Copywriting

Brand Copywriting Constraints

A lightweight constraint reference for brand copy. The LLM already knows how to write — this skill provides the specific limits, structures, and rules that turn generic copy into brand-precise copy.

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TAGLINE RULES

A tagline is the single most compressed expression of a brand. It appears on logos, business cards, social covers, and packaging.

Structure

• Length: 3-5 words maximum. No exceptions.
• No period at the end (taglines are not sentences).
• No brand name in the tagline (it appears alongside, not inside).

Approved Patterns

| Pattern | Example | When to Use | |---------|---------|-------------| | Imperative verb | "Think Different" | Action-oriented brands | | Statement | "Beauty Outside. Beast Inside." | Dual-nature positioning | | Noun phrase | "The Ultimate Driving Machine" | Category ownership | | Question | "What's in Your Wallet?" | Engagement / curiosity |

Memorability Test

Before finalizing, check:

1. Can you say it in one breath without pausing?
2. Does it sound natural spoken aloud, not just on paper?
3. Does it work without context — would someone understand the vibe even without seeing the brand?

Avoid

• Generic superlatives ("The Best", "World-Class", "Premium")
• Puns that require explanation
• Industry jargon the target audience wouldn't use casually
• More than one clause or conjunction

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BRAND VOICE SPECTRUM

Define the brand voice along four axes. Each axis is a continuum — pick a position for the brand.

| Axis | Left Pole | Right Pole | What It Governs | |------|-----------|------------|-----------------| | Formality | Formal | Casual | Vocabulary, contractions, sentence structure | | Tone | Serious | Playful | Humor, metaphor, punctuation style | | Complexity | Technical | Accessible | Jargon level, explanation depth | | Energy | Reserved | Bold | Exclamation, caps, directness |

Example Voice Profile

Brand: Aether Coffee
Formality:  ████████░░  (8/10 — leans formal, no slang)
Tone:       ███░░░░░░░  (3/10 — mostly serious, quiet confidence)
Complexity: ██░░░░░░░░  (2/10 — very accessible, no jargon)
Energy:     █████░░░░░  (5/10 — balanced, neither loud nor whispered)

Voice summary: Calm authority. Speaks like a knowledgeable barista
who respects your time — precise, unhurried, no fluff.

Applying Voice

Once defined, the voice profile governs ALL copy: tagline tone, philosophy register, business card formality, social bio energy. Never break character across touchpoints.

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BRAND PHILOSOPHY MANIFESTO

The brand philosophy is a 3-5 paragraph statement (150-300 words) that articulates WHY the brand exists and WHAT it believes. This is distinct from the design philosophy (which governs visual aesthetics).

Structure

| Paragraph | Content | Purpose | |-----------|---------|---------| | 1 | The tension or problem | Why does this brand need to exist? | | 2 | The brand's core belief | What does it stand for? What principle drives it? | | 3 | How the belief manifests | How does this belief shape what the brand does? | | 4 (optional) | The vision | Where is this heading? What future does the brand enable? | | 5 (optional) | The invitation | Bring the reader in — "This is for people who..." |

Writing Rules

• First person plural ("We believe...") or third person ("The brand exists to...")
• Present tense throughout — philosophies are timeless, not historical
• No bullet points — flowing prose only
• Every sentence must pass the "so what?" test: if it could apply to any brand, cut it
• Concrete over abstract: "We roast in 12-gram batches" beats "We pursue quality"

Avoid

• Mission-statement clichés ("leveraging synergies", "empowering stakeholders")
• Vague values ("innovation", "excellence", "passion") without concrete grounding
• More than 300 words — a manifesto that needs scrolling has lost its power

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BUSINESS CARD COPY

Content Slots

| Slot | Content | Max Length | Example | |------|---------|-----------|---------| | Name | Full name (or placeholder) | 30 chars | [Your Name] | | Title | Role / position | 2-4 words | Founder & Head Roaster | | Email | Contact email | — | [email@example.com] | | Phone | Phone number | — | [+1 (555) 000-0000] | | Website | URL without protocol | — | [yoursite.com] | | Address | City + Country or full | 1 line | [City, Country] | | Tagline | Brand tagline | 3-5 words | From tagline rules above |

Hierarchy

The name is always the largest text element. Title is subordinate (smaller size, lighter weight). Contact details are grouped, smallest text, consistent alignment.

Placeholder Convention

When creating a template (not for a specific person), use square-bracket placeholders:

• [Your Name], [Your Title], [email@example.com], [+1 (555) 000-0000], [yoursite.com]

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SOCIAL MEDIA COPY

Bio (Profile Description)

• Maximum: 160 characters (Twitter/X limit; works everywhere)
• Structure: [What you do] + [For whom or how] + [Optional tagline]
• Example: Small-batch coffee roasted for design professionals. Fuel for focus.
• No hashtags in the bio — they look desperate
• No emojis unless the brand voice is ≥7/10 on the Playful axis

Cover Text

The social media cover image contains minimal text — the visual does the heavy lifting.

• Brand name: always present, prominent
• Tagline: one line, 3-5 words (from tagline rules)
• Supporting line (optional): max 10 words, descriptive not promotional
• Total text on cover: never more than 15 words combined
• Minimum font size: 24pt (must be legible on mobile at 375px screen width)

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CONTEXT-SPECIFIC LENGTH LIMITS

Quick reference for maximum copy lengths across all brand touchpoints:

| Context | Max Words | Max Characters | Notes | |---------|-----------|---------------|-------| | Tagline | 5 | 35 | No period, no brand name | | Brand philosophy | 300 | — | 3-5 paragraphs | | Business card name | 4 | 30 | Full name only | | Business card title | 4 | 30 | Role descriptor | | Social bio | 25 | 160 | Single line | | Social cover tagline | 5 | 35 | Same as tagline | | Social cover support line | 10 | 60 | Optional descriptor | | Brand spec section headers | 4 | — | Short and scannable |

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NAMING CONVENTIONS

When the user has not provided a brand name, generate one following these principles:

• 1-2 words maximum (compounds like "Airbnb" count as one)
• Easy to spell after hearing it once
• Easy to pronounce in English (and ideally internationally)
• Domain-friendly: avoid special characters, hyphens, numbers
• Not generic: must feel ownable, not like a dictionary word alone

Name Generation Approaches

| Approach | Example | When to Use | |----------|---------|-------------| | Coined word | Spotify, Hulu | Tech / digital brands | | Compound | Airbnb, YouTube | Descriptive + memorable | | Real word (recontextualized) | Apple, Amazon | Bold category disruption | | Foreign word | Audi (Latin: "listen") | Sophistication, heritage | | Abbreviation | IBM, BMW | Only if full name is established |

Propose 2-3 name options with brief rationale. Let the user choose or say "surprise me" to pick the strongest.

Source & license

This open-source skill is cataloged on AgentStack and links to its original source — we do not rehost the code.

• Author: dp-archive
• Source: dp-archive/archive
• License: Apache-2.0

Install and usage instructions live in the source repository linked above.