DEV Community: Ben Spak

I Spent 12 Hours Submitting My Product to Directories. Here's What I Built to Never Do That Again.

Ben Spak — Wed, 15 Jul 2026 00:26:03 +0000

Every founder who's launched a product knows the drill. You've built something you're proud of. You're ready to share it with the world. And then you discover you need to submit it to Product Hunt, BetaList, Peerlist, and about fifty other directories if you want any chance of getting noticed.

So you open your first submission form. You copy your tagline from your notes app. You paste it. You upload your logo. You fill in your description. Then you open the next directory. And you do it all again. And again. And again.

After my last launch, I calculated that I'd spent nearly twelve hours just on directory submissions. Twelve hours of copying the same tagline, pasting the same description, uploading the same screenshots. It was mind-numbing work that pulled me away from the things that actually mattered, like talking to users and iterating on feedback.

I knew there had to be a better way.

That's why I built AutoSubmit.to. It's a simple idea: save your launch information once, and let it autofill everywhere you need to submit.

The problem with product launches isn't the strategy or the timing or even the product itself. It's the operational overhead. Most founders underestimate how tedious the submission process becomes when you're trying to maximize visibility. Each directory has slightly different fields. Some want a short description, others want a long one. Some ask for your Twitter handle, others want your LinkedIn. Some require specific image dimensions.

This variability means you can't just copy and paste blindly. You need to adjust your content for each platform, which adds cognitive load to an already repetitive task. By the tenth submission, you're making mistakes. By the twentieth, you're wondering if any of this is even worth it.

AutoSubmit.to approaches this problem with a two-part system that's designed to be both simple and powerful.

First, you create a launch profile on the platform. This is your single source of truth. You enter your product name, tagline, descriptions of varying lengths, links to your website and social profiles, media assets like logos and screenshots, and any other relevant information. You do this once, and you're done with data entry.

Second, you install the Chrome extension. This becomes your autofill assistant. When you visit any supported directory to submit your product, the extension recognizes the submission form and can automatically populate it with the appropriate information from your saved profile.

What makes this especially useful is the intelligent mapping. Different directories have different field names and requirements, but AutoSubmit.to handles these variations automatically. It knows that when Product Hunt asks for a tagline, it should pull from the same field that Peerlist calls a subtitle. It ensures your information appears correctly regardless of how each platform structures its forms.

The dashboard gives you a clear overview of your launch progress. You can see which directories you've already submitted to and which ones still need attention. During a launch, when you're juggling user feedback, bug fixes, and promotional activities, this tracking functionality keeps you organized and ensures nothing falls through the cracks.

I built AutoSubmit.to specifically for indie hackers, startup founders, and product teams who are launching new products or significant updates. If you're a solo founder working on a side project, you probably don't have time to waste on repetitive administrative tasks. If you're part of a small team, you'd rather have everyone focused on building and marketing, not data entry.

The tool is designed to turn what used to be hours or even days of manual work into a quick, automated process. Instead of spending an entire afternoon copying and pasting, you can complete your directory submissions in a fraction of the time and redirect that energy toward activities that actually move the needle.

There's a free tier available, which was important to me because I remember being a bootstrapped founder watching every dollar. You shouldn't need to pay just to save yourself from tedious work. The platform should be accessible whether you're launching your first side project or your tenth startup.

Looking back at my last launch, I think about all the things I could have done with those twelve hours. I could have onboarded more users personally. I could have written content explaining my product's value proposition. I could have fixed bugs or shipped new features. Instead, I was filling out forms.

That's the hidden cost of manual directory submissions. It's not just the time itself. It's the opportunity cost of what you're not doing while you're stuck in repetitive tasks.

If you're preparing for a product launch, I'd encourage you to think about your process. How will you handle directory submissions? How many platforms do you plan to target? How much time are you willing to spend on data entry versus actually engaging with your audience?

AutoSubmit.to exists to give you that time back. One launch profile. Autofill everywhere. It's a simple promise, but it's one that can change how you approach your launch.

You can learn more and get started at https://autosubmit.to/

The next time you launch, don't spend your day copying and pasting. Spend it building something that matters.

How to negotiate sponsorship deals?

Ben Spak — Tue, 11 Jun 2019 00:09:09 +0000

Hey,

I have a problem; but a good one! I've been chatting with a bootcamp about becoming a community sponsor for http://CodeCareer.io & #301DaysOfCode but I have no clue what to ask for in return.

Any advice on how to structure a deal with a partner / sponsor?

Best,
Ben

Stoicism & Startup Directives | Studying Success

Ben Spak — Thu, 30 May 2019 19:41:24 +0000

Stoicism

Stoicism is a great operating model for startups and high-stress environments.

Separate what you can control from what you can’t control.

Example: other people’s relationships.

Fear Setting

Practice fear setting quarterly.

Ask “What if” and define several worst case scenarios.
Determine “what can I do” to prevent those worst case scenarios.
Problem solve “how can I” repair any damage that may happen.

Getting Into YCombinator

Do not be a solo founder. The road it too difficult to go it alone.

If you want investors to take you seriously most will only work with companies incorporated as a Deleware C crop.

Clerky is a tool that makes this easier.

YC takes 7% in your company for $120,000 of capital & advising.

Use YC to network & ask as many questions as possible.

YC wants startups to have at least 10% growth every week.

As a CEO ensure you give your co-founder a substantial stake in a company to keep them on board for the long haul.

As a CEO your first real test is to find talented people and sell them on why they should forgo their lucrative career to work with you on a startup.

Selling As a Startup

Focus on selling to the innovators. The 2.5% of people who “get it”

It’s a numbers game.

Out of 100 sales, pitches expect 98 of those people to say “no”.

Or approximately 1/50 will say “yes”.

If someone says “I would, but it needs this one more feature” consider it a no.

Go to conferences.

Line up meetings with attendees prior to the event & schedule 30-minute meetings with each prospect.

Sales are about listening to customer problems.

Don’t try to convince the customer why they should buy from you.

Be extremely persistent with follow-ups.

It could take 50 tries to land a large contract or sale.

However, if the sale is worth $100,000 it’s worth the effort.

YCombinator has a sales template:

Y Combinator Sales Template Agreement

Don’t offer free trials.

Instead, of free trails, offer a 30-day cancellation policy.

You want the default option to be to buy into the product.

Christopher Janz

Sell few customers at a large price tag.

Sell many customers at a small price tag.

And anywhere in between.

How to Handle Burnout | Twitter Chat

Ben Spak — Mon, 27 May 2019 21:26:56 +0000

Originally posted on my blog

Hi all,

I often have meaningful heartfelt conversations with friends on Twitter.

Sometimes they share advice, other times it's me. I want to bring these meaningful conversations to more people, so you can benefit too. Let me know how you like this new format.

Original Post

"I'm so stressed I'm physically sick I need suggestions Twitter fam" -JP (OP)

Thread 1

"Go to the doctor. Commit to therapy. I mean if you are physically sick...it might have progressed beyond just stress." - TT

"Fam this is the right answer.

When it's interfering with your life, time to get help." - JP2

"Yall right" - JP

Thread 2

"Exercise. Try to set a PR. Will take ur mind to focus on something else. Art. Do something requiring you to focus on something else." - EH

"The only PR I know is pull request 😢😢" - JP

"Love it!" EH

Thread 3

"Walk for 45 minutes per day. Get more sun. Use f.flux to dim screen on PC. Try going to bed before 10pm. Take melatonin for deeper sleep. Eat breakfast. Meditate. Cut out caffeine. Cut out sugar. Cut carbs. Take cold showers." -BNS

"Also get a 17oz/500ml water bottle like this https://amzn.to/2M4Zq5o and fill it 4 times every day. You'll know it's working when you start going to the bathroom more often!" - AK

"How can u cut coffee and sugar.." - MK

"You will get withdraws lol Best thing to do is record the amount you consume & then slowly reduce it every day." - BNS

"I'm not a coffee drinker so that isnt a problem. I did sleep pretty well last night and feel better" - JP

Meaningful Comments

"Meditate. Yoga. Relax. Eat better. Treat yourself to a weekend off." -R

"Go to sleep" - CKD

"Celery extract (lowers BP), pedialyte (electrolyte restoration), a walk (bloodflow) and a few quiet nights to yourself." - Thrill

"Music. Be still. If something is beyond your control try not to worry yourself. Calm." - SM

"Take a break if you have not done so in long time." -Mu

"Deep breathes and assessing how small even the worse case scenario is in the long term so it will all be gooddddd." - EV

"Good sleep. Meditate. Exercise" - SM

"Pray !" - F

"Fucking sleep!!!" -MF

"Stop comparing yourself to others. It’s the killer of all happiness. Stop comparing yourself to an ideal version of yourself. Just focus on the day. If you work hard, you’ll make progress." - BNS

"Practice being in the moment. Take life in one day. If that’s too much, take it by the hour, minute or even second. You are not your work. To strive is great. But, not when you stress about the future and things that haven’t happened yet." - BNS

"You’re a tough and stubborn person. You’re ill because of determination and focus. It’s a double edged sword. I developed panic attacks because I pushed too hard. If you experiencing things like that make changes now! Or it’ll fuck your up for a few years. Trust me." - BNS

Resource: Link to Twitter conversation. Please follow all of these awesome people in the chat.

Let me know how you like this new format in the comments below or via Twitter.

Cheers,

Ben

Save Your eyes! How to Install Flux on Ubuntu

Ben Spak — Mon, 27 May 2019 20:27:03 +0000

Originally Posted on my Blog

Trust me, you want Flux. Your eyes & sleep quality will thank you.

If you need to manually start the applet just type 'fluxgui' in terminal.

Resource: Flux Repo

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:nathan-renniewaldock/flux
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install fluxgui

Resource: Create a Cron Task in Ubuntu

Check if cron is installed:

dpkg -l cron

Install cron (if needed)

sudo apt-get install cron

Verify cron is running.

systemctl status cron

Create a new cron job.

crontab -e

Select your terminal editor of choice.

Resource: Crontab Generator

Use the Crontab Generator to select when you want fluxgui to run.
FYI: 'Command To Execute' field on Crontab Generator is 'fluxgui'

Verify cron job was created.

crontab -l

If you need to manually start the applet just type 'fluxgui' in terminal.

Winning! You're good to go.

User Retention Problem -- Vlog 11.15.2018 -- Benjamin Spak

Ben Spak — Sat, 17 Nov 2018 02:44:43 +0000

⚠️ Question of the Day:
Would you participate in an online - weekend-long - hackathon?
https://twitter.com/benjaminspak/status/1063051333647982593

Online Hackathon! -- Vlog 11.16.2018 -- Benjamin Spak

Ben Spak — Sat, 17 Nov 2018 02:07:24 +0000

⚠️ Question of the Day:
In an online hackathon 💻, what non-physical prizes would be ideal to award 🏆 winners? By non-physical, I mean things that do not have to be mailed.
https://twitter.com/benjaminspak/status/1063444382123257857

Fearless by loving failure - Isa Silveira - Developer Discussions

Ben Spak — Wed, 19 Sep 2018 01:10:47 +0000