Get beneath
the buzzwords.

01 / PURPOSE & SCOPE

Start with the basics. What are we building this brain for?

1. Is this brain for a person, a company, a product, or a combination?
2. What should it help create: social posts, website copy, proposals, emails, presentations?
3. What business outcome should that work support?
4. Which brands, products, or partnerships belong here, and how do they relate?

02 / CORE IDENTITY

Specific stories tell us more than polished statements.

1. What do you do, for whom, and why does it matter?
2. What story explains how you arrived at your current approach?
3. What three principles guide your decisions? Give an example of each in action.
4. What would you refuse to compromise, even if it cost you business?
5. What should people remember about you after one conversation?

03 / YOUR AUDIENCE

Think of a real customer. Use their words.

1. Who are you primarily trying to reach? Who is outside your focus?
2. What situation makes them need your help?
3. How do they describe their problem in their own words?
4. What have they already tried, and why did it disappoint them?
5. What do they need to believe before they trust or buy from you?
6. What objections or misunderstandings come up repeatedly?

04 / YOUR POSITIONING

What makes your point of view worth listening to?

1. What category do people put you in, and is it the right one?
2. What alternatives do customers compare you with, including doing nothing?
3. Why should someone choose you?
4. What do you believe that others in your field would challenge?
5. What common industry practice do you reject, and why?
6. What evidence makes your position credible?
7. What should you never be mistaken for?

05 / OFFERS & PROOF

Separate what you know from what you hope.

1. What do you sell, and what problem does each offer solve?
2. Who is each offer best suited to?
3. What outcomes can you credibly promise?
4. What case studies, results, testimonials, or demonstrations support those promises?
5. Which facts and numbers are verified, and where can they be checked?
6. What claims must you avoid?
7. When should your product appear in content, and when should the insight stand alone?

06 / VOICE & PERSONALITY

Speak as you would to someone you respect. Give us actual sentences.

1. How do you sound in a relaxed conversation with someone you respect?
2. What three to five qualities should your writing convey?
3. What does each quality look like in an actual sentence?
4. How should you balance warmth, authority, humour, scepticism, and directness?
5. How far can you go with confrontation, profanity, vulnerability, or personal stories?
6. Where does confidence become arrogance, or honesty become unnecessary aggression?
7. Which parts of your voice stay constant, and which change with the situation?
8. Which writers or brands feel close to your voice? What specifically fits, and what does not?

07 / WRITING MECHANICS

Small choices make a recognisable voice.

1. Which languages do you use, and should each have different conventions?
2. Do you prefer short sentences, flowing paragraphs, or a deliberate mix?
3. What lengths suit each format?
4. How should a piece usually open and close?
5. Which words, phrases, and expressions sound naturally like you?
6. Which words, clichés, and writing habits should never appear?
7. What are your preferences for headings, bullets, punctuation, emojis, and hashtags?
8. Which rules are mandatory, and which are preferences?

08 / CONTENT & INTERACTION

Decide what you want to say, and what it should move.

1. What three to five subjects should you become known for?
2. What distinctive perspective or experience do you bring to each?
3. What recurring stories, questions, or practical examples can you draw on?
4. Which subjects are outside your remit or private?
5. What should readers think, feel, or do after engaging with your content?
6. Which calls to action feel natural?
7. How should you respond to questions, disagreement, criticism, or praise?
8. Which channel-specific formats and publishing habits do you want to use?

09 / EXAMPLES & BOUNDARIES

A few real examples are worth a hundred adjectives.

1. Can you provide three to five pieces that sound exactly like you? Why do they work?
2. Can you provide three that feel wrong? What makes them wrong?
3. Can you rewrite one generic paragraph in your own words?
4. Which personal stories, customer names, and results are approved for public use?
5. Which sample statements are illustrative rather than factual?
6. What must an AI ask you about instead of filling in itself?

10 / QUALITY & EVOLUTION

Set the standard that every future draft should meet.

1. What five questions should every draft pass before approval?
2. What would make you reject a draft immediately?
3. When two rules conflict, which takes priority?
4. Who owns and approves this brand brain?
5. How will you know the content is achieving its purpose?
6. When should the brain be reviewed, and what should trigger an update?