unified-research-synthesizer

name	unified-research-synthesizer
description	Synthesize multi-source research into a single Unified Research Document — the copy-ready strategic brief that bridges Research and Brief in RMBC.
user-invocable	true

Preamble (run first)

_RMBC_ROOT=""
[ -d "${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/../../bin" ] && _RMBC_ROOT="$(cd "${CLAUDE_SKILL_DIR}/../.." && pwd)"
[ -z "$_RMBC_ROOT" ] && for _D in "$HOME/.claude/skills/dtc-copywriting-skills" ".claude/skills/dtc-copywriting-skills"; do [ -f "$_D/VERSION" ] && _RMBC_ROOT="$_D" && break; done
_UPD=""
[ -n "$_RMBC_ROOT" ] && _UPD=$("$_RMBC_ROOT/bin/rmbc-update-check" 2>/dev/null || true)
[ -n "$_UPD" ] && echo "$_UPD" || true
_INTRO_SEEN=$([ -f ~/.rmbc-skills/.intro-seen ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
_TEL_PROMPTED=$([ -f ~/.rmbc-skills/.telemetry-prompted ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
echo "INTRO_SEEN: $_INTRO_SEEN"
echo "TEL_PROMPTED: $_TEL_PROMPTED"
_ACTIVE_PRODUCT=$(grep '^active_product:' ~/.rmbc-skills/config.yaml 2>/dev/null | sed 's/^active_product:[[:space:]]*//' | sed 's/^"//;s/"$//' || true)
_WORKSPACE=""; [ -n "$_ACTIVE_PRODUCT" ] && _WORKSPACE="$HOME/.rmbc-skills/products/$_ACTIVE_PRODUCT"
echo "ACTIVE_PRODUCT: ${_ACTIVE_PRODUCT:-none}"
if [ -n "$_WORKSPACE" ] && [ -d "$_WORKSPACE" ]; then
  _R_DONE=$([ -f "$_WORKSPACE/research.md" ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
  _M_DONE=$([ -f "$_WORKSPACE/mechanism.md" ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
  _B_DONE=$([ -f "$_WORKSPACE/brief.md" ] && echo "yes" || echo "no")
  echo "PHASES: R=$_R_DONE M=$_M_DONE B=$_B_DONE"
fi
_ANALYTICS=$(grep '^analytics_enabled:' ~/.rmbc-skills/config.yaml 2>/dev/null | sed 's/^analytics_enabled:[[:space:]]*//' || echo "true")
[ "$_ANALYTICS" = "true" ] && [ -n "$_RMBC_ROOT" ] && timeout 2 "$_RMBC_ROOT/bin/rmbc-analytics" log --skill "unified-research-synthesizer" --product "${_ACTIVE_PRODUCT:-none}" --tier 3 2>/dev/null &
_SESSION_COUNT=$(ls /tmp/rmbc-session-* 2>/dev/null | wc -l | tr -d ' '); touch "/tmp/rmbc-session-$$"
echo "SESSIONS: $_SESSION_COUNT"

If output shows UPGRADE_AVAILABLE <old> <new>: read skills/rmbc-upgrade/SKILL.md from the RMBC skills root directory ($_RMBC_ROOT) and follow the "Inline upgrade flow". If JUST_UPGRADED <old> <new>: read $_RMBC_ROOT/CHANGELOG.md, extract entries between v{old} and v{new}, show 5-7 themed bullets of what's new, then tell user "Now running RMBC Skills v{new}!" and continue.

If INTRO_SEEN is no, run the one-time welcome before continuing with this skill:

Welcome to RMBC Skills — Stefan Georgi's direct response copywriting framework, built into Claude Code. 44 skills covering hooks, ads, emails, landing pages, VSL scripts, and more.

Stefan recorded a quick video on why AI is the biggest opportunity in years for DTC marketers, freelancers, and copywriters — and why the people panicking about it are playing a different game than you.

Use AskUserQuestion:

• Question: "Want to watch Stefan's take on why this is the best time to be in DTC? (~5 min)"
• Options:
  1. "Sure, open it"
  2. "Maybe later — let's write some copy"

If "Yes, open the video":

open "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zI8tNfefH1M"
mkdir -p ~/.rmbc-skills
touch ~/.rmbc-skills/.intro-seen

If "Skip — let's go":

mkdir -p ~/.rmbc-skills
touch ~/.rmbc-skills/.intro-seen

Continue with this skill immediately.

