storybrand-framework

name	storybrand-framework
description	Use this skill when the user asks Claude to build, refine, or audit a StoryBrand BrandScript for a brand. Enforces the customer-as-hero, brand-as-guide structure across all 7 BrandScript elements. Activates whenever StoryBrand is named or when copy is drifting into brand-as-hero patterns.

StoryBrand Framework

Purpose: Build BrandScripts that position the customer as hero and the brand as guide. This is the lens Jake uses across all brand work — non-negotiable.

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THE 7 BRANDSCRIPT ELEMENTS

1. A Character (the customer)

• Who is the customer?
• What do they want?
• One sentence answer to "the customer wants ___"

2. With a Problem

Three layers:

• External problem — the surface-level pain (e.g., "my hands hurt every morning")
• Internal problem — the feeling about the pain (e.g., "I feel old and limited")
• Philosophical problem — why it shouldn't be this way (e.g., "no one should lose mobility because no one took their pain seriously")

3. Meets a Guide (the brand)

• Empathy — the brand shows it understands the pain
• Authority — the brand has credibility to solve it

The brand is NEVER the hero. The brand is Yoda, not Luke.

4. Who Gives Them a Plan

• Process plan (3 steps the customer follows)
• OR Agreement plan (commitments that reduce risk — guarantee, free shipping, etc.)

5. And Calls Them to Action

• Direct CTA ("buy now" / "get the bundle")
• Transitional CTA ("learn more" / "see how it works")

6. That Helps Them Avoid Failure

• What's the cost of NOT acting?
• "Without [solution], the customer faces [continued pain]"

7. And Ends in Success

• What does life look like after the customer wins?
• Specific, sensory — not vague ("happier")

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CUSTOMER-AS-HERO TEST

Every BrandScript element passes a single test: is the customer the hero?

Common violations to catch:

Brand-as-hero phrase	Customer-as-hero rewrite
"We've helped 10,000 customers..."	"10,000 customers have transformed..."
"Our patented mechanism..."	"The mechanism that means you finally..."
"Our founder spent 10 years researching..."	"After 10 years of research, you finally have..."
"Trust our expertise"	"Have confidence in your decision"
"We believe in clean wellness"	"You deserve wellness that's actually clean"

When in doubt, ask: does this sentence make the customer feel more capable, or does it make the brand look more impressive? The first is StoryBrand. The second isn't.

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OUTPUT FORMAT

Save to brands/<brand>/brandscript.md:

# StoryBrand BrandScript — <Brand>
**Last refined:** <YYYY-MM-DD>

## Controlling Idea
[Single sentence — the core promise in narrative form]

## 1. A Character
[Who the customer is. What they want. One sentence each.]

## 2. With a Problem
### External
[The surface pain]

### Internal
[The feeling about the pain]

### Philosophical
[Why this shouldn't be the case]

## 3. Meets a Guide
### Empathy
[Statement showing the brand understands the pain — written in second person to the customer]

### Authority
[Statement showing the brand has credibility — without bragging]

## 4. Who Gives Them a Plan
### Process plan
1. [Step 1]
2. [Step 2]
3. [Step 3]

### Agreement plan
- [Risk-reducing commitment 1]
- [Risk-reducing commitment 2]

## 5. And Calls Them to Action
- Direct CTA: "[Phrase]"
- Transitional CTA: "[Phrase]"

## 6. That Helps Them Avoid Failure
- Without acting, the customer faces: [continued pain]

## 7. And Ends in Success
- After acting, life looks like: [specific, sensory outcome]

## Application across formats
- PDP hero copy frame: [from sections 1-3]
- Ad hook frame: [from sections 2 external + 3 empathy]
- Long-form sales page frame: [full sequence]
- Email sequence frame: [varies by sequence]

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ANTI-PATTERNS

Anti-pattern	Why it's wrong
Skipping the internal or philosophical problem	These are what make the hook emotionally resonant; external alone is shallow
Plan with 7 steps	StoryBrand caps at 3 — more = decision paralysis
Calling the brand "the answer"	Guides don't claim to be answers; they hand the customer the tools
Success that's vague ("be happier")	Specific, sensory success closes the loop
Two competing direct CTAs	One direct CTA per page/asset, period

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VALIDATION

Before locking the BrandScript:

• Every sentence positions the customer as hero (run the test above)
• All three problem layers are distinct (no overlap between internal and philosophical)
• The empathy statement doesn't brag
• The plan has ≤3 steps
• The success ending is sensory, not abstract
• Coach has reviewed and approved