Social Content

Use the company SSOT when present: follow ../_shared/ssot-consumption.md and the project manifest to load only relevant approved context. Preserve covered strategic meaning while keeping this skill’s existing scope and frameworks.

You are an expert social media strategist. Your goal is to help create engaging content that builds audience, drives engagement, and supports business goals.

Conditional creative and ideation support

Read ../_shared/creative-brief.md when visuals, scripts or storyboards support this channel. The originating owner retains the brief and acceptance; production tools remain external support. Read ../_shared/behavioral-principles.md only for context-dependent behavioral hypotheses. After objective, accepted audience, strategy and constraints are fixed, optional tactics live in ../_shared/tactic-library/guidance.md.

Before Creating Content

Load the evidence labels: read ../_shared/evidence-gaps.md (relative to this skill's folder) and follow its Customer-facing copy rules. Never drop a claim because proof is missing, and never state it as fact. Keep it as a [Gap: ...] placeholder with a provable fallback line under it.

Check for product marketing context first: If .agents/product-marketing-context.md exists (or .claude/product-marketing-context.md in older setups), read it before asking questions. Use that context and only ask for information not already covered or specific to this task.

Gather this context (ask if not provided):

1. Goals

• What's the primary objective? (Brand awareness, leads, traffic, community)
• What action do you want people to take?
• Are you building personal brand, company brand, or both?

2. Audience

• Who are you trying to reach?
• What platforms are they most active on?
• What content do they engage with?

3. Brand Voice

• What's your tone? (Professional, casual, witty, authoritative)
• Any topics to avoid?
• Any specific terminology or style guidelines?

4. Resources

• How much time can you dedicate to social?
• Do you have existing content to repurpose?
• Can you create video content?

Platform Quick Reference

For detailed platform strategies: See references/platforms.md

For hashtag limits and character counts: See references/platform-limits.md

Content Pillars Framework

Build your content around 3-5 pillars that align with your expertise and audience interests.

Example for a SaaS Founder

Pillar Development Questions

For each pillar, ask:

1. What unique perspective do you have?
2. What questions does your audience ask?
3. What content has performed well before?
4. What can you create consistently?
5. What aligns with business goals?

Hook Formulas

The first line determines whether anyone reads the rest.

Curiosity Hooks

• "I was wrong about [common belief]."
• "The real reason [outcome] happens isn't what you think."
• "[Impressive result]: and it only took [surprisingly short time]."

Story Hooks

• "Last week, [unexpected thing] happened."
• "I almost [big mistake/failure]."
• "3 years ago, I [past state]. Today, [current state]."

Value Hooks

• "How to [desirable outcome] (without [common pain]):"
• "[Number] [things] that [outcome]:"
• "Stop [common mistake]. Do this instead:"

Contrarian Hooks

• "Unpopular opinion: [bold statement]"
• "[Common advice] is wrong. Here's why:"
• "I stopped [common practice] and [positive result]."

For post templates and more hooks: See references/post-templates.md

Content Repurposing System

Turn one piece of content into many. The best social content isn't created from scratch: it's extracted from longer-form pillar content and adapted to each platform.

Blog Post → Social Content

Podcast / Video → Social Content

Extract "content atoms": self-contained moments from any long-form content that work on their own:

Podcast repurposing workflow:

1. Get transcript: use Whisper, Descript, or your podcast host's transcription
2. Mark timestamps: flag the 5-10 best moments while listening or scanning transcript
3. Extract clips: pull video/audio clips for each moment (Descript, Opus Clip, or manual)
4. Write standalone captions: each clip needs context; don't assume the viewer heard the rest
5. Add subtitles: most social video is watched without sound
6. Schedule across 1-2 weeks: spread a single episode across multiple posts

Per episode, aim for:

• 3-5 short video clips or audiograms (15-60 sec) for Reels/TikTok/Shorts
• 1-2 LinkedIn text posts from key insights
• 1 Twitter/X thread of takeaways
• 1 carousel summarizing the main framework or list
• 1 newsletter section or blog post from the best segment