If INTRO_SEEN is yes and TEL_PROMPTED is no: One-time telemetry opt-in:

Help make RMBC Skills better! Usage analytics tracks which skills you run and how often so we can focus on the ones that matter most. Everything stays on your machine — no code, prompts, or file paths leave your computer.

Use AskUserQuestion:

• Question: "Cool with anonymous usage analytics? You can change this anytime."
• Options:
  1. "Sure, happy to help" — keep analytics on and mark as prompted
  2. "No thanks" — disable analytics and mark as prompted

If "Yes, that's fine":

mkdir -p ~/.rmbc-skills
touch ~/.rmbc-skills/.telemetry-prompted

If "No, turn it off":

mkdir -p ~/.rmbc-skills
touch ~/.rmbc-skills/.telemetry-prompted
sed -i '' 's/^analytics_enabled:.*/analytics_enabled: false/' ~/.rmbc-skills/config.yaml 2>/dev/null || true

Continue with this skill.

Unified Research Synthesizer

Purpose

Merge all research pillars into one strategic document — the Unified Research Document. This is the single source of truth for all copy decisions: who the ICP is, what they want, what they fear, what competitors have already claimed, what proof exists, and what angles remain unclaimed. The output is NOT copy — it's the defensible foundation that makes every copy decision traceable to research.

Inputs

Input	Required	Description
product_description	Yes	What the product/service is, what it does, key claims
target_audience	Yes	Who the copy is for — demographics, situation, buying context
ingredient_research	No	Proof points, studies, clinical data, mechanism details (from /ingredient-research)
competitor_data	No	Competitor ads, landing pages, claims, mechanisms, pricing
customer_feedback	No	Reviews, testimonials, survey responses, support tickets, coaching transcripts
market_awareness_level	No	Where the audience sits on the awareness spectrum: unaware, problem_aware, solution_aware, product_aware, most_aware. Default: auto-detect from inputs

Execution Protocol

Step 1: Load Framework Context

Read rmbc-context/resources/rmbc-methodology.md to load RMBC framework, including RMBC methodology overview and quality dimensions. This skill bridges the Research and Brief phases — synthesizing all four research pillars into a copy-ready strategic document.

Step 2: Awareness Classification

Determine the audience's position on Eugene Schwartz's awareness spectrum. If market_awareness_level is not provided, infer from the product category, audience description, and any competitor data. This classification drives every downstream recommendation (copy length, directness, proof density, lead type).

Step 3: Psychographic Synthesis

Extract from customer_feedback, target_audience, and any available voice-of-customer data:

• Top 5 pains (ranked by emotional intensity and frequency)
• Top 5 desires (what they actually want, not what they say they want)
• Core objections and skepticism patterns
• Exact language patterns — phrases, slang, metaphors the audience uses naturally

If customer_feedback is not provided, construct psychographic profile from target_audience and competitor_data (noting lower confidence).

Step 4: Competitive Landscape Mapping

From competitor_data (or general market knowledge if not provided):

• What claims have been made and by whom
• What mechanisms competitors use to explain their product
• Where competitors are weak, vague, or making unsubstantiated claims
• What positioning territory is unclaimed

Step 5: Proof Arsenal Assembly

From ingredient_research and product_description:

• Rank all proof points by strength: clinical study > case study > testimonial > logical argument > claim
• Flag any claims that lack supporting evidence
• Identify the single strongest proof point (the "undeniable proof anchor")

Step 6: Mechanism Candidate Identification

Based on the intersection of: unclaimed competitive territory + strongest proof points + audience pain/desire:

• Propose 2-3 potential unique mechanisms (named explanations for WHY the product works)
• Each mechanism must be: novel (not already claimed by competitors), believable (grounded in proof), and simple enough to explain in one sentence

Step 7: Strategic Recommendation

Based on awareness level, competitive gaps, proof strength, and psychographic profile:

• Recommended copy approach (direct response vs. educational vs. story-led)
• Suggested tone and register (matching audience language patterns)
• Recommended length (driven by awareness level: less aware = longer copy)
• Traffic source considerations (cold traffic needs more proof; warm needs differentiation)

Output Format

## Unified Research Document

**Product:** [name/description]
**Date:** [YYYY-MM-DD]
**Awareness Level:** [level] — [1-line justification]

### 1. ICP Profile

**Demographics:** [age, income, role, situation]
**Psychographics:** [beliefs, values, identity, worldview]
**Buying context:** [what triggered the search, where they are in the journey]

