If you have ever watched another creator "open the cart" or "run a soft launch" and felt like everyone got a vocabulary sheet you missed, this is for you. Launch language is borrowed, reused, and stretched across very different situations, so the same word can mean two things depending on who is talking. Before you plan anything, it helps to know what each term actually describes.
This glossary keeps the definitions plain and adds something most lists skip: a one-line "use this when" for each term, tied to a real business situation. The goal is not to make you sound fluent. It is to help you tell which approach fits what you are actually launching. One honest note up front: these terms describe approaches and structures, not outcomes. Calling something an "open-cart launch" tells you how it is shaped, not whether it will sell.
Waitlist and pre-launch terms
This group covers everything that happens before you start selling or accepting signups in earnest. These are the moves that build interest and a list of interested people.
Waitlist
A waitlist is a list of people who have raised their hand to be told when something is available, before it is available. They give you a way to reach them (usually an email address) in exchange for early access, a heads-up, or a small perk when you launch.
The point of a waitlist is twofold. You gather the people most likely to act, and you get a rough read on demand before you build or open anything. A consultant planning a small-group coaching cohort might open a waitlist months before the first session, so she knows whether ten people care or two hundred do.
Use this when you want to gauge interest and have a warm group ready to contact the moment you launch, instead of starting from zero on launch day. To see this play out step by step, here's how to run a waitlist launch in practice.
Pre-launch
Pre-launch is the entire window before your offer is publicly buyable. It is broader than a waitlist. It includes building the waitlist, but also warming up your audience, sharing context, answering early questions, and setting expectations for what is coming.
Think of pre-launch as the runway and the waitlist as one thing you build on it. A course creator's pre-launch might run for several weeks of posts, behind-the-scenes notes, and a waitlist signup, all leading toward the day the course opens.
Use this when your offer needs context before people will buy, or when you want time to build trust rather than asking for a purchase cold.
Early access
Early access means letting a select group buy, join, or use something before the general public can. It is often offered as the waitlist's reward: "Because you signed up early, you get in first."
Early access can be about exclusivity, a lower price, or simply a calmer experience for your most engaged people before a busier public window. A solo founder launching a paid newsletter tier might give waitlist members 48 hours of early access before announcing it everywhere.
Use this when you want to reward your warmest audience and create a smaller, lower-pressure first wave before opening things up.
Soft launch vs. full launch
These two get confused constantly because the line between them is judgment, not a rule. Here is the distinction in plain terms.
Soft launch
A soft launch is a quiet, limited release. You make the offer available, but you do not announce it loudly or to everyone. You might tell one segment, post once without fanfare, or share it only with people who ask. The aim is to test the offer, the messaging, and the buying process with real people before you put your full effort behind it.
A local cafe testing a new catering package might soft launch by mentioning it to regulars and posting a single low-key story, watching what questions come back before building a full promotion.
Use this when you want to learn before you go big: test whether the offer lands, whether the checkout works, and what people ask, with low stakes if something needs fixing.
Full launch
A full launch is the loud, coordinated version. You announce broadly, run a planned sequence of posts and emails, and put real promotional energy behind it for a defined period. Everything is intentional and front-facing.
A full launch usually has a beginning, a middle, and an end you have mapped in advance. It is the difference between mentioning your workshop once and running a two-week campaign that builds to a registration deadline.
Use this when you are confident in the offer and ready to commit time and attention to a coordinated push, often after a soft launch has taught you what works.
The honest part: a soft launch is not automatically "safer" and a full launch is not automatically "bigger results." They are different shapes for different moments. Many people soft launch first, learn, then full launch the same offer.
Open cart, close cart, and evergreen
This trio describes when an offer is available to buy or join. The "cart" metaphor comes from ecommerce, but the terms apply to courses, memberships, cohorts, and services too.
Open cart
Open cart is the period when your offer is actively available for purchase or signup. The "doors are open." During an open-cart window, you promote, answer questions, and invite people to buy.
Open cart is usually paired with a defined timeframe rather than being permanent. A coach running a cohort might open the cart for one week, then begin the program with whoever joined.
Use this when you want a clear, active selling window that focuses attention and gives people a concrete period to decide within.
Close cart
Close cart is the moment the offer stops being available. The doors shut. After close cart, people can no longer buy or join until you open again.
Closing the cart creates a natural deadline. Done honestly, that deadline is real: the cohort genuinely starts, or the limited spots genuinely fill. Done dishonestly, it becomes fake pressure, which erodes trust and is not a practice worth adopting.
Use this when there is a genuine reason the window ends, such as a cohort start date, limited capacity, or a launch period you have committed to.
Evergreen
Evergreen is the opposite of open/close cart. The offer is available all the time, with no scheduled closing. People can buy whenever they find it. An evergreen course or membership simply stays open.
Evergreen trades the energy of a deadline for steady, ongoing availability. A consultant might keep a self-paced template pack evergreen while running occasional open/close-cart launches for live cohorts.
