monetize

name	monetize
description	Business monetization, pricing strategy, revenue models, tier evaluation, competitive research, business case.
allowed-tools	Read, Write, Grep, Glob, Agent, WebSearch, WebFetch, Bash, AskUserQuestion

Monetize — Business Monetization Evaluation & Strategy

This skill evaluates monetization models for projects and businesses using evidence-based tier evaluation — not numeric scores. Revenue projections are explicit assumption chains where every variable cites its source. Research is user-reviewed before evaluation. Legal/compliance constraints are first-class filters that can block models before scoring. The output is an honest business case designed to surface the right questions, not just polished answers.

Flow

/monetize → discover → research → cost-analysis → evaluate → report → roadmap → /cks:new handoff

Each phase is independently invokable via /monetize:{phase}.

Agents

Each phase dispatches a dedicated agent:

Phase	Agent	Role
discover	monetize-discoverer	Scans codebase, asks business context questions
research	monetize-researcher	Queries Perplexity/WebSearch for market intelligence
cost-analysis	cost-researcher → cost-analyzer	Researches tech stack costs, builds unit economics
evaluate	monetize-evaluator	Evidence-based tier evaluation with assumption chains
report	monetize-reporter	Combines all artifacts into business case
roadmap	monetize-roadmap	Creates phase briefs and updates ROADMAP.md

Mode Detection

Determine input mode from arguments:

Condition	Mode	Behavior
No arguments	A — Self-analyze	Scan current project codebase
Argument is a local directory path	B — Analyze target	Scan target project codebase
Argument is quoted text / description	C — Business description	Pure strategy, no code scan

Mode B accepts local paths only (not URLs). For remote repos, the user should clone first.

Re-run Check

Before starting, check if .monetize/ exists:

• If yes → read .monetize/context.md for the date. Ask: "Previous assessment found (dated {date}). Archive and start fresh, or update with new research?"
  • Archive: mkdir -p .monetize/archive/{date} && mv .monetize/*.md .monetize/archive/{date}/
  • Update: skip discover, re-run research → evaluate → report → roadmap
• If no → fresh run

Execution

The /cks:monetize command orchestrates the flow by dispatching agents in sequence. Each agent loads this skill via skills: monetize for domain expertise. Individual phases can be invoked via /cks:monetize-{phase} sub-commands.

Each phase saves its output. If interrupted, the next /monetize invocation detects existing artifacts and resumes from the last incomplete phase.

Phase Validation

Before starting any phase, verify its prerequisites exist:

Phase	Requires
Research	.monetize/context.md
Cost Analysis	.monetize/context.md (+ .monetize/research.md recommended)
Evaluate	.monetize/context.md + .monetize/research.md + .monetize/cost-analysis.md
Report	.monetize/evaluation.md
Roadmap	docs/monetization-assessment.md

If missing, prompt: "Run /monetize:{missing_phase} first."

Reference Files

File	When to Read
references/models-catalog.md	During evaluate phase — contains the 12 models with criteria
references/cost-categories.md	During cost-analysis phase — cost category detection and provider reference
references/report-template.md	During report phase — template for the assessment document

Error Handling

Failure	Behavior
PERPLEXITY_API_KEY missing	Fall back to WebSearch-based research (no API key needed). Note "Source: WebSearch" in research output
Perplexity rate limit / timeout	Retry once after 5s. On 2nd failure, save partial results, flag gaps in report
Codebase scan finds nothing (A/B)	Fall back to Mode C behavior — full questionnaire
User abandons mid-questionnaire	Save partial context. Next run offers to resume or restart

Customization

This skill ships with opinionated defaults. Review and adapt to your needs:

• Revenue model catalog: Available models for evaluation — edit references/models-catalog.md
• Cost categories: Tech stack cost breakdown structure — edit references/cost-categories.md
• Report template: Assessment report format — edit workflows/report.md
• Evaluation tiers: Strong/Possible/Weak criteria — edit workflows/evaluate.md
• allowed-tools: Currently Read, Write, Grep, Glob, Agent, WebSearch, WebFetch, Bash, AskUserQuestion.

Output Artifacts

File	Purpose
.monetize/context.md	Discovery context
.monetize/research.md	Perplexity research with citations
.monetize/cost-research-raw.md	Raw provider pricing data
.monetize/cost-analysis.md	Unit economics, margins, scaling curves
.monetize/evaluation.md	Evidence-based tier evaluation + stack recommendation
docs/monetization-assessment.md	Final business case report
docs/ROADMAP.md	Updated with monetization phases (preview entries)
.monetize/phases/*.md	PRD-ready phase briefs for /cks:new