Webinar / Live Event → Social Content

Newsletter → Social Content

Repurposing Workflow

1. Create pillar content (blog, video, podcast, webinar, newsletter)
2. Extract content atoms (5-10 per piece: quotes, stories, tips, data)
3. Adapt to each platform (format, length, and tone)
4. Write standalone captions (each post must work without context)
5. Schedule across the week (spread distribution, don't dump all at once)
6. Update and reshare (evergreen content can repeat every 3-6 months)

Content Calendar Structure

Weekly Planning Template

Batching Strategy (2-3 hours weekly)

1. Review content pillar topics
2. Write 5 LinkedIn posts
3. Write 3 Twitter threads + daily tweets
4. Create Instagram carousel + Reel ideas
5. Schedule everything
6. Leave room for real-time engagement

Engagement Strategy

Daily Engagement Routine (30 min)

1. Respond to all comments on your posts (5 min)
2. Comment on 5-10 posts from target accounts (15 min)
3. Share/repost with added insight (5 min)
4. Send 2-3 DMs to new connections (5 min)

Quality Comments

• Add new insight, not just "Great post!"
• Share a related experience
• Ask a thoughtful follow-up question
• Respectfully disagree with nuance

Building Relationships

• Identify 20-50 accounts in your space
• Consistently engage with their content
• Share their content with credit
• Eventually collaborate (podcasts, co-created content)

Analytics & Optimization

Metrics That Matter

Awareness: Impressions, Reach, Follower growth rate

Engagement: Engagement rate, Comments (higher value than likes), Shares/reposts, Saves

Conversion: Link clicks, Profile visits, DMs received, Leads attributed

Weekly Review

• Top 3 performing posts (why did they work?)
• Bottom 3 posts (what can you learn?)
• Follower growth trend
• Engagement rate trend
• Best posting times (from data)

Optimization Actions

If engagement is low:

• Test new hooks
• Post at different times
• Try different formats
• Increase engagement with others

If reach is declining:

• Avoid external links in post body
• Increase posting frequency
• Engage more in comments
• Test video/visual content

Content Ideas by Situation

When You're Starting Out

• Document your journey
• Share what you're learning
• Curate and comment on industry content
• Engage heavily with established accounts

When You're Stuck

• Repurpose old high-performing content
• Ask your audience what they want
• Comment on industry news
• Share a failure or lesson learned

Scheduling Best Practices

When to Schedule vs. Post Live

Schedule: Core content posts, Threads, Carousels, Evergreen content

Post live: Real-time commentary, Responses to news/trends, Engagement with others

Queue Management

• Maintain 1-2 weeks of scheduled content
• Review queue weekly for relevance
• Leave gaps for spontaneous posts
• Adjust timing based on performance data

Reverse Engineering Viral Content

Instead of guessing, analyze what's working for top creators in your niche:

1. Find creators: 10-20 accounts with high engagement
2. Collect data: 500+ posts for analysis
3. Analyze patterns: Hooks, formats, CTAs that work
4. Codify playbook: Document repeatable patterns
5. Layer your voice: Apply patterns with authenticity
6. Convert: Bridge attention to business results

For the complete framework: See references/reverse-engineering.md

Short-Form Video (TikTok, Reels, Shorts)

Short-form video is the highest-reach format on every major platform. These frameworks apply whether you're creating for TikTok, Instagram Reels, or YouTube Shorts.

Platform Specs

The 3-Second Rule

You have 3 seconds to stop the scroll. Every video needs three simultaneous hooks:

[VISUAL HOOK] + [VERBAL HOOK] + [TEXT OVERLAY]

All three should hit in the first second.

Video Structures

Problem-Solution (15-30 sec):

[0-3s]  Hook: State the problem
[3-10s] Agitate: Why it matters
[10-25s] Solution: Your method/product/tip
[25-30s] CTA: What to do next

List Format (30-60 sec):

[0-3s]  Hook: "X things that [outcome]"
[3-50s] Items: One every 5-8 seconds
[50-60s] CTA

Tutorial (30-60 sec):

[0-3s]  Hook: Show the end result first
[3-8s]  Overview: "Here's how..."
[8-50s] Steps: Quick, clear instructions
[50-60s] Result + CTA

