founder-marketing-skills

# Founder Marketing Skills > Skill by [ara.so](https://ara.so) — Marketing Skills collection. Open-source marketing skills for founders who do their own marketing. Provides 4 AI-powered skills for keyword research, growth strategy, social search audit, and competitor intelligence. Works with Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, and any agent that reads `SKILL.md` files. ## What This Project Does ScaleBrick's Founder Marketing Skills is a collection of structured marketing methodologies packaged as `SKILL.md` files that AI agents can execute. Each skill follows a specific framework to analyze your business and produce actionable marketing insights: - **Social Search Audit**: Evaluates if TikTok/Instagram search is viable for your business - **Growth Strategy**: Generates comprehensive marketing strategy with keywords and content pillars - **Keyword Research**: Finds high-intent keywords people search on social platforms - **Competitor Audit**: Analyzes competitors' SEO, content, and social media presence Core insight: 40% of Gen Z uses TikTok and Instagram as search engines. These skills help you capture that high-intent traffic. ## Installation Install all 4 skills into your agent's skills directory: ```bash npx skills add ScaleBrick/founder-marketing-skills ``` This installs the skills into your agent's skills directory (typically `~/.skills/` or your agent's configured path). No API keys or account required. ### Manual Installation If you prefer manual installation: ```bash # Clone the repository git clone https://github.com/ScaleBrick/founder-marketing-skills.git # Copy skills to your agent's skills directory cp founder-marketing-skills/*.md ~/.skills/ ``` ## Key Commands Each skill is invoked with a specific command: | Command | Skill | Purpose | |---------|-------|---------| | `/audit` | Social Search Audit | Evaluate social search viability for your niche | | `/strategy` | Growth Strategy | Generate full marketing strategy | | `/keywords` | Keyword Research | Find high-intent keywords | | `/competitors` | Competitor Audit | Audit competitors' marketing | ## Usage Patterns ### Running a Social Search Audit ``` /audit Business: Cal AI Description: AI-powered calorie tracking app Website: https://cal.ai Target Audience: Health-conscious Gen Z users who want effortless calorie tracking ``` **Expected output:** - Niche competition analysis - Search demand evaluation - Content type fit assessment - 10 starter keywords with intent categories - Conversion potential ratings - Direct TikTok/Instagram search URLs for verification ### Generating a Growth Strategy ``` /strategy Business: AIFlyer Description: AI-powered flyer design tool Target Audience: Small business owners, event organizers, and marketers who need quick professional designs Website: https://aiflyer.com ``` **Expected output:** - Core marketing themes (3-5) - Content pillars mapped to business value - Brand voice guidelines - 20+ categorized keywords with intent types - Posting plan and frequency recommendations - Channel-specific tactics ### Keyword Research ``` /keywords Business: AI healthcare app for diabetes management Niche: Healthcare tech, diabetes monitoring Target Audience: Type 2 diabetics aged 30-55 seeking easier tracking ``` **Expected output:** - Educational keywords (how-to, explainer content) - Problem-aware keywords (pain point searches) - Tool comparison keywords (competitor alternatives) - Intent ratings (high/medium/low conversion potential) - Search volume indicators - Content format recommendations ### Competitor Audit ``` /competitors Business: Project management tool for remote teams Competitors: Asana, Monday.com, ClickUp, Notion, Trello Website: https://yourapp.com ``` **Expected output:** - SEO analysis (keyword gaps, ranking opportunities) - Content strategy breakdown - Social media presence audit - Positioning gaps no one is claiming - 5 specific actionable moves for this week - Quick wins vs. long-term plays ## Information Required For best results, provide: **Minimum:** - Business name - Brief description (1-2 sentences) - Target audience **Recommended:** - Website URL - Specific competitors (for competitor audit) - Current marketing efforts (if any) - Known pain points or challenges **Example complete request:** ``` /audit Business: Calmly Description: AI-powered meditation app that personalizes sessions based on stress levels and biometric data Website: https://calmly.app Target Audience: Busy professionals aged 28-45 experiencing burnout who want science-backed stress relief Current situation: Just launched, 500 beta users, no marketing team Competitors: Headspace, Calm, Insight Timer ``` ## Understanding the Output ### Intent Categories Skills categorize keywords by search intent: - **Educational**: "how to track calories", "what is macro counting" (Top of funnel) - **Problem-aware**: "can't lose weight tracking calories", "calorie tracking not working" (Middle funnel) - **Tool comparison**: "MyFitnessPal vs Lose It", "best calorie tracker app" (Bottom funnel) - **Direct**: "Cal AI review", "Cal AI app download" (Bottom funnel) ### Conversion Potential Ratings - **High**: Strong purchase/signup intent, ready to convert - **Medium**: Interested but researching, needs nurturing - **Low**: Early awareness stage, educational content ### Content Type