X launch glossary: 24 terms for launching on X
The words we use when we plan a launch on X, in plain English. Each one links to the guide that goes deeper, so you can use this page as a quick reference while you read the X Launch Playbook.
The four terms we use most
The words behind every launch we run
- Hour 0Founder postThe launch, from the founder's own account.
- First hoursLaunch waveCreator posts timed to land with the founder post.
- After launchMultiple of followingViews divided by followers. How far it travelled.
- Before launchImpressions floorA minimum agreed up front, topped up at no extra cost.
Bookmarks
Bookmarks are saves: people keeping a post so they can come back to it. For a product launch, a save usually means someone plans to try it later, which makes it one of the most useful numbers after a launch. Across 13 launch posts in our case studies, the median was about 0.6 bookmarks for every 1,000 views.
Read more: How many views is viral on X
Creator brief
A creator brief is the short note you send creators before a launch: what the product does, who it's for, three facts, the launch time, the link and the approval deadline. A good brief gives the facts and timing, then lets each creator write in their own words. You can write one in two minutes with the free influencer brief generator.
Read more: The X Launch Playbook
Creator-led launch
A creator-led launch is a launch where creators your buyers already follow post their own takes on your product at the same time as your announcement. Each creator post puts the launch in front of a new audience.
Read more: X launch agency
Engagement pod
An engagement pod is a group that agrees to like, reply to or repost each other's posts to fake interest. X's rules ban artificial engagement, and it can hurt an account long after launch day. Avoid pods and reply-for-reply deals.
Read more: Why your launch post got no views
Engagement rate
Engagement rate is the number of likes, reposts, replies, quotes and bookmarks divided by views. On big launch posts it looks small: across our 13 launch posts the median was about 0.17% of views. Saves, sign-ups and the multiple of following tell you more.
Read more: How many views is viral on X
First hours
The first hours are the window right after the founder post goes live. A post's best chance to spread comes early, so creator posts, quote posts and replies should all land in this window.
Read more: The X Launch Playbook
Founder post
The founder post is the launch announcement written by, and posted from, the founder's own account. People follow people, so a founder post usually travels further than a brand account post. Cartesia's founder post for Sonic-3.5 reached 7.1M views.
Read more: The X Launch Playbook
Impressions floor
An impressions floor is a minimum number of impressions agreed before a campaign starts. If the launch wave falls short, more creators are added at no extra cost until it clears. Every GrowthMatrix campaign on X has one.
Read more: X launch agency
Launch day timeline
The launch day timeline is the hour-by-hour plan for launch day: final checks the night before, the founder post at hour 0, creator posts in the first hours, replies all day and the LinkedIn version in the next two days.
Read more: The X Launch Playbook
Launch demo
The launch demo is the short video in the founder post that shows the product working. Keep it to 30 to 60 seconds, open on the finished result, put captions on screen and upload it to X directly.
Read more: The X Launch Playbook
Launch kit
The launch kit is everything you need ready on launch morning: the one-line description, three facts, the demo, the final founder post, the pinned reply, tracked links, answers to common questions and the approved creator brief.
Read more: The X Launch Playbook
Launch moment
A launch moment is any point when a company wants attention on X: a product launch, a model release, a funding announcement, YC Demo Day, an event like CES, a Product Hunt launch or a regular release. The same playbook works for each, with a different story and timing.
Read more: How YC startups launch
Launch wave
The launch wave is the group of creator posts timed to land with the founder post, all in the same few hours. Each post in the wave adds a new audience while the founder post is still climbing.
Read more: The X Launch Playbook
Multiple of following
The multiple of following is a launch post's views divided by the account's followers. It shows how far a launch travelled beyond the people who already follow you. JovidaAI's launch from a 73-follower account reached 105.6K views, about 1,400 times its following.
Read more: How many views is viral on X
Paid partnership label
The paid partnership label is X's built-in disclosure for paid posts. Every paid creator post in a launch should carry it.
Read more: X's paid partnerships policy
Pinned reply
A pinned reply is a reply you post under your own launch post with the link, who the product is for and short answers to common questions, so nobody has to ask. It's the first thing people see when they open the post.
Read more: The X Launch Playbook
Quote post
A quote post shares someone's post with your own take on top. For a launch, it gives the quoter's followers a reason to care, in a voice they already trust. On 5 of the 13 launch posts in our case studies, quotes outnumbered reposts.
Read more: Quote posts vs reposts vs threads
Readiness check
The readiness check is five questions to answer before you pick a launch date: can a stranger try it in under two minutes, can you say what it does in one sentence, do you have one proof point, will signup hold up under a spike, and is the founder free on launch day.
Read more: The X Launch Playbook
Repost
A repost shares a post exactly as it is, with nothing added. It's quick and useful from team accounts to push the best creator takes, but it gives followers no new reason to care.
Read more: Quote posts vs reposts vs threads
Right-fit creator
A right-fit creator is a creator whose followers are your buyers. Check who replies to their posts, whether their views are steady and whether they've covered launches before, rather than how many followers they have.
Read more: How to pick tech influencers
Second push
A second push is a follow-up wave a week or so after a quiet launch, built around the angle that got the best replies the first time. A launch isn't one day.
Read more: Why your launch post got no views
Thread
A thread is a chain of posts that explains something step by step. Threads suit launches that need explaining, like a new model or a developer tool. Keep the founder's launch post as a single post and put the details in a short reply thread underneath.
Read more: Quote posts vs reposts vs threads
Views
Views are the public count X shows on every post. On their own they mislead: 100K views is a big win for a brand-new account and a quiet day for a founder with 200K followers. Compare views with the account's following instead.
Read more: How many views is viral on X
X launch agency
An X launch agency plans and runs a product launch on X. It matches the launch with creators your buyers already follow, briefs them, gets your approval on every post, times the posts to your release and reports the results.
Read more: X launch agency
Frequently asked questions
What is a launch wave on X?
A group of creator posts timed to land with the founder's launch post, all in the same few hours. Each post adds a new audience while the launch is still climbing.
What does multiple of following mean?
A launch post's views divided by the account's followers. It shows how far the launch travelled beyond the people who already follow you.
What is an impressions floor?
A minimum number of impressions agreed before a campaign starts. If the launch falls short, more creators are added at no extra cost until it clears.
What is a founder post?
The launch announcement written by, and posted from, the founder's own account. It usually travels further than a post from a brand account.