--- title: "The Launch Loop: a SaaS Launch Checklist You'll Run More Than Once | Viraloop" description: "A working SaaS launch checklist from a real growth playbook: pre-launch conversion foundations, launch week channels and directories, and the weekly content loop that compounds after." source: https://viraloop.io/saas-launch-checklist --- [Part of The SaaS Growth Playbook](/playbook) The Launch Loop # The SaaS launch checklist you'll run more than once Most founders launch once and call it done. The ones who win treat launching as a loop: set the foundations, ship loud, then run a weekly content and distribution engine forever. This is the working checklist, from a playbook we actually run. 0/28 Share your score Every launch starts at zero. Progress saves in your browser. ## Before launch day Conversion foundations. Do these once, they pay out forever. 0/12 - Make the first viewport show the product actually working Don't tell visitors what the product does, show it doing the thing. A live demo, a split before/after, or a 10 second clip in the hero converts better than any headline. - Cut your headline to one concrete line Vague words like momentum or synergy bounce people. Name the outcome your customer buys: more content, more customers. - Add "No credit card required" to pricing buttons It is the cheapest conversion win in SaaS and founders constantly forget it. If your trial or free tier doesn't need a card, say so right on the button. - Put real testimonials on the page The thing that convinces someone to switch tools is other people who already did. Collect them with a tool like Senja and show them everywhere you sell. - List the product on G2 and Capterra Bigger companies do their software shopping on review sites, not on Twitter. List the product, then email your happy customers and ask for a review. - Make onboarding product-led Keep the product on screen during onboarding and let users customize it with their own branding and data. People who see their own thing working reach the aha moment much faster. - Add one gamified incentive Make using the product itself rewarding. Hypefury gives discounts for simply using the product. A streak, a level, or a discount that unlocks with usage all work. - Give customers a leaderboard Leaderboards make customers use and share your product on their own. It is one of the tactics Skool uses to promote itself, and people just love being on top. - Use fake scarcity to create FOMO Unfiltered truth: manufactured urgency works. Promote a limited-time deal repeatedly so FOMO does the closing for you. Deadlines only keep converting while they look real, so don't show the same visitor the same countdown twice. - Catch leavers with an exit-intent discount A visitor closing your pricing page is a lost sale by default. An exit pop-up offering a big one-time discount converts a slice of them on their way out. - Write competitor comparison pages Your competitors' unhappy customers are searching for alternatives right now. A fair, specific comparison page is how they find you. - Ship one free tool List five one-feature tools related to your product, pick the one with the clearest name and fastest build, make it usable on your homepage without signup, and add one seamless plug for the main product. Show the exact list ## Launch week Ship loud, everywhere, in a friendly voice. 0/9 - Launch on every channel you have Product Hunt, Twitter, LinkedIn, WhatsApp groups, Discord communities, Ship or Die. One launch post per channel, adapted to how each one talks. Show the exact list - Launch on Hacker News the way HN wants it A front-page Show HN can send hundreds of signups in a day and the backlink never expires. The rules are unwritten but strict: technical, factual, no marketing voice. HN users are skeptical and will tear the thing apart, which is worth more than the traffic. Show the exact list - Submit to launch directories Startup directories send a slow drip of traffic and backlinks forever. Batch-submit to the list below in an afternoon, or pay one of the submission services to do it for you. Show the exact list - Prepare videos and product snapshots before the day Make short videos, take clean product screenshots, and consider going live on stream (Streamlabs makes that a one-afternoon setup) while you launch. Assets made in advance mean launch day is about talking to people, not editing. Show the exact list - Frame the post as "here's something I made that might be useful" The launches that land in communities read like a friend sharing their work, not a company announcing a product. Humble framing earns upvotes that ad copy never will. Three of our own launch posts, to steal the shape of: Show the exact list - Tell the story, controversy included Your build story is unique somewhere: the weird pricing idea, the name you couldn't use, the rule you broke. The founder who told the story of naming his app Go F\*\*\*ing Do It got covered everywhere. Figure out what is interesting about yours and tell that. - Post where your first users already hang out on Reddit Reddit hates ads and loves useful things shared honestly. Pick the subreddits that fit, follow each one's rules, and share it the friendly way. Show the exact list - Host or join a Twitter Space during launch week AMAs, round tables, and casual drop-by chats fit Spaces perfectly. To find relevant ones, search X for "x.com/i/spaces" plus your keyword. - Shipping hardware? Launch as a pre-order campaign Physical products get a launch channel software doesn't: crowdfunding. A Kickstarter or Indiegogo campaign validates demand with real pre-orders before you commit to manufacturing, and the campaign page doubles as your launch-day destination. Show the exact list ## The loop What you run every single week after launch. This is where winners separate. 0/7 - Publish short-form video every week TikToks that hit a relatable problem or hot topic get outsized reach. One AI founder grew his chatbot startup mainly by posting TikToks about what AI can suddenly do. - Run faceless and UGC-style content You don't need your face or a creator on payroll to look native in the feed. UGC-style videos consistently outperform polished brand content on TikTok and Reels. - Put creators on your payroll, structured as one-time fee plus affiliate Pay creators a one-time fee plus a generous affiliate cut so their incentive is your growth. Extra play: have them roast the tools in your category and crown you the winner. - Keep influencer outreach short and concrete Two lines about what the product does, one ask, one offer of references. That is the whole message. Long pitches get ignored. Show the exact list - Run paid ads by the numbers, creatives first Ad creatives are the priority, targeting is secondary. Keep videos between 7 and 25 seconds, kill or promote every ad at $100 spend, and refresh creatives before fatigue sets in. Show the exact list - Build the outbound machine step by step GTM simplified: set up sending infrastructure, map your total market, segment and score leads, personalize sequences at scale, automate handoffs, mix in warm targeting, then optimize end to end. Show the exact list - Treat refunds as your best feedback channel Refund instantly, apologize and mean it, then ask what they expected. You'll learn more from angry customers than happy ones, and the answers prevent the next ten refunds. The loop is the hard part. It's also the automatable part. Short-form video every week, UGC-style content, faceless formats, posting on schedule across TikTok, Reels and Shorts: that is exactly what Viraloop runs on autopilot, from your website to published posts. [Put your loop on autopilot](/login) ## Your SaaS is live. Your marketing should be too. Drop in your product and get your first ad set in five minutes. 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