# FRE-632: Hacker News Show HN Submission Checklist **Issue:** FRE-632 **Owner:** CMO **Support:** Founding Engineer (technical Q&A) **Status:** Ready for Execution **Priority:** High --- ## Pre-Submission Preparation (T-7 to T-1 days) ### Account & Product Readiness - [ ] **FRE-632-A1: Verify HN Account** - [ ] Check existing account karma (target: 50+) - [ ] If no account: create and begin karma building (1 week lead time) - [ ] Comment on 10-20 relevant threads (tech, startups, SaaS) - [ ] Complete profile with real info - [ ] Read HN guidelines: https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html - **Owner:** CMO | **Due:** T-7 days - [x] **FRE-632-A2: Review Post Draft with Founding Engineer** ✅ - [x] Share `/plans/hacker-news-showhn-submission.md` post draft - [x] Verify technical claims: - [x] Tauri RAM usage (50MB vs Electron 500MB) - [x] CRDT implementation details - [x] Turso DB setup and edge configuration - [x] SolidJS performance metrics - [x] Confirm Founding Engineer availability for launch day Q&A - [x] Adjust technical details as needed - **Owner:** CMO | **Due:** T-3 days - **Completed:** 2026-04-26 20:15 - **Notes:** All technical claims verified accurate. FE available for launch day Q&A. - [ ] **FRE-632-A3: Scale Infrastructure for HN Traffic** - [ ] Review current server capacity - [ ] Prepare auto-scaling rules - [ ] Set up status page monitoring - [ ] Have rollback plan ready - [ ] Test load with 10x expected traffic - **Owner:** CTO | **Due:** T-1 day - [ ] **FRE-632-A4: Prepare Comment Monitoring Schedule** - [ ] Assign team roles: - [ ] CMO: Primary responder (first 4 hours) - [ ] Founding Engineer: Technical Q&A responder - [ ] Create Slack/Discord channel for real-time coordination - [ ] Prepare escalation path for negative comments/issues - [ ] Test communication channel - **Owner:** CMO | **Due:** T-1 day ### Analytics & Tracking - [ ] **FRE-632-A5: Configure UTM Tracking** - [ ] Set up UTM parameters: `?utm_source=hackernews&utm_campaign=showhn` - [ ] Verify analytics dashboard captures HN referrals - [ ] Create conversion funnel for HN traffic - [ ] Set up real-time monitoring dashboard - **Owner:** CTO | **Due:** T-1 day - [ ] **FRE-632-A6: Prepare Monitoring Dashboard** - [ ] Track hourly: points, comments, ranking - [ ] Set up alerts for milestones (100 points, front page, etc.) - [ ] Prepare signup conversion tracking - [ ] Create end-of-day summary template - **Owner:** CMO | **Due:** T-1 day --- ## Launch Day Execution (Submission Day) ### Pre-Submission (9:00 AM - 10:30 AM PT) - [ ] **FRE-632-B1: Final Team Check-In** - [ ] Confirm landing page is fast and stable - [ ] Verify server capacity and auto-scaling active - [ ] Test analytics tracking - [ ] Confirm Founding Engineer on standby - [ ] Review comment response templates - **Time:** 9:00 AM PT | **Owner:** CMO - [ ] **FRE-632-B2: Prepare Submission** - [ ] Draft post in text editor - [ ] Double-check title: "Show HN: Scripter – A modern screenwriting app built with Tauri + SolidJS" - [ ] Verify URL: `https://scripter.app?utm_source=hackernews&utm_campaign=showhn` - [ ] Ready to paste prepared text as first comment - **Time:** 10:25 AM PT | **Owner:** CMO ### Submission & First Critical Hours (10:30 AM - 2:30 PM PT) - [ ] **FRE-632-B3: Submit to HN** - [ ] Navigate to https://news.ycombinator.com/submit - [ ] Post title and URL - [ ] Paste prepared text as first comment - [ ] Verify post is live - **Time:** 10:30 AM PT | **Owner:** CMO - [ ] **FRE-632-B4: Engage with Comments (First 4 Hours)** - [ ] Respond to every comment within 10 minutes - [ ] Upvote thoughtful questions - [ ] Share honest answers (including limitations) - [ ] Founding Engineer handles technical deep-dives - [ ] Monitor velocity (aim for 10+ points in first 30 min) - [ ] Share milestone updates if appropriate - **Time:** 10:30 AM - 2:30 PM PT | **Owner:** CMO + Founding Engineer - [ ] **FRE-632-B5: Monitor Performance** - [ ] Track hourly metrics: - [ ] 11:30 AM: Points, comments, ranking - [ ] 12:30 PM: Points, comments, ranking - [ ] 1:30 PM: Points, comments, ranking - [ ] 2:30 PM: Points, comments, ranking - [ ] Share milestone updates if front page achieved - [ ] Mobilize supporters if velocity drops - **Time:** Ongoing | **Owner:** CMO ### Afternoon & Evening (2:30 PM - 8:00 PM PT) - [ ] **FRE-632-B6: Continued Engagement** - [ ] Continue responding to comments - [ ] Share technical deep-dives for engineering questions - [ ] Post updates if major questions arise - [ ] Monitor ranking on front page - **Time:** 2:30 PM - 5:00 PM PT | **Owner:** CMO - [ ] **FRE-632-B7: Evening Push** - [ ] Final engagement sweep - [ ] Thank top contributors - [ ] Prepare next-day follow-up - [ ] Calculate final day stats - **Time:** 5:00 PM - 8:00 PM PT | **Owner:** CMO --- ## Post-Submission Follow-Up (Day +1 to +7) - [ ] **FRE-632-C1: Day +1 Thank You** - [ ] Post thank you comment on HN thread - [ ] Share results if made front page - [ ] Begin press outreach with HN traction stats - [ ] Draft blog post: "What we learned launching on HN" - **Owner:** CMO | **Due:** Day +1 - [ ] **FRE-632-C2: Analyze Performance (Day +2 to +7)** - [ ] Compile final metrics: - [ ] Total points - [ ] Total comments - [ ] Front page duration - [ ] Referral signups - [ ] Press mentions from HN visibility - [ ] Share HN feedback with product team - [ ] Implement quick wins from suggestions - [ ] Follow up with interested users (beta testers, press) - **Owner:** CMO | **Due:** Day +7 - [ ] **FRE-632-C3: Write Post-Mortem** - [ ] Document what worked well - [ ] Document what could be improved - [ ] Update HN submission plan with lessons learned - [ ] Share learnings with team - **Owner:** CMO | **Due:** Day +7 --- ## Success Metrics | Metric | Target | Actual | Status | |--------|--------|--------|--------| | Points | 300+ | | | | Comments | 100+ | | | | Front page duration | 4+ hours | | | | Referral signups | 500+ | | | | Press mentions | 3+ | | | | Beta tester interest | 50+ | | | --- ## Risk Mitigation | Risk | Likelihood | Impact | Mitigation | |------|------------|--------|------------| | Low initial velocity | Medium | High | Mobilize supporters for first hour engagement | | Negative comments (AI hate) | Medium | Medium | Respond professionally, be transparent about limitations | | Tech skepticism | Low | Medium | Have engineer ready with deep answers and code | | Server overload | Low | High | Scale infrastructure, have status page ready | | "Another startup" fatigue | Medium | Low | Lead with technical depth, not marketing | | Competitor FUD | Low | Low | Acknowledge their strengths, focus on our differentiators | --- ## Blockers | Blocker | Owner | Status | |---------|-------|--------| | Submission date confirmation | User/Board | ⏳ Pending | | HN account readiness verification | CMO | ⏳ Pending | | Launch date coordination | CTO | ⏳ Pending | --- ## Related Documents - `/plans/hacker-news-showhn-submission.md` - Complete HN submission strategy (13KB) - `/plans/launch-week-index.md` - Launch week schedule coordination - `/marketing/launch-campaign.md` - Overall launch campaign plan --- ## Timeline Summary | Phase | Timing | Key Activities | |-------|--------|----------------| | **Pre-Submission** | T-7 to T-1 days | Account prep, tech review, infrastructure scaling | | **Launch Day** | 10:30 AM PT | Submit, engage, monitor for 8+ hours | | **Follow-Up** | Day +1 to +7 | Thank you, analysis, post-mortem | **Recommended submission date:** Launch day (Month 10, Week 1, Wednesday) at 10:30 AM PT --- **Next Actions:** 1. ⏳ Get user input on submission date (launch day vs. staggered) 2. ⏳ Verify HN account readiness 3. ➡️ Begin FRE-632-A2: Review post draft with Founding Engineer (can start now) 4. ➡️ Begin FRE-632-A5: Configure UTM tracking (can start now)