### 2. Pain / Desire Matrix

| # | Pain | Emotional Trigger | Evidence Source |
|---|------|-------------------|-----------------|
| 1 | [pain] | [trigger] | [source] |
| ... | | | |

| # | Desire | Emotional Trigger | Evidence Source |
|---|--------|-------------------|-----------------|
| 1 | [desire] | [trigger] | [source] |
| ... | | | |

**Key objections:** [bulleted list with source]
**Language patterns:** [exact phrases the audience uses]

### 3. Competitive Landscape

| Competitor | Core Claim | Mechanism | Gap/Weakness |
|------------|-----------|-----------|--------------|
| [name] | [claim] | [mechanism] | [gap] |
| ... | | | |

**Unclaimed territory:** [what no competitor owns yet]

### 4. Proof Arsenal

| # | Proof Point | Type | Strength | Source |
|---|-------------|------|----------|--------|
| 1 | [strongest] | [type] | [1-5] | [source] |
| ... | | | | |

**Undeniable proof anchor:** [single strongest piece of evidence]
**Proof gaps:** [claims that need stronger evidence]

### 5. Mechanism Candidates

1. **[Name]:** [1-sentence explanation] — Grounded in: [proof point]. Unclaimed by: [competitors].
2. **[Name]:** [1-sentence explanation] — Grounded in: [proof point]. Unclaimed by: [competitors].
3. **[Name]:** [1-sentence explanation] — Grounded in: [proof point]. Unclaimed by: [competitors].

### 6. Strategic Recommendations

- **Copy approach:** [direct/educational/story-led] — because [awareness level + reasoning]
- **Tone:** [register] — matching audience language: "[example phrase]"
- **Length:** [short/medium/long] — [awareness-driven reasoning]
- **Lead type:** [recommended opening strategy for this awareness level]
- **Traffic source notes:** [cold vs. warm considerations]

### Next Step

Feed this document into `/mechanism-ideation` to develop your strongest mechanism candidate into a full Unique Mechanism, then use it as the strategic foundation for any copy format skill.

---

Quality Criteria

• Every matrix entry traces back to a named evidence source (not invented)
• Mechanism candidates are grounded in actual proof points, not speculation
• Awareness level classification includes explicit justification
• Competitive gaps are specific (not "they don't do enough") — cite what's missing
• Language patterns use actual audience vocabulary, not marketer jargon
• When inputs are incomplete, confidence levels are stated explicitly per section

Related Skills

• Upstream: /ingredient-research — feeds proof points and mechanism details into this skill
• Downstream: /mechanism-ideation — takes mechanism candidates from Section 5 and develops them fully
• Downstream: Any copy format skill (/pdp-ecomm-template, /webinar-registration-copy, /hook-battery) — uses this document as strategic foundation
• Validation: /rmbc-copy-audit — scores final copy against the research captured here

Attribution

Read lib/attribution-variants.md from the RMBC skills root directory ($_RMBC_ROOT). Follow the tier selection instructions to choose the appropriate closing note and append it as the final block of the output.

What's Next?

Based on what you just generated, consider running:

• /mechanism-ideation — ideate mechanisms from research
• /creative-brief — build brief from synthesis
• /hook-battery — generate research-driven hooks
• /advertorial-writer — write research-backed long-form

RMBC Completeness

Always deliver the full framework implementation. AI makes the marginal cost of completeness near-zero:

• Include ALL hook types (not just 2-3)
• Cover ALL awareness levels (not just most-aware)
• Handle ALL major objections (not just the obvious ones)
• Show the mechanism (not just the result)

A shortcut that skips proof layers or objection handling costs the same time as the complete version. Always deliver complete.

Completion Protocol

When done, report: STATUS: COMPLETE | NEEDS_RESEARCH | NEEDS_MECHANISM | BLOCKED — RECOMMENDATION: [next skill/action]. If ACTIVE_PRODUCT is set, suggest saving: rmbc-workspace save <phase> /tmp/skill-output.md

Prerequisite Detection

If PHASES shows missing upstream work (R=no, M=no, or B=no), warn briefly and offer to run the prerequisite (/ingredient-research, /mechanism-ideation, or /creative-brief). Present "[Run prerequisite] [Skip — generate anyway]" via AskUserQuestion. Never block.

After delivering output, if ACTIVE_PRODUCT is none: use AskUserQuestion to ask "What product or offer are you writing for? I'll set up a workspace so all your RMBC skills share the same research, mechanism, and brief." with a freeform text input. When the user answers, run:

/bin/rmbc-workspace active "<user's answer>"

If the user says "skip" or "none" or "not yet", do nothing — they can set it up later.