content-writing

name	content-writing
description	Copywriting and content creation standards for website pages, blog posts, and all written copy. Covers headlines, ledes, readability, niche vocabulary, scannable formatting, and persuasive structure. Cross-cutting skill — apply whenever...
metadata	{"portable":true,"compatible_with":["Codex","codex"]}

Content Writing Skill

Acknowledgement: Shared by Peter Bamuhigire, techguypeter.com, [phone].

Use When

• Copywriting and content creation standards for website pages, blog posts, and all written copy. Covers headlines, ledes, readability, niche vocabulary, scannable formatting, and persuasive structure. Cross-cutting skill — apply whenever...
• The task needs reusable judgment, domain constraints, or a proven workflow rather than ad hoc advice.

Do Not Use When

• The task is unrelated to content-writing or would be better handled by a more specific companion skill.
• The request only needs a trivial answer and none of this skill's constraints or references materially help.

Required Inputs

• Gather relevant project context, constraints, and the concrete problem to solve; load references only as needed.
• Confirm the desired deliverable: design, code, review, migration plan, audit, or documentation.

Workflow

• Read this SKILL.md first, then load only the referenced deep-dive files that are necessary for the task.
• Apply the ordered guidance, checklists, and decision rules in this skill instead of cherry-picking isolated snippets.
• Produce the deliverable with assumptions, risks, and follow-up work made explicit when they matter.
• For premium products, websites, proposals, or sales assets, write content that proves authority, qualifies buyers, supports SEO/GEO and digital PR, explains value in business terms, and leads to a concrete next action.

Quality Standards

• Keep outputs execution-oriented, concise, and aligned with the repository's baseline engineering standards.
• Preserve compatibility with existing project conventions unless the skill explicitly requires a stronger standard.
• Prefer deterministic, reviewable steps over vague advice or tool-specific magic.

Anti-Patterns

• Treating examples as copy-paste truth without checking fit, constraints, or failure modes.
• Loading every reference file by default instead of using progressive disclosure.

Outputs

• A concrete result that fits the task: implementation guidance, review findings, architecture decisions, templates, or generated artifacts.
• Clear assumptions, tradeoffs, or unresolved gaps when the task cannot be completed from available context alone.
• References used, companion skills, or follow-up actions when they materially improve execution.

Evidence Produced

Category	Artifact	Format	Example
UX quality	Page copy review	Markdown doc covering headline, lede, body, and CTA per page against the content-writing standard	docs/content/page-copy-review-checkout.md

References

• Use the references/ directory for deep detail after reading the core workflow below.
• Pair with premium-software-product-execution when copy must support premium pricing, buyer trust, service packaging, sales follow-up, or website-as-marketing-asset requirements.

Professional copywriting standards for website copy, blog posts, articles, and all written content. This is a cross-cutting skill — apply these principles whenever creating or editing text for any page.

The Reader-First Rule

Every word exists for the reader, not the writer. Before writing anything, answer:

• Who is the reader? What do they already know?
• What are they looking for? What problem brought them here?
• Why should they care? What benefit do they gain?
• What proof would make them believe us?
• What action should a qualified buyer take next?

Write for the reader all the time. That is what separates content that converts from content that gets ignored.

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Headlines & Titles

The headline is the most important element. Five times as many people read the headline as read the body. If the headline fails, everything below it is wasted.

Headline Rules

1. Promise a benefit. Headlines that promise benefits outperform those that don't.
2. Give news. Readers seek new information — new products, new methods, new insights.
3. Select your reader. Flag down the people you want. If writing for banana farmers, put "banana farmers" in the headline.
4. Be specific. "How to Increase Banana Yield by 40%" beats "Tips for Better Farming."
5. Long headlines that say something outpull short headlines that say nothing. Never sacrifice clarity for brevity.
6. Write the headline AFTER the content. Only then do you know the full scope and best angle.
7. Telegraph in simple language. Readers do not stop to decipher obscure headlines.

Headline Formulas That Work

• How to [achieve desired result]: "How to Store Bananas for Maximum Shelf Life"
• [Number] Ways/Reasons/Steps: "7 Steps to Higher-Quality Matooke Flour"
• Question that mirrors the reader's problem: "Is Your Banana Crop Vulnerable to Fusarium Wilt?"
• News/announcement: "New Banana Cultivar Resists Black Sigatoka Disease"
• Direct benefit: "Reduce Post-Harvest Losses by Half with These Storage Methods"

What to Avoid in Headlines

• Clever wordplay the reader won't get
• Headlines that could apply to any topic (too generic)
• ALL CAPS for entire headlines (harder to read)
• Clickbait that the content cannot deliver on

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Additional Guidance

Extended guidance for content-writing was moved to references/skill-deep-dive.md to keep this entrypoint compact and fast to load.

Use that deep dive for:

• The Lede (Opening)
• Readability
• Niche Vocabulary (Thematic Depth)
• Scannable Formatting
• The "So What?" Test
• Attribution as Authority
• Unique Value Proposition
• Features vs Benefits
• Structure Templates
• Keeping Eyes Moving
• Writing Styles
• Takeaways
• Additional deep-dive sections continue in the reference file.