# GTM copywriter Human Guide

## What This Is For
Expert marketing copywriter specializing in go-to-market content across channels — emails, long-form content, and social media for both brand and personal voices. It gives the agent a clearer input/output frame for go-to-market work: what context to ask for, what decisions to make, and what usable artifact to return.

Use this as a human-readable version of the GTM copywriter agent skill. It is meant for marketers, operators, founders, and other non-coders who want the workflow without reading agent-specific implementation instructions.

## When To Use This
- Use this when you need a repeatable process for GTM copywriter.
- Use this when the task needs judgment, examples, constraints, or a clear output format rather than a one-off prompt.
- Use this when you want to hand an AI assistant enough context to produce a usable marketing artifact.

## When Not To Use This
- Do not use this when you only need a quick factual answer.
- Do not use this when the work depends on private data you cannot share with the assistant.
- Do not use this as a replacement for legal, compliance, financial, or medical review.

## What You Need Before Starting
- The goal or business outcome you want.
- The audience, customer segment, or market context.
- Any source material the assistant should respect, such as notes, briefs, examples, URLs, or brand guidance.
- Constraints such as tone, length, channel, deadline, region, or approval requirements.
- A clear definition of what a good final answer should look like.

## Step-By-Step Workflow
1. State the job clearly: "Use the GTM copywriter guide to help me with..."
2. Add context: audience, goal, offer, channel, source material, and constraints.
3. Ask the assistant to identify missing inputs before producing the final output.
4. Have the assistant follow the skill-specific guidance below.
5. Review the result against the final checklist and ask for revisions where needed.

## Skill-Specific Guidance
- **Earns attention** — The first line decides if they read the rest
- **Creates clarity** — Complex ideas made simple, not dumbed down
- **Drives action** — Every piece has a job to do
- `voice-*` — Tone, personality, and brand vs personal voice
- `email-*` — Marketing emails, sequences, newsletters
- `content-*` — Blog posts, articles, thought leadership
- `social-*` — LinkedIn, Twitter/X, social content
- **Clear** — No jargon, no ambiguity
- **Concise** — Every word earns its place
- **Compelling** — Creates forward momentum
- **Credible** — Backed by proof, not hype
- **Corporate speak** — "Leverage synergies" → "Work better together"

## Decision Points And Nuance
The original skill emphasizes: Philosophy, How This Skill Works, Core Frameworks, AIDA (Attention → Interest → Desire → Action), PAS (Problem → Agitation → Solution), BAB (Before → After → Bridge), 4Cs of Copy, Voice Spectrum, Content Types at a Glance, Anti-Patterns.

Use these questions to steer the work:
- What is the intended audience or buyer?
- What source material must be preserved?
- What should the assistant optimize for: clarity, persuasion, accuracy, speed, creativity, or conversion?
- What examples represent the desired quality bar?
- What should the assistant avoid?

## Common Mistakes
- learned fixing it—and how to make sure it never happens again.
- become increasingly important for organizations of all sizes.
- **Related terms throughout** — Don't stuff, write naturally
- **Weak conclusions** — "In conclusion, secrets are important"
- Security is really important in today's world.
- What do I believe that most people in my field don't?
- **Stating the obvious** — "Communication is important"
- Most important information first. Assume they only read the first 2 sentences.

## Copy-And-Paste Prompt
```text
Use the GTM copywriter human guide.

My goal:
[Describe the business outcome]

Audience:
[Describe who this is for]

Context and source material:
[Paste notes, examples, links, or existing copy]

Constraints:
[Tone, length, channel, timeline, must-include items, must-avoid items]

Before producing the final output, ask me for any missing information that would materially improve the result.
```

## Final Checklist
- [ ] The output matches the original goal.
- [ ] The audience and context are reflected in the answer.
- [ ] Important constraints and source material were preserved.
- [ ] The assistant made the relevant decisions explicit.
- [ ] The final artifact is ready to use, review, or hand to the next person.

## Source
This guide was generated from the ncklrs/startup-os-skills skill entry for `gtm-copywriter`.

## Source Skill Notes
These notes preserve the nuance from the original skill. Use them as supporting reference when the workflow above feels too generic.

# GTM Copywriter

Expert marketing copywriter specializing in go-to-market content across channels — emails, long-form content, and social media for both brand and personal voices.

## Philosophy

Great GTM copy does three things:

1. **Earns attention** — The first line decides if they read the rest
2. **Creates clarity** — Complex ideas made simple, not dumbed down
3. **Drives action** — Every piece has a job to do

## How This Skill Works

When invoked, apply the guidelines in `rules/` organized by:

- `voice-*` — Tone, personality, and brand vs personal voice
- `email-*` — Marketing emails, sequences, newsletters
- `content-*` — Blog posts, articles, thought leadership
- `social-*` — LinkedIn, Twitter/X, social content

## Core Frameworks

### AIDA (Attention → Interest → Desire → Action)
Classic funnel for structured persuasion. Best for landing pages and sales emails.

### PAS (Problem → Agitation → Solution)
Lead with pain, twist the knife, offer relief. Best for cold outreach and awareness content.

### BAB (Before → After → Bridge)
Paint the transformation. Best for case studies and testimonial-style content.

### 4Cs of Copy
- **Clear** — No jargon, no ambiguity
- **Concise** — Every word earns its place
- **Compelling** — Creates forward momentum
- **Credible** — Backed by proof, not hype

## Voice Spectrum

| Voice | When to Use | Characteristics |
|-------|-------------|-----------------|
| **Brand formal** | Enterprise, regulated industries | Professional, precise, authoritative |
| **Brand conversational** | B2B SaaS, modern companies | Friendly, clear, helpful |
| **Personal professional** | LinkedIn, thought leadership | Expert but approachable |
| **Personal casual** | Twitter/X, community | Authentic, opinionated, human |

## Content Types at a Glance

| Type | Goal | Key Metric |
|------|------|------------|
| Cold email | Get a reply | Reply rate |
| Nurture email | Build trust | Click rate |
| Newsletter | Retain attention | Open rate over time |
| Blog post | Educate + SEO | Time on page, shares |
| LinkedIn post | Build authority | Engagement, follows |
| Twitter/X | Spark conversation | Replies, retweets |
| Launch announcement | Generate excitement | Signups, coverage |

## Anti-Patterns

- **Corporate speak** — "Leverage synergies" → "Work better together"
- **Feature dumping** — List features without benefits
- **Weak CTAs** — "Learn more" when you want them to act
- **Burying the lead** — Saving the good stuff for paragraph 3
- **Same voice everywhere** — LinkedIn ≠ Twitter ≠ Email

---

## Supporting file: rules/_sections.md

## 1. Voice & Tone (voice)
**Impact:** CRITICAL
**Description:** Foundation of all copy. Brand vs personal voice, tone adaptation, personality consistency.

## 2. Email Copy (email)
**Impact:** CRITICAL
**Description:** Marketing emails, cold outreach, nurture sequences, newsletters, transactional copy.

## 3. Content Marketing (content)