Use this when your offer does not depend on a start date or cohort, and you would rather have constant availability than a concentrated launch window.
Tease, reveal, and runway
These terms describe the storytelling and timing of a launch rather than the mechanics of selling.
Tease
A tease is content that hints at something coming without fully explaining it. You build curiosity. A teaser might show a glimpse, ask a question, or mention that "something is coming" without the full details.
Teasing works when it is honest and brief. Drag it out too long or over-promise, and it reads as a gimmick. A newsletter operator might tease a new format with a single line at the end of an issue a week before announcing it.
Use this when you want to spark curiosity and prime your audience before a reveal, especially if you have a warm audience that will notice the hint.
Reveal
A reveal is the moment you share the full thing: what it is, who it's for, and how to get it. The tease created curiosity; the reveal answers it. A reveal is often the centerpiece of a launch announcement.
Use this when you are ready to explain the offer completely and give people a clear way to act on it.
Runway
Runway is the amount of lead time you give yourself before a launch. A long runway means you start building interest weeks or months ahead. A short runway means you announce and open close together.
More runway gives you time to build a waitlist and warm people up. Less runway is simpler but gives you fewer chances to create anticipation. The right amount depends on how much context your offer needs and how warm your audience already is.
Use this when you are deciding how far in advance to start: bigger or less familiar offers usually want more runway; simple, familiar ones can launch on a short runway.
A quick "use this when" reference table
Here is the whole glossary in one view, so you can scan for the term that matches your situation.
| Term | Plain meaning | Use this when |
|---|---|---|
| Waitlist | A list of people who asked to be notified before launch | You want a warm group ready to contact on launch day |
| Pre-launch | The whole window before the offer is buyable | Your offer needs context and trust before a sale |
| Early access | Letting a select group in before the public | You want to reward your warmest audience first |
| Soft launch | A quiet, limited release to test things | You want to learn before going big |
| Full launch | A loud, coordinated, time-bound push | You are confident and ready to commit effort |
| Open cart | The active period when people can buy or join | You want a focused, defined selling window |
| Close cart | The moment the offer stops being available | There is a genuine reason the window ends |
| Evergreen | Always available, no scheduled close | Your offer does not depend on a start date |
| Tease | Hinting at something coming without the details | You want to build curiosity before a reveal |
| Reveal | Sharing the full offer and how to get it | You are ready to explain it and invite action |
| Runway | The lead time before launch | You are deciding how far ahead to start |
How these terms fit together
Most of these words describe different layers of the same launch. You might build a waitlist during your pre-launch, tease what's coming, reveal it, open cart for a week, give the waitlist early access first, then close cart on a real deadline. Or you might keep something evergreen and skip the open/close cycle entirely.
No single combination is "the right way." The terms are building blocks, not a ranking. What matters is choosing the shape that fits your offer, your audience, and how much runway you have.
It also helps to remember where launches sit in the bigger picture. A launch is a campaign inside your broader approach, not a strategy on its own. If you want the full context, see how launches connect to overall strategy. And nearly every launch points somewhere you control, which is why the owned destinations launches rely on matter as much as the launch language itself.
Frequently asked questions
Is a waitlist the same as a pre-launch? No. A waitlist is a list of interested people you collect. Pre-launch is the entire period before your offer is buyable, which usually includes building a waitlist but also warming up your audience and setting expectations.
Should I always soft launch before a full launch? Not always, but it often helps. A soft launch lets you test the offer and the buying process with low stakes. If you already know the offer works and the checkout is smooth, you may go straight to a full launch.
Does closing the cart mean I can never sell it again? No. Close cart just means the current window has ended. You can open the cart again later, or move the offer to evergreen. The key is that any deadline you set should be real, not invented pressure.
What's the difference between evergreen and just leaving the cart open? Functionally they are similar: the offer stays available. "Evergreen" usually implies an intentional, ongoing model with no planned close, often paired with automated content, while an open cart implies a launch window you intend to close at some point.
In Plain English
This glossary is a translation layer for launch jargon. Each term names a building block of a launch: who you gather (waitlist, early access), when you sell (open cart, close cart, evergreen), how you build interest (pre-launch, tease, reveal), and how much lead time you give yourself (runway). It helps anyone who is about to plan a launch and keeps tripping over borrowed vocabulary, whether you are a coach, a course creator, a consultant, or a solo founder.
Use it the moment you start sketching a launch and you are unsure which approach fits. Scan the "use this when" column, match the term to your situation, and pick the shape that suits your offer and audience. Then keep one thing in mind: these words describe structure, not guaranteed results. Choosing the right shape makes a launch clearer and easier to run; it does not promise the outcome.
When you are ready to assemble these pieces into an actual plan, put these terms into a full launch plan. You can also browse the Glossary index for more definitions or the Launch & Campaign Playbooks hub for the practical guides that use this language.