/brand-voice

name: brand-voice
description: Use when writing any client-facing content, marketing copy, or communications. Use when AI output sounds generic, corporate, or lacks personality. Triggers on "sounds like AI", "lacks voice", "too generic", or when content could apply to any competitor.
license: MIT
metadata:
  author: ClawFu
  version: 1.0.0
  mcp-server: "@clawfu/mcp-skills"

Brand Voice & Authentic Writing

> Preserve authentic human voice in AI-assisted writing using the Voice Preservation Method.

Purpose

Ensure all content maintains authentic brand voice using the **Voice Preservation Method** - transforming AI from ghostwriter to thinking partner while preserving genuine human voice.

Core Philosophy

**Voice is identity made audible.** It's not word choice or syntax—it's the blend of experience, conviction, and rhythm that tells readers who's speaking, what they value, and why it matters.

**The Paradox:** AI makes writing easier but communication harder. Generic efficiency creates disconnection. The goal is to use AI as a collaborator, not a replacement.

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The Draft-First Principle

**Never let AI originate. Always draft first, delegate later.**

Your messy first draft contains your voice. AI polish can preserve it. AI generation replaces it.

| AI as Collaborator | AI as Ghostwriter | |-------------------|-------------------| | Helps you think | Replaces you | | Organizes your ideas | Generates ideas | | Preserves your phrasing | Invents phrasing | | Removes clutter | Removes personality |

---

The Reader Question Framework

Every audience silently asks three questions. Your content must answer them:

1. What are you really trying to tell me?

**Purpose:** Cut through corporate fog to find the actual message.

• Write your message
• Ask: "If I had only one sentence, what would it be?"
• That sentence is your core. Everything else supports it.

**Red flags:** You need three paragraphs to "set up" your point, hedging with qualifiers, message could apply to any organization.

2. Why are you telling me now?

**Purpose:** Establish urgency and context without manipulation.

• Identify the trigger: What changed? What deadline? What opportunity?
• Make the timing explicit
• Connect timing to the reader's experience

**Red flags:** Message could have been sent any time in the past year, no connection to current events.

3. What does this mean for me?

**Purpose:** Translate organizational messages into personal relevance.

• Name the concrete change they'll experience
• Acknowledge their likely reaction
• Offer clear next steps

**Red flags:** Message is entirely about the organization, no concrete changes named.

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The Five-Step Workflow

Step 1: Free-Write Intent

Write what you mean, however messy. No editing. No structure. Just say it.

Step 2: Clarify the Reader's Question

What are they worried about? Hopeful for? Skeptical of? Write this down explicitly.

Step 3: AI Organization (Not Invention)

Use this exact prompt:

Restructure this draft for clarity and flow, but keep my tone and
phrasing wherever possible. Highlight any jargon or clichés that
weaken authenticity.

Step 4: Reclaim Emotional Beats

Re-insert your phrasing, idioms, stories, and specific details that sound like you/Guia.

Step 5: The Read-Aloud Test

If you can't imagine saying it in a meeting, rewrite until you can.

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Voice Audit Markers

Generic AI Tells (Flag for Deletion)

**Vague value words:**

• innovative, cutting-edge, state-of-the-art
• holistic, comprehensive, robust
• dynamic, agile, nimble
• passionate, dedicated, committed (without evidence)

**Corporate filler:**

• leverage, synergize, optimize
• stakeholder value, value proposition
• thought leadership, best practices
• moving forward, going forward

**Empty intensifiers:**

• very, really, truly, extremely
• absolutely, definitely, certainly
• unprecedented, groundbreaking

**Generic claims:**

• "We believe in..."
• "We are committed to..."
• "Our mission is to..."
• "We strive to..."

**Red flag pattern:** Any phrase that could appear on any competitor's website without modification.

Voice Signals (Preserve These)

**Specific stories:**

• Named people, places, events
• Dates and timelines
• Concrete outcomes with numbers
• Direct quotes from real conversations

**Conviction signals:**

• Positions that could be disagreed with
• Admissions of uncertainty or limitation
• Contrarian takes on industry consensus
• Emotional language appropriate to stakes

**Natural speech patterns:**

• Sentence lengths that vary naturally
• Contractions (we're, don't, can't)
• Incomplete sentences for emphasis
• Questions that reflect real curiosity

**Guia. fingerprints:**

• References to local businesses specifically
• Language reflecting "guide" positioning
• Inside references your audience would recognize

---

Guia. Brand Voice Pillars

1. Friendly

Approachable and warm, like a trusted advisor—not a faceless corporation.

**Do:** Use "you" and "your", write like talking to a friend, show genuine interest **Don't:** Be overly casual, use jargon without explanation, sound robotic

✅ "Here's the thing about SEO—it doesn't have to be complicated." ❌ "SEO optimization methodologies can be implemented through various strategic approaches."

2. Clear

Make complex marketing topics simple and actionable.

**Do:** Short sentences, plain language, lead with the key point **Don't:** Assume knowledge, bury information, over-explain

✅ "Google Business Profile is your free listing on Google. It's what shows up when people search for businesses like yours." ❌ "Google Business Profile, formerly known as Google My Business, is a complimentary service provided by Google LLC..."

3. Confident

Know our stuff and share expertise without arrogance.

**Do:** Make clear recommendations, back up with evidence, definitive language **Don't:** Hedge excessively, oversell, dismiss other perspectives

✅ "