Weeks before: build in public
A launch post from an account nobody follows reaches nobody. Start posting about what you're building weeks or months ahead, so an audience is waiting on the day.
- Share progress: what you built this week, what broke. See how to build in public.
- Talk about the problem, not just the product. People who have the problem will follow.
- Ask for input on names, pricing or features. People back what they helped shape.
- Collect early users with a waitlist or a simple “reply if you want early access”.
- Y
Your name@you
Week 6 of building a habit tracker for people who hate habit trackers. This week: cut onboarding from 5 screens to 1. Turns out nobody wanted to set 12 goals on day one. Beta opens in 3 weeks. Reply if you want in.
The build in public update template gives you a repeatable format for these.
The week before: prepare everything
- Write the launch thread and every follow-up post in advance.
- Prepare visuals: a short demo video or GIF, a few screenshots, one strong image for the first tweet.
- Tell supporters the date and time and ask them to share. Make it easy: send them the link the moment it's live.
- Pick a time when your audience is active. See the best time to post on X.
- Clear your calendar for launch day. You'll be replying all day.
Launch day: the launch thread
The launch thread carries the day. A structure that works:
- Hook: what it is and who it's for, in one or two lines, with your best visual.
- Problem: the pain it solves, in the reader's words.
- How it works: two or three tweets with screenshots or a demo.
- Why you built it: one honest sentence of story.
- Proof: beta users, early results, or a quote from a real user, only if you have one.
- Offer: price, any launch discount, and where to get it.
- Y
Your name@you1/2
Today we're launching our invoicing app for freelancers. It chases late payments for you. You send the invoice. It sends the polite reminders, then the firm ones, so you never have to. Here's how it works:
- Y
Your name@you2/2
Every freelancer I know has the same problem: the work is done, the invoice is sent, and then nothing. Chasing feels awkward, so most of us don't. We just wait.
Start from the product launch thread template, or the product announcement tweet for a single-post version. How to write hooks helps with the first line.
Launch day: run the day
- Pin the launch thread to your profile.
- Reply to every reply, quickly. Early conversation helps the thread keep circulating.
- Repost or quote people who share it, with a genuine thank-you.
- Post one update later in the day: a first milestone, a funny bug, a thank-you.
- Don't bury the thread under a dozen unrelated posts.
Launch day checklist
- Launch thread written, previewed on mobile and scheduled or ready to post.
- Visuals attached: demo, screenshots, a strong first image.
- Link tested, including sign-up and payment.
- Supporters told the time and given the link.
- Thread pinned the moment it's live.
- Calendar cleared for replies.
- A second post drafted for later in the day.
- Week-after posts drafted and queued.
The week after
Most launches fade by day two because the founder stops posting about it. The week after is where you reach everyone who missed launch day.
| Day | Post |
|---|---|
| Day 2 | What happened on launch day, with any numbers you're comfortable sharing |
| Day 3 | A user's story, or a use case you didn't expect |
| Day 4 | A how-to thread showing one feature in depth |
| Day 5 | The best feedback you got and what you're changing |
| Day 7 | A short recap and what's next |
Templates for this stretch: the milestone tweet, feature update tweet and case study thread.
If the launch is quiet
Plenty of launches are quieter than hoped. That's not the end of it. A product launches many times on X, not once.
- Treat each meaningful feature as its own small launch.
- Post stories from the users you did get. A handful of real users beats a crowd that never returns.
- Write an honest lessons thread. Candid posts about a slow start often travel further than the launch did.
- Keep building in public. The next launch starts with a bigger audience.
- Y
Your name@you
My launch last week got 31 likes and 4 signups. Not what I hoped. But those 4 people have used the app every day since, and all of them found me through replies, not the launch post. So here's what I'm changing:
Launch mistakes to avoid
- Launching from a cold account with no audience.
- Posting only the link. Show the product in the post.
- Asking everyone to repost without giving them a reason to.
- Disappearing after day one.
- Inflating traction. Readers notice, and it costs more than it gains.
Extudio helps you prepare the whole sequence in advance: draft the launch thread in the thread maker, preview it on mobile, and schedule the week-after posts into slots so they go out while you're busy answering replies. Scheduling is on the paid plans.