viral-scoring

name	viral-scoring
description	Score social media content units for viral potential (0-100) with transparent breakdown by dimension. Use after content generation, before surfacing to human for approval. Produces ranked output with reasoning. Required for all content.

VIRAL SCORING SKILL

Score every content unit before it reaches the human. Show your work. Be specific. Don't round up.

THE RUBRIC

Dimension	Weight	What earns a high score
Hook Strength	25pts	Stops a scroll in 2 seconds. Uses a proven hook pattern. Specific, not generic.
Platform Fit	20pts	Right format/energy/length for this exact platform. Not just "works on social."
Niche Relevance	20pts	Speaks the language buyers in this category actually use.
Trend Alignment	15pts	Matches what's about to trend. Competitor outlier data confirms. Not just Google Trends.
Visual Quality	10pts	Cinematography standard met. Lighting, money shot, texture. Not generic stock-look.
Audience Match	10pts	LTV data + interview answers confirm this is what top customers respond to.

Total: /100

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SCORING PROCESS

For each content unit:

Step 1: Hook Strength (0–25)

Ask: If this is the first 2 seconds of a video, or the first line of a caption, does it demand attention without requiring any prior context?

Scoring guide:

• 23–25: Immediately specific, sensory, or creates a knowledge gap. Works for this niche.
• 18–22: Strong but generic. Works but doesn't feel native to the brand.
• 12–17: Somewhat interesting but could be any brand.
• 6–11: Weak setup. Takes too long to get to the point.
• 0–5: Starts with jargon, adverb, or throat-clear. Fails stop-slop check.

Hook patterns that score 20+:

• Specific claim + implicit challenge ("Our [product] [specific measurable claim]")
• Unexpected truth in the niche ("Most [category] brands do X. Here's why we don't.")
• Before/after frame (specific, not vague: "60 days ago I couldn't X. Now Y.")
• Sensory open (food/bev only): first physical sensation, no describing words
• Niche insider: references something only buyers in this niche would recognize

Hook patterns that score < 10:

• "Are you tired of...?" (overused)
• "This changed everything..." (vague pull-quote)
• "You won't believe..." (promise without delivery)
• Any opener with an adverb
• Any opener starting with "I"

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Step 2: Platform Fit (0–20)

Ask: Is this built specifically for [platform], or adapted from somewhere else?

By platform:

TikTok (20pts): Hook in first 0.5s. Fast-paced first half, payoff in second. Native sound (trending audio or strong ASMR). Vertical 9:16. Captions baked in. Feels like organic content, not an ad.

Instagram Reels (20pts): Hook in first 1s. Slightly more polished than TikTok. Slower reveal acceptable. Aesthetic consistency with feed. Strong thumbnail frame for Explore tab.

Instagram Feed (20pts): Static image or carousel. Strong visual in top 1/3. Caption first 125 chars must stand alone (before "more" cut).

Pinterest (20pts): Aspirational. More lifestyle, less talking-head. Vertical works. Educational format (how-to, recipe, styling) earns saves. Visual quality is the hook.

YouTube Shorts (20pts): Hook in first 2s. Higher production quality tolerated. Slightly longer run time acceptable (up to 60s). Title matters for search.

Facebook (20pts): Square or vertical. Caption essential (sound off default). Slightly slower pace. Community angle works better here.

Scoring guide:

• 18–20: Purpose-built for this platform. Would not look out of place on the native feed.
• 14–17: Good fit with minor format issues.
• 9–13: Could work but feels adapted rather than native.
• 4–8: Wrong format or energy for the platform.
• 0–3: Platform mismatch. Should be rebuilt for different platform.

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Step 3: Niche Relevance (0–20)

Ask: Does this speak the language of people who actually buy in this category?

Food & Beverage signals (earn points):

• Sensory specificity (texture, temperature, smell, sound)
• Occasion specificity (not "any meal" — "Tuesday afternoon when the kids are at practice")
• Ingredient honesty (names specific ingredients without marketing spin)
• The unspoken truth about the category (what real buyers know that ads pretend otherwise)

Beauty & Skincare signals (earn points):

• Skin type specificity (not "all skin types" — "if you have dry patches under your eyes")
• Realistic timeline for results
• Ingredient transparency
• The "I stopped buying X because of this" hook

Apparel signals (earn points):

• Size/body references that feel real (not aspirational models)
• How it actually fits vs. how it's described
• Durability callout (how it holds up)
• Styling specificity (this goes with X, not Y)

Home & Lifestyle signals (earn points):

• Before state is recognizable (not a Pinterest-perfect starting point)
• Specific product benefit in specific context
• Process showing effort = reward

Scoring guide:

• 18–20: Only a real buyer in this niche would write this
• 14–17: Relevant but could apply to multiple niches
• 9–13: Generic product category language
• 4–8: Feels like it was written for a different niche
• 0–3: No niche specificity. Could be any consumer brand.

