reply-engine

name	reply-engine
version	1.0.0
description	Batch-draft one suggested Reddit reply template per classified opportunity, hard-gated. Wraps the reddit-buyer-signals starter's replies.py — scaffold builds suggested_replies.json from the classified ops, the agent writes each ≤18-word value-first template, check enforces the word cap and the slop gate, sheet renders a rules-pinned Suggested Replies tab with GO/REVIEW/NO-REPLY on every row, and angles feeds the daily digest. Every reply is a draft the human edits before posting; NO-REPLY rows are logged, never answered. Use when the user types "/reply-engine" or says "draft the suggested replies", "run the reply pass", "build the reply sheet".

reply-engine

One gated, ≤18-word reply template per opportunity, and a recorded reason for every thread you skip.

This is the batch pass. ../reddit-engage/ is the interactive mode: full 2–5 sentence comments, approved one by one. This skill runs earlier and wider: every classified op gets either a short template the human edits into a real comment, or a NO-REPLY gate with a note. The skip discipline is half the value. Wraps replies.py in the reddit-buyer-signals starter: the script scaffolds and checks; the agent writes the words.

Inputs

• data/ops_classified.json — classified opportunities (op_id, lane, subreddit, summary, permalink)
• Optional: a client sheet id (or data/sheet_url.txt) for the Suggested Replies tab
• The client's offer context and voice profile, same as every other drafting surface

How to run

cd starters/reddit-buyer-signals
python3 replies.py scaffold --ops data/ops_classified.json --out data/suggested_replies.json
# the agent writes every empty reply slot, then:
python3 replies.py check data/suggested_replies.json --ops data/ops_classified.json
python3 replies.py sheet --ops data/ops_classified.json --replies data/suggested_replies.json --sheet-id <id>
python3 replies.py angles --ops data/ops_classified.json --replies data/suggested_replies.json --out data/engage_angles.json

The 18-word cap (binding)

Target 15–18 words; 18 is the hard limit (wc -w semantics: whitespace-separated words). Longer templates read contrived, and the human is going to edit anyway. Render the count as <N>/18 next to every draft you present. Check it, don't eyeball it:

printf '%s' "<reply>" | wc -w

check enforces the same count and exits nonzero on 19+.

Reply gates

Deterministic from the action lane; overrides beat the lane. NO-REPLY is a result, not a failure — log it and move on.

Gate	Lane rule	Note on the row
GO	engage_now / reply_now	Timely thread. Reply when ready.
REVIEW	every other lane	Check thread age + sub self-promo rules first.
NO-REPLY	competitor_intel / competitor_watch	Log as competitor intel. Do not post.

gate_overrides handles the exceptions the lanes can't see, e.g. a founder self-promoting their own tool sits in an engage lane but gets ["NO-REPLY", "Founder self-promo. Flag for partnership outreach instead."].

Output shape

{
  "rules": "Every reply is a draft template. Nothing posts automatically. All replies go through the account owner personally before posting. Disclose affiliation whenever the product comes up. Never DM. Check subreddit self-promo rules and thread age before posting. Gate: GO = timely, reply when ready. REVIEW = check thread age + sub rules first. NO-REPLY = log as intel, do not post.",
  "replies": {
    "op_101": "Twelve people will outgrow both boards the same way. What breaks first for you: reporting or handoffs?"
  },
  "gate_overrides": {
    "op_207": ["NO-REPLY", "Founder self-promo. Flag for partnership outreach instead."]
  }
}

The sheet tab (Suggested Replies): frozen 2 rows — row 1 is the rules string pinned above the header, row 2 is the header. Columns: Op ID | Tier | Lane | Reply Gate | Gate Note | Subreddit | What They Want | Suggested Reply (≤18 words, edit before posting) | Reddit URL. The gate column is color-coded GO green / REVIEW yellow / NO-REPLY red. The tab is added to the existing client sheet in place; other tabs are never touched.

Voice rules

1. Answer the actual ask. One or two clipped sentences; the first responds to their literal question.
2. Concrete nouns from the buyer's world. Their tools, their workflows, their numbers, never category abstractions.
3. Zero product mentions by default. Across a whole batch, a mention is the rare exception, and naming the product triggers the disclosure rule.
4. End with a question back or a first step they can take today.
5. Numbers stated plainly. "Free tier plus two hours of setup beats a paid seat nobody opens." No hedging.
6. Match the thread's language and register. A Spanish thread gets a Spanish reply.
7. No links, no DMs, no CTAs, no emojis, no "great question".
8. If it can't fit in 18 words, it's two thoughts. Cut one.

Worked examples (fictional)

Thread (lane)	Gate	Suggested reply	Count
"Asana vs Monday for a 12-person team?" (engage_now)	GO	Twelve people will outgrow both boards the same way. What breaks first for you: reporting or handoffs?	17/18
"How do you keep follow-up from falling through?" (lead_enrich)	REVIEW	Assign every follow-up one owner and one date. Exceptions get a weekly fifteen-minute review. Start there.	16/18
"RivalPM just shipped dashboards, worth switching?" (competitor_intel)	NO-REPLY	nothing drafted; logged as competitor intel	—
"I built a sprint-planning tool for remote teams, feedback welcome" (engage_now, overridden)	NO-REPLY	override note: Founder self-promo. Flag for partnership outreach instead.	—

Rules

1. Every reply is a draft template. Nothing posts automatically; the human edits and posts each one personally.
2. The gates are strong. A NO-REPLY row never gets a reply drafted, not even a good one. check fails a drafted reply on a NO-REPLY op.
3. Disclose affiliation whenever the product comes up. Never DM.
4. REVIEW means work: check thread age and the sub's self-promo rules before posting, every time.
5. check before ship. A draft that fails the cap or the slop gate gets rewritten, not trimmed word-by-word into mush.
6. Overrides are recorded, not improvised. Every override carries its note in gate_overrides.

Related

• ../../starters/reddit-buyer-signals/replies.py — the module this wraps: scaffold, check, sheet, angles
• ../reddit-engage/ — the interactive approval loop; expand a GO template into a full comment there
• personalization/SKILL.md in ClearboxGTM — the 3-variable model, applied at template length
• ../../starters/reddit-buyer-signals/digest.py — renders the angles file this skill exports
• how-to-win-on-reddit.md in ClearboxGTM — why value-first and no-links are non-negotiable