guia-matthieu/brand-voice
Use when writing any client-facing content, marketing copy, or communications. Use when AI output sounds generic, corporate, or lacks personality. Triggers on "sounds like AI", "lacks voice", "too generic", or when content could apply to any competitor.
npx skills add https://github.com/guia-matthieu/clawfu-skills --skill brand-voice> Preserve authentic human voice in AI-assisted writing using the Voice Preservation Method.
Ensure all content maintains authentic brand voice using the Voice Preservation Method - transforming AI from ghostwriter to thinking partner while preserving genuine human voice.
Voice is identity made audible. It's not word choice or syntax—it's the blend of experience, conviction, and rhythm that tells readers who's speaking, what they value, and why it matters.
The Paradox: AI makes writing easier but communication harder. Generic efficiency creates disconnection. The goal is to use AI as a collaborator, not a replacement.
Never let AI originate. Always draft first, delegate later.
Your messy first draft contains your voice. AI polish can preserve it. AI generation replaces it.
| AI as Collaborator | AI as Ghostwriter |
|-------------------|-------------------|
| Helps you think | Replaces you |
| Organizes your ideas | Generates ideas |
| Preserves your phrasing | Invents phrasing |
| Removes clutter | Removes personality |
Every audience silently asks three questions. Your content must answer them:
Purpose: Cut through corporate fog to find the actual message.
Red flags: You need three paragraphs to "set up" your point, hedging with qualifiers, message could apply to any organization.
Purpose: Establish urgency and context without manipulation.
Red flags: Message could have been sent any time in the past year, no connection to current events.
Purpose: Translate organizational messages into personal relevance.
Red flags: Message is entirely about the organization, no concrete changes named.
Write what you mean, however messy. No editing. No structure. Just say it.
What are they worried about? Hopeful for? Skeptical of? Write this down explicitly.
Use this exact prompt:
Restructure this draft for clarity and flow, but keep my tone and
phrasing wherever possible. Highlight any jargon or clichés that
weaken authenticity.
Re-insert your phrasing, idioms, stories, and specific details that sound like you/Guia.
If you can't imagine saying it in a meeting, rewrite until you can.
Vague value words:
Corporate filler:
Empty intensifiers:
Generic claims:
Red flag pattern: Any phrase that could appear on any competitor's website without modification.
Specific stories:
Conviction signals:
Natural speech patterns:
Guia. fingerprints:
Approachable and warm, like a trusted advisor—not a faceless corporation.
Do: Use "you" and "your", write like talking to a friend, show genuine interest
Don't: Be overly casual, use jargon without explanation, sound robotic
✅ "Here's the thing about SEO—it doesn't have to be complicated."
❌ "SEO optimization methodologies can be implemented through various strategic approaches."
Make complex marketing topics simple and actionable.
Do: Short sentences, plain language, lead with the key point
Don't: Assume knowledge, bury information, over-explain
✅ "Google Business Profile is your free listing on Google. It's what shows up when people search for businesses like yours."
❌ "Google Business Profile, formerly known as Google My Business, is a complimentary service provided by Google LLC..."
Know our stuff and share expertise without arrogance.
Do: Make clear recommendations, back up with evidence, definitive language
Don't: Hedge excessively, oversell, dismiss other perspectives
✅ "Responding to reviews within 24 hours significantly improves customer perception."
❌ "You might want to consider possibly responding to reviews, which could potentially help."
Everything provides real value and moves people forward.
Do: Actionable takeaways, anticipate questions, offer next steps
Don't: Content for content's sake, leave readers hanging, problems without solutions
✅ "Here's a 5-minute audit you can do right now to check your Google listing."
❌ "There are many factors that affect your Google ranking."
| Instead of... | We say... |
|---------------|-----------|
| Utilize | Use |
| Implement | Set up, Start |
| Leverage | Use, Take advantage of |
| Optimize | Improve, Fine-tune |
| Stakeholders | Your team, Customers |
| Best-in-class | Proven, Effective |
The Interview Method:
Imagine someone asked you the question your document addresses. Respond verbally (record if helpful). Transcribe. Use that as your draft.
The Letter Method:
Rewrite the entire message as a personal letter to one specific person you know. Then generalize only what's necessary.
The Story Anchor:
Start with a specific story—something that happened, a conversation you had, a moment of realization. Build outward from there.
The Negative Space Method:
List everything you're NOT trying to say. List positions you specifically reject. Use these to sharpen what you ARE saying.
For each sentence: "Could I swap in a competitor's name and this sentence would still work?"
"Could I say this in a team meeting without feeling like I'm reading from a script?"
"Could I explain this to a smart friend at a bar?"
If your reader forgets everything except one sentence, which sentence do you want that to be? Is that sentence prominent?
"We strive to deliver innovative, customer-centered solutions that enhance business outcomes, advance growth, and empower local entrepreneurs through accessible, data-driven marketing initiatives."
"We believe growth begins with trust. Our mission is simple: listen first, act clearly, and bring results within reach for every local business owner who needs them."
The second sounds like a person. You can picture someone looking at a neighborhood wondering where the gaps are.
| Claude handles | You provide |
|---------------|-------------|
| Restructuring drafts for clarity | Your messy first draft with authentic voice |
| Identifying jargon and clichés | Judgment on which phrases ARE your voice |
| Checking logical flow | Emotional beats and personal stories |
| Generating alternatives to consider | Final selection and approval |
| Cutting for brevity (15-25%) | The read-aloud test verdict |
| Pass | Focus | Action |
|------|-------|--------|
| 1st | Structure | "Restructure this for clarity, keep my phrasing" |
| 2nd | Voice audit | "Flag any generic AI tells in this text" |
| 3rd | Reclaim | Re-insert your stories, idioms, specific details |
| 4th | Test | Read aloud - does it sound like you? |
name: brand-voice
category: branding
version: 2.0
author: GUIA
source_expert: Multiple (Voice Preservation Method)
difficulty: intermediate
mode: centaur
tags: [voice, writing, authenticity, brand, copywriting]
created: 2026-01-28
updated: 2026-02-03
Take guia-matthieu/brand-voice from the repository into ~/.claude/skills for personal
use, or into .claude/skills inside a project.
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same name cannot sit side by side — one of them will be ignored.