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Step 4: Trend Alignment (0–15)

Important: Google Trends is a lagging signal. Do not over-index on it.

Leading signals (use these for scoring):

• Competitor accounts posting similar content ≥ 3x in last 30 days = trend forming
• Engagement outliers in competitor content on same topic = real interest
• Pre-viral: topic has < 50k TikTok posts but > 10% engagement rate on recent posts
• Category disruption: new product format, ingredient, or use case emerging
• Seasonal pre-emptive: 3–4 weeks before a seasonal peak

Lagging signals (cross-reference only):

• Google Trends spike = usually already peaked
• "Everyone is posting about this" = late to the party

Scoring guide:

• 13–15: Content is ahead of the curve. Pre-trend or exactly at inflection point.
• 9–12: On-trend. Timely but not first-mover.
• 5–8: Slightly behind. Peak was 2–4 weeks ago.
• 1–4: Late. This trend already played out.
• 0: Against trend or completely timing-irrelevant.

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Step 5: Visual Quality (0–10)

Ask: Does the visual production meet the standard of the top-performing content in this niche? Not "is it technically good" — "does it perform?"

High-scoring visual elements:

• Clear hero product visibility (not buried in the frame)
• Lighting appropriate to niche (warm for food, clean for beauty, natural for lifestyle)
• Money shot present (the one frame that stops a scroll)
• No generic stock-look (looks native, not produced)
• Platform-native dimensions and composition
• Text overlays if needed are clean, not template-looking

Scoring guide:

• 9–10: Money shot clear. Production standard matches top-performing content in niche.
• 7–8: Good quality but missing one key visual element.
• 5–6: Acceptable but forgettable visually.
• 2–4: Below niche standard. Would not compete for attention.
• 0–1: Wrong lighting, wrong composition, or no money shot.

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Step 6: Audience Match (0–10)

Ask: Does the Shopify customer data and interview brief confirm that this is the kind of content the top 20% LTV customers respond to?

Cross-reference with:

• Client's "best customer persona" from grill-me interview
• Top product purchase patterns from Shopify CSV
• Flopped content list from interview (avoid those patterns)
• Reference content the client said "I wish we made that"

Scoring guide:

• 9–10: Directly maps to what the top-LTV segment engages with.
• 7–8: Good fit with slight mismatch on one dimension.
• 5–6: Probably fine but no specific evidence from client data.
• 2–4: Diverges from what client data suggests works.
• 0–1: Contradicts client data or is explicitly similar to flopped content.

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OUTPUT FORMAT

For each content unit, produce:

{
  "content_unit_id": "uuid",
  "platform": "tiktok",
  "hook": "First line of caption or first 2s of video",
  "scores": {
    "hook_strength": { "score": 22, "max": 25, "reason": "Specific claim with measurable result. No adverbs. Gets to point immediately." },
    "platform_fit": { "score": 18, "max": 20, "reason": "Native vertical format. Caption length right for TikTok. Minor: no trending audio recommendation." },
    "niche_relevance": { "score": 17, "max": 20, "reason": "Sensory language. Specific occasion. Could be slightly more insider." },
    "trend_alignment": { "score": 12, "max": 15, "reason": "Competitor outliers show 4 posts on this topic in 3 weeks. Pre-trend signal." },
    "visual_quality": { "score": 8, "max": 10, "reason": "Money shot present. Lighting appropriate. Missing: close-up texture shot." },
    "audience_match": { "score": 9, "max": 10, "reason": "Interview brief confirms top customers engage with before/after format." }
  },
  "total_score": 86,
  "recommendation": "include",
  "surface_to_human": true,
  "notes": "Strong. The hook is the best in this batch. Minor improvement: add texture close-up to video prompt."
}

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SURFACE RULES

• Score ≥ 80 → surface_to_human: true, recommendation: include
• Score 60–79 → surface_to_human: true only if needed to fill platform quota (minimum 1 per platform)
• Score < 60 → surface_to_human: false, logged but not shown to human

Maximum per platform per approval queue: 3 posts Minimum per platform per approval queue: 1 post (if any were generated)

The human sees a ranked list. Highest score first. Score and top reason shown. They do not see the full breakdown unless they click into a post.