09 · Post variants: 20 kinds of X post and when to use each¶
The 7-day rotation in 05-post-formats.md says which day gets which kind of post. This page lists every kind (variant) that works for an indie dev selling software, grouped into 5 families. Each variant has a copy-ready file in templates/variants/ in the post-file format.
Why so many? Because the ranker's author-diversity decay and "not interested" signal punish sameness (03-how-x-ranks-posts.md). Rotating variants keeps every post fresh while the facts behind them come from one fact bank.
The 5 families¶
| Family | Job | Share of the week | Main signal it earns |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🎬 Show | Let people see the product working | 2 of 7 | Follow, profile visit |
| 🧠 Teach | Give value that works without buying | 2 of 7 | Copy-link share (weight 20), bookmark |
| 📊 Prove | Real numbers and real users | 1 of 7 | Reply, bookmark, trust |
| 💬 Talk | Start conversations, meet people | 1–2 of 7 | Reply (weight 5, +15 between mutuals) |
| 💰 Sell | Ask, once | max 1 of 7 | Profile visit → landing → trial |
Weights are the defaults in X's open-source ranker; see 03-how-x-ranks-posts.md.
The 20 variants¶
| # | Variant | Family | Stage | Link | Media | Use when |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| V01 | Demo clip | 🎬 Show | share |
first-comment | 10–30 s screen recording, captions | Every week; the pinned post is one |
| V02 | Before / after | 🎬 Show | share |
first-comment | 2 images side by side, or a split clip | The product changes a visible mess into order |
| V03 | Shipped today | 🎬 Show | update |
none | 1 screenshot of the new thing | You released a feature or fix |
| V04 | Screenshot tour | 🎬 Show | share |
first-comment | 4 images, one caption each | A product with several screens (new landing, new app) |
| V05 | Tip without your product | 🧠 Teach | share |
none | Optional screenshot | Weekly; builds trust and shares |
| V06 | Checklist / cheat sheet | 🧠 Teach | share |
none | 1 clean image of the list | You know a process by heart |
| V07 | How-to long post or thread | 🧠 Teach | share |
first-comment | 1–4 images | Saturday; something you learned the hard way |
| V08 | Honest comparison | 🧠 Teach | discuss |
none | Table image | People ask "A or B?" in your niche |
| V09 | Free resource | 🧠 Teach | share |
first-comment | Preview image | You have a template, skill file, checklist to give |
| V10 | Number with context | 📊 Prove | results |
none | Screenshot of the dashboard | A metric moved and you know why |
| V11 | Weekly numbers / milestone | 📊 Prove | results |
first-comment | Optional chart | Sunday; or a round milestone |
| V12 | User feedback | 📊 Prove | results |
first-comment | Screenshot, with permission | A real user said something specific |
| V13 | Community intro / hello | 💬 Talk | warmup |
none | Optional photo or product grid | Joining an X Community or a new niche |
| V14 | Behind the scenes / decision | 💬 Talk | share |
none | Screenshot of code, design or notes | You made a choice others face too |
| V15 | Failure / bug story | 💬 Talk | share |
none | Screenshot of the error or rejection | Something broke or got rejected |
| V16 | Question / poll | 💬 Talk | discuss |
none | Poll or none | You're really deciding something |
| V17 | Contrarian take, with proof | 💬 Talk | discuss |
none | Optional | You disagree with common advice and have a reason |
| V18 | Quote post that adds value | 💬 Talk | discuss |
none | Your own screenshot | A bigger account posts something you can add data to |
| V19 | Offer (the one ask) | 💰 Sell | deal |
first-comment | Demo clip or product image | Once a week, or a real time-limited deal |
| V20 | Launch announcement | 💰 Sell | deal |
first-comment | Demo clip + 1 image | Launch day of a product or a big version |
Paid, later: a Promoted post is not a separate variant. When one organic post clearly beats the rest (replies, profile visits, trials), you can promote that exact post from its activity view; X logs each promotion as its own campaign and says there's no minimum campaign spend (How to increase your reach, X Ads campaigns 101). Ads with "bonus / claim your offer" creative are a different game: only after the funnel converts organically (strategy-spend-and-timing).
A week built from variants¶
| Day | Family | Pick one |
|---|---|---|
| Mon | 🎬 Show | V01 demo · V02 before/after · V04 tour |
| Tue | 📊 Prove | V10 number · V12 user feedback |
| Wed | 🧠 Teach | V05 tip · V06 checklist · V08 comparison · V09 free resource |
| Thu | 💬 Talk | V14 behind the scenes · V15 failure · V17 contrarian |
| Fri | 💬 Talk | V16 question / poll · V13 community intro (new community) |
| Sat | 🧠 Teach | V07 how-to long post |
| Sun | 📊 Prove + 💰 Sell | V11 weekly numbers, with V19 offer in the reply (or V20 in a launch week) |
| Any day | 🎬 Show | V03 shipped today, when you ship (counts as that day's post) |
| Daily | 💬 Talk | V18 quote posts and plain replies: 06-reply-playbook.md |
Use each variant at most once a week, and don't repeat the same variant for the same product two weeks in a row.
A real comparison (two posts, same account, same hour)¶
Real case, the maintainer's account, screenshot 2026-10-12. Small base and only minutes after posting, so read it as a direction, not a result.
| Post | Variant | Early numbers | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Hi Build in Public 👋 I'm Leo, solo dev shipping small Mac + Windows apps. All my specs, plans and Claude skills live in .md files…" | V13 community intro | ~142 views, 9 replies, 10 likes at ~24 min | Spoke to one community, in first person, with a real problem; the community surfaced it to members |
| "Ever wondered how to make your landing page stand out, convert visitors… Stop reinventing the wheel. Start building smarter." + a landing screenshot | none (generic hook) | 4 views at ~13 min | Ad-style opener, two clichés, and the image (a Mac cleaner landing) didn't match the text (Claude skills) |
Rewrite of the second post as a V02 before / after (fill the <…> with real facts):
Rebuilt the landing page of my Mac cleaner with one Claude skill file.
Before: feature list, no demo.
After: one hook, a 30-second demo, one "Try free" button.
<what changed in clicks, or "will share numbers in 2 weeks">
Image: the old page next to the new one. Link to the skill or the page in the first reply.
Rules every variant follows¶
Short version below; the full page is 10-best-practices.md.
- The first line works alone in the feed: a problem, a number or a result. No "Ever wondered…", "Here's the thing…".
- The image or clip shows exactly what the text says.
- One idea per post. The link goes in the first reply or the bio, unless you're testing link-in-post.
- Every number is real, dated and has its base (social-credible-posting).
- Answer every reply in the first hour.