Recommendations Based on niche analysis: - **Problem-first**: Lead with pain points (converts 54% better in health/productivity niches) - **Educational**: How-to content (works for technical/learning niches) - **Aspirational**: Lifestyle/transformation content (fitness, personal finance) ## Integration with Your Workflow ### With Claude Code Skills are automatically available after installation: ``` User: Help me audit if social search works for my SaaS tool Claude: I'll run the Social Search Audit skill for you. Please provide... ``` ### With Cursor Skills appear in the skills menu or can be invoked via chat: ``` @skills run social-search-audit for [business description] ``` ### With Codex/Custom Agents Skills are read from the skills directory. Agents parse the SKILL.md format: ```yaml --- name: social-search-audit triggers: - audit my social search potential - check if TikTok search works for me --- ``` ## Real Results Framework The skills are based on proven results: ``` YC-backed AI healthcare app: - 353K views in 47 days - 5,300 page visits - $0 ad spend AIFlyer: - 0 to 15,000 signups in 3 months - Ranks alongside Canva in TikTok LLM responses - All organic traffic ``` **The method:** 1. Find demand (what people actually search) 2. Categorize intent (educational vs. problem-aware vs. comparison) 3. Match content type (different formats convert differently) 4. Focus ruthlessly (80/20 rule - kill what doesn't work) 5. Close the loop (track signups, not just views) ## Common Patterns ### Pattern 1: Full Funnel Setup ``` 1. Run /audit to validate the channel 2. Run /strategy to get core themes and keywords 3. Run /competitors to find gaps 4. Run /keywords for specific content ideas ``` ### Pattern 2: Quick Validation ``` Run /audit with your business idea to see if social search is viable before building ``` ### Pattern 3: Competitive Intelligence ``` Run /competitors quarterly to track positioning shifts and new opportunities ``` ### Pattern 4: Content Planning ``` /keywords → filter by high conversion potential → map to content calendar ``` ## Troubleshooting ### Skills Not Found **Issue**: Agent can't find the skills after installation **Solution**: ```bash # Check skills directory location echo $SKILLS_DIR # Verify installation ls ~/.skills/ # Reinstall if needed npx skills add ScaleBrick/founder-marketing-skills --force ``` ### Generic Output **Issue**: Skills produce generic advice instead of specific insights **Solution**: Provide more context: - Add website URL for the agent to analyze - List specific competitors - Describe your unique value proposition - Mention current metrics or situation ### No Search URLs **Issue**: Audit doesn't include verification URLs **Solution**: The agent may need explicit instruction: ``` Run the social search audit and include direct TikTok search URLs for each keyword ``` ### Skills Not Triggering **Issue**: Natural language doesn't trigger skills **Solution**: Use explicit commands: - `/audit` instead of "help me audit" - `/strategy` instead of "I need a strategy" ## Advanced Usage ### Combining Skills Chain skills for comprehensive analysis: ``` 1. /audit [validates channel] 2. If viable → /strategy [gets full plan] 3. /competitors [finds gaps] 4. /keywords [gets specific content ideas] ``` ### Iterative Refinement ``` First pass: /keywords for "AI productivity tools" Refine: /keywords for "AI productivity tools for remote teams" with focus on Slack/Notion integration pain points ``` ### Niche Drilling ``` Broad: /audit for "fitness app" Specific: /audit for "kettlebell workout app for women over 40" The specific version produces 10x more actionable insights. ``` ## Project Structure ``` founder-marketing-skills/ ├── social-search-audit.md # /audit skill ├── growth-strategy.md # /strategy skill ├── keyword-research.md # /keywords skill ├── competitor-audit.md # /competitors skill ├── README.md # Documentation └── docs/ └── images/ # Example outputs ``` Each skill is a standalone `SKILL.md` file with: - YAML frontmatter (name, description, triggers) - Structured methodology - Analysis framework - Output format specifications ## Configuration No configuration files needed. Skills work out of the box. Optional environment variables for enhanced functionality: ```bash # If you want to customize skills directory export SKILLS_DIR=~/my-custom-skills # For agents that support skill namespacing export SKILL_NAMESPACE=marketing ``` ## Contributing New Skills Skills are just structured markdown files. To add a new skill: 1. Create `your-skill-name.md` with YAML frontmatter: ```yaml --- name: your-skill-name description: One-line description triggers: - trigger phrase 1 - trigger phrase 2 --- ``` 2. Add methodology in markdown 3. Include output format specification 4. Test with Claude Code or your agent 5. Submit PR to the repository ## License MIT License - free forever, modify as needed. ## Resources - Repository: https://github.com/ScaleBrick/founder-marketing-skills - Homepage: https://scalebrick.com - Issues: https://github.com/ScaleBrick/founder-marketing-skills/issues ## Full-Service Alternative For execution beyond strategy, ScaleBrick offers Morgan - an AI VP of Marketing that runs the complete growth loop: keyword research, content production, publishing, attribution tracking, and weekly optimization. Not required to use these skills - they work standalone.