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Waitlists.
Love them or hate them, they do one thing well: build anticipation. I’m firmly in the ‘love them’ camp. I’ve used them more times than I can count—and they work.
This morning, we officially removed the Superpower waitlist. Anyone can now sign up. No codes. No gatekeeping. Just you and your future mitochondria.
As Head of Growth, you can imagine I didn’t find out via press release.
But before I get into how we got here—quick plug:
CODE: AJAYSQUEST
This gives the first 10 people, $100 off their membership.
This is the steepest discount we have done so far and it’s only because I make the coupon codes. Just don’t tell my boss Max.🤫
Seriously, I don’t want to get a slack message from him with a iMessage screenshot saying “wait when did we do $100 off?!”
Okay, strap in. Here are my takes when it comes to waitlists.
Waitlists are a positioning tool, not just a demand capture tool.
Here’s an excerpt from an internal memo I wrote a while ago (don’t tell my boss):
❌ Not Luxury
We’re not trying to be a luxury brand. Luxury is about timelessness, exclusion, and obsolescence resistance. That’s not what we’re here for—and that’s not what healthcare should be about.
✅ Supply-Constrained
Instead, we want to feel like that banh mi place in Australia where the line wraps around the mall. (The sandwich is fine. Not life-changing. But the line gives it weight.)
Our goal? Signal high demand and limited capacity—because this is actually true. Early waitlist → rolling admissions → capped onboarding. We were supply-constrained, and the waitlist is our honest response to that.
Here’s what a well-designed waitlist should do:
1. Signal scarcity, quality, and movement.
Not everyone gets in → scarcity.
We’re curating thoughtful early adopters → quality.
You’re part of something new → movement.
That framing matters. It’s how you turn interest into belief.
2. Gather signal before scale.
A waitlist isn’t just about “who wants in?”
It’s about who cares enough to bet early—when the product is still raw, and the narrative is still forming.
That’s gold. That’s signal you don’t get from a big splashy launch.
3. Avoid the performative trap.
I hate performative waitlists. You know the ones. Everyone gets “waitlisted” for 12 hours and then gets in like clockwork.
It’s fake tension. Customers can feel it. It erodes trust. If you’re not going to enforce scarcity, don’t pretend.
4. Create “pre-conversion equity.”
A good waitlist builds emotional buy-in before someone even becomes a customer. By the time they get access, they’ve been rooting for the brand, refreshing their inbox, telling their friends.
That’s momentum.
5. Force early growth design.
Waitlists expose your growth flywheel early. You start thinking about referrals, invite mechanics, onboarding gates, how to nudge people down the funnel before you’re ready to scale.
And that’s a gift.
That’s my take. Waitlists aren’t magic—but when used well, they sharpen your narrative, your growth loops, and your conviction.
We used ours. We learned a lot. And now, we’re ready to open the doors.
See you on the inside.
— Ajay
P.S My friend Gaurav who was the Head of Growth at Superhuman also wrote a piece on waitlists. (Yes we coordinated as fellow growth people at Super-something companies)