/market-brand

Brand Voice Analysis and Guidelines Generation

Skill Purpose

Analyze a brand's voice, tone, and messaging across all available channels and generate a comprehensive brand voice guidelines document. This skill examines how a brand communicates, identifies patterns and inconsistencies, and produces actionable guidelines that any writer or marketer can follow to maintain brand consistency.

When to Use

• User wants to understand or document a brand's voice
• User needs brand voice guidelines for a team, freelancers, or agency
• User wants to ensure consistency across marketing channels
• User is rebranding or refining their brand identity
• User wants to compare their brand voice to competitors
• Triggered by `/market brand <url>` or `/market brand`

How to Execute

Step 1: Gather Source Material

To analyze a brand's voice, examine content from multiple sources. Prioritize in this order:

**Primary Sources (must analyze):** 1. **Homepage** -- The most curated representation of the brand 2. **About page** -- How the brand describes itself 3. **Product/service pages** -- How they present their offerings

**Secondary Sources (analyze if available):** 4. **Blog posts** (at least 3-5 recent posts) 5. **Social media profiles** (bio, recent posts, engagement style) 6. **Email newsletters** (welcome email, recent sends) 7. **Customer-facing copy** (error messages, onboarding flows, help docs)

**Tertiary Sources:** 8. **Job postings** -- Reveals internal culture and values 9. **Press releases** -- Formal communication style 10. **Ad copy** -- Paid messaging approach 11. **Video scripts or podcast transcripts** -- Spoken brand voice

Use browser tools or the analyze_page.py script to access web content. For social media, check the website for social links and analyze the linked profiles.

Step 2: Voice Dimension Analysis

Map the brand's voice along four primary dimensions. Each dimension is a spectrum, not a binary.

Dimension 1: Formal <-----> Casual

Where does the brand fall on the formality spectrum?

| Signal | Formal | Casual | |---|---|---| | Contractions | Avoids them ("do not", "cannot") | Uses them freely ("don't", "can't") | | Sentence structure | Complex, longer sentences | Short, punchy sentences | | Vocabulary | Professional, industry-standard | Conversational, everyday words | | Greetings | "Dear valued customer" | "Hey there!" | | Pronouns | Third person ("the company", "one") | First/second person ("we", "you") | | Humor | Rare or absent | Frequent, natural | | Slang/colloquialisms | Never | Occasionally or frequently |

**Score: 1 (extremely formal) to 10 (extremely casual)**

**Evidence required:** Quote 3-5 specific examples from the source material that support your rating.

Dimension 2: Serious <-----> Playful

How much levity does the brand inject into its communication?

| Signal | Serious | Playful | |---|---|---| | Tone | Authoritative, measured | Light-hearted, fun | | Metaphors | Rare, conservative | Creative, unexpected | | Exclamation marks | Rare | Frequent | | Emoji use | Never | Sometimes or often | | Wordplay/puns | Never | Enjoys them | | Error messages | "An error has occurred" | "Oops! Something went sideways" | | Self-deprecation | Never | Occasionally |

**Score: 1 (extremely serious) to 10 (extremely playful)**

Dimension 3: Technical <-----> Simple

How much domain expertise does the brand assume in its audience?

| Signal | Technical | Simple | |---|---|---| | Jargon | Uses industry terms freely | Avoids or explains all jargon | | Acronyms | Uses without definition | Spells out on first use | | Detail level | In-depth explanations | High-level overviews | | Audience assumption | Expert audience | General audience | | Data/statistics | Frequent, detailed | Occasional, simplified | | Examples | Complex, domain-specific | Simple, relatable analogies |

**Score: 1 (extremely technical) to 10 (extremely simple)**

Dimension 4: Reserved <-----> Bold

How much personality and confidence does the brand project?

| Signal | Reserved | Bold | |---|---|---| | Claims | Hedged ("we believe", "may help") | Direct ("we guarantee", "the best") | | Opinions | Neutral, balanced | Strong, opinionated | | Competitive references | Avoids mentioning competitors | Directly compares | | Personality | Professional, understated | Distinctive, memorable | | Promises | Conservative | Ambitious | | Controversy | Avoids | Embraces when aligned with values |

**Score: 1 (extremely reserved) to 10 (extremely bold)**

Step 3: Tone Spectrum Mapping

Beyond the four dimensions, map how the brand's tone shifts across different contexts:

| Context | Typical Tone | Example | |---|---|---| | Homepage | [Confident/Welcoming/Urgent/etc.] | "[quote from homepage]" | | Product description | [Informative/Persuasive/Technical/etc.] | "[quote]" | | Blog post | [Educational/Conversational/Authoritative/etc.] | "[quote]" | | Social media | [Casual/Engaging/Promotional/etc.] | "[quote]" | | Error/404 page | [Apologetic/Humorous/Helpful/etc.] | "[quote]" | | Email subject lines | [Direct/Curious/Urgent/etc.] | "[quote]" | | CTA buttons | [Action-oriented/Benefit-driven/Urgent/etc.] | "[quote]" | | Customer support | [Empathetic/Professional/Friendly/etc.] | "[quote]" |

Step 4: Brand Personality Framework

Map the brand to one of five core personality archetypes (brands may blend 1-2):

The 5 Archetypes

**1. The Authority**

• Characteristics: Expert, trustworthy, data-driven, established
• Voice: Confident but not arrogant, educational, precise
• Industries: Finance, healthcare, B2B enterprise, legal, consulting
• Example brands: McKinsey, IBM, Mayo Clinic
• Key phrases: "Research shows...", "Our experts...", "Industry-leading..."

**2. The Innovator**

• Characteristics: Forward-thinking, disruptive, visionary, tech-savvy
• Voice: Exciting, future-focused, sometimes provocative
• Industries: Tech, SaaS, startups, renewable energy
• Example brands: Tesla, St