to see them not as “buying votes,” but as:

• visibility

• backlinks

• SEO signals

• new contacts

Many platforms give do-follow links with paid placements, which can be useful long-term for indie apps and websites.

Every platform has its own hidden algorithms

At first, it looks like everything is based only on upvotes.

But the deeper you look, the more obvious it becomes that it’s more complicated.

For example, Peerlist openly says that ranking depends on:

• upvotes

• comments

• quality of comments

• views

• link visits

• overall traction

So a launch is probably not only about raw numbers, but also about the quality of engagement.

Even small launches create movement

One thing I really underestimated:

Suddenly you:

• start talking to more people

• get more feedback

• notice problems faster

• see how other real active founders are doing things

Even small movement changes how you see your own product.

And honestly, it’s pretty exciting.

By the way, Waymate is live on Uneed today 🙂

Waymate is my minimal step tracker focused not only on movement, but also on capturing thoughts while walking.

I think these two things are deeply connected.

If you’d like to support the launch, I’d be incredibly grateful 🙏:

https://www.uneed.best/tool/waymate

A more detailed breakdown will come later — I’m still learning all of this myself.

Thanks for reading.

May you enjoy your journey,

Andrei.

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Many developers run blogs or YouTube channels, mostly to promote their products. They share technical stories and drop info about their apps in between. It’s the same picture everywhere. But to me, this is a dead end. Not only is it exhausting, it’s illogical. Other developers watching your content are rarely your target audience — unless your app is specifically built for developers.

It’s a basic truth that almost everyone ignores, even successful indies: you shouldn’t promote a product to the wrong audience.

When I write about my own app here, I’m fully aware that within the context of my indie journey, this promotion is only indirect.

So, without repeating myself, let’s get to the second part, which I hope will make everything click.

I believe the most reliable path for an indie developer is to build from their own competence. Pick any niche, look at the top apps — there is money everywhere.

The world doesn’t need novelty for the sake of novelty. It needs tools from those who have walked the path themselves and know the audience’s pain points from the inside.

Here are a few real-life examples that inspire me:

• Jiro Ono (Jiro Dreams of Sushi): A man who has been making sushi for 70 years. People wait 3 months for a seat at his bar. He didn’t validate the niche on Twitter — he became a master. To me, this proves that a product (whether it’s sushi or a mobile app) should be an extension of your mastery. That creates a level of value that no marketing can fake.

• Alexander Bebris: An English teacher with 3 million YouTube subscribers. His app, English Galaxy, isn’t just code — it’s his methodology, proven on millions of students. He is a master of teaching, and the app is simply a convenient way to scale that skill.

• Max Trukhanavets: A calisthenics legend (700k on Instagram). He is a developer himself and created True Trainer. This app works because his personal experience in body mastery stands behind every single button.

Yes, these are extreme examples that take a long time to reach. But is it any easier to break through on Twitter by pumping out empty, one-day apps? Hardly.

My algorithm for choosing an idea:

1. What do you love? What would you want to do for the rest of your life without regretting the years spent?

2. What do you already know? What is your actual skill — running, baking, fishing, playing the piano?

3. Narrow your focus: Once you’ve picked a niche, narrow the idea down to a specific audience.

4. Choose your stack: Select the technologies you’ll use to build it.

Again, I’m not saying other paths are worse — I just find this one more comfortable and reliable in the long run.

And even if the worst happens and Apple suddenly closes your developer account — you will still have your purpose and your mastery.

Thanks for reading.

May you enjoy your journey,

Andrei.

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I don’t really like extremely long articles myself and I don’t want to take too much of your time — especially on a weekend.

So in this piece I want to share the core principles I went through during the preparation and launch. They helped me build a clearer picture of the process and reduced a lot of anxiety before the big day.

Here is what turned out to be the most important.

Register early and “live” on the platform for a while

Product Hunt recommends joining the community in advance — at least a few weeks before your launch, and ideally even earlier.

The point is not just to create an account, but to:

— get a feel for how the platform works

— understand the style of posts and comments

— slowly grow into the rhythm of the community

I also noticed this in practice.

A few people who voted for me with freshly-created accounts had their upvotes not counted — most likely because such profiles didn’t pass moderation yet.

It’s not critical, but it’s an unpleasant thing you can avoid.

Don’t buy upvotes or artificial traffic

This sounds obvious, but before the launch there are always people who show up offering “help”, guaranteed upvotes, or traffic packages.

I don’t know how these things work inside, but most likely such offers are often based on bots and schemes that:

— are easy to detect

— harm your product

— can get your launch removed

— and in some cases lead to account bans

And the main problem is different:

this kind of “growth” gives you no real feedback at all.

It is much better to receive fewer reactions honestly than to look at inflated numbers that mean nothing.

On the day of my launch I received quite a lot of such messages in private chats — and that alone was its own kind of lesson.

Weekdays vs weekends — calmer doesn’t mean worse

Different days on Product Hunt have different dynamics.

On weekdays there are more big teams and strong launches, and competition is higher.

Weekends are quieter: fewer loud brands and more indie and personal projects.

Product Hunt mentions that products launched on weekends get around 15% more clicks, even though there are fewer launches overall.

I launched on Saturday. Of course there are many factors involved, and nothing can be stated for sure.

Best launch time — 12:01 AM PST

The logic here is simple.

The homepage works in a 24-hour cycle based on Pacific Time.

If you launch at 12:01 AM PST, your product gets the full day on the page.

You can also schedule the post up to a month in advance — which helps reduce stress and gives time to double-check everything calmly.

Promo code for the Product Hunt community

If you want to offer a small bonus specifically for the Product Hunt audience, you can add it directly in the launch form:

— the offer itself

— the promo code

— the expiration date

This is not a required element, but it can slightly lower the entry barrier and create a feeling of an inner circle for early supporters.

The first comment should come from the maker

This is an important detail that is easy to forget.

About 70% of products that became Product of the Day / Week / Month started their discussion with a comment from the creator.

That first comment:

— sets the tone

— shows there is a real person behind the product

— helps people understand the motivation and context

It is not about marketing — it is about connection.

Stay active even after the launch

The launch doesn’t end at the moment the post goes live.

It’s important to:

— reply to new comments

— continue the conversation

— occasionally share the link where it makes sense

Next time I’ll definitely have much more experience — and also more people around who are ready to support the launch.

By the way, one useful addition: there is a dedicated LinkedIn community where creators share their launches:

https://www.linkedin.com/groups/14044386/

Product Hunt strongly discourages directly asking people to vote —

but sharing context and telling the story of your product is totally fine.

And if you’d like to see the launch itself — you can check the Waymate page on Product Hunt here:

https://www.producthunt.com/products/waymate-step-counter/

Thanks for reading.

Wishing you a steady week ahead,

Andrei.

​
P.S. This newsletter doesn’t have to be a one-way street.

If you’re building something similar or facing the same questions — feel free to leave a comment.

I read every response.

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I’m not crazy.

And here’s why I still decided to build one.

Everyone has their own approach to idea validation. Many believe it has to be almost scientific — full of metrics, tables, and research.

My approach is simpler.

Maybe even a bit naïve.

But it’s backed by more than 20 years of entrepreneurial experience.

When I started thinking about whether I should build a step tracker, the answer came very quickly. I simply looked at what was ranking at the top of the App Store. Not every step tracker out there — just the ones chosen by a large number of people.

That was enough to realize one thing:

I’ve long followed a simple principle of idea validation:

you can’t build a good indie product in an area where you don’t have personal experience and your own point of view.

I’m talking specifically about indie development — not companies with unlimited budgets for research and marketing.

For indie builders, in my opinion, it all comes down to one thing:

building products in areas you genuinely understand.

With Waymate, of course, it’s not just about the fact that I “know how to walk.”

I projected all my entrepreneurial and personal experience onto this product and applied a simple filter:

how comfortable is it for me to use it personally?

That’s the only honest way to polish a product until it truly works.

In the end, I built a step tracker that is just a step tracker.

No calories.

No maps.

No heart rate.

No social features.

No gamification.

And definitely no ad banners.

Honestly, even researching similar apps became exhausting.

Maybe some people need all of that.

But I’m confident many don’t.

And that there are people who simply want a calm, unobtrusive companion for counting steps — without pressure or noise.

Waymate is fully free for now.

And even when features appear that make sense to charge for, the core functionality will remain free.

Over the years, I’ve learned to trust a much simpler signal.

If I genuinely enjoy using something myself, I’m far more likely to build it well — and keep improving it over time.

That was the starting point for Waymate.

I wanted to build something that felt calm and comfortable for me to use every day — and only then share it with like-minded people.

The first version of the app has been available on the App Store for a month now. The first reviews have started to come in.

And it feels like the right moment to think about the next steps.

Thanks for reading.

Wishing you a steady week ahead,

Andrei.

​
P.S. This newsletter doesn’t have to be a one-way street.

If you’re building something similar or facing the same questions — feel free to leave a comment.

I read every response.

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In 1999, I wanted to become a developer. At the time, I pictured myself more like a hacker - curious, diving deep, building things. But life went another way. 25 years later, I decided to return to that idea.

How is that possible? Let me tell you.

The First Spark

My first computer had a Cyrix processor and a bulky monitor. I bought a book about how computers work - I still remember how it smelled - and spent hours exploring. I built my first websites with Microsoft FrontPage, editing raw HTML by hand. Eventually, I started doing small freelance projects. One of them was a website for a local rock band.

The Detour

Then life shifted. I chose “serious” work. I worried about careers, relationships, the usual questions. My interests didn’t go away - but they got buried under obligations.

Over the years, I built a few businesses, including a medical clinic. And no matter the industry, I always looked for ways to bring tech into it, even in small ways.

The Turning Point

At 41, something changed. I began running daily - 41 days in a row, as it turned out. That streak triggered a question I hadn’t asked in years:

I didn’t want to look back someday and wonder what could’ve been. So I returned to code.

I started by catching up - reading, exploring, trying out tools. Python, JavaScript… eventually I landed on iOS development. It just clicked. It gave me the right balance between product, code, and business thinking.

Building apps from end to end feels right to me. I like knowing the full picture, from concept to implementation. As someone who’s spent his life turning ideas into businesses, this fits. And it feels good to create again.

The joy I felt at 16 - I feel it now.

A Thought for You

If you're in a similar place - thinking of trying something you’ve set aside for too long - know this:

• You don’t need permission.

• You don’t need perfect timing.

• You don’t need to be “young enough.”

You just need to begin.

The years behind you aren't wasted. They shaped your view, your strengths, your story.

It’s not about making up for lost time.

It’s about deciding that now is still a great time to start.

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Stay Connected

Subscribe to my blog if my story resonates with you. Leave a comment - I’ll make sure to respond to every single one.

Thanks for reading!

Cheers, Andrei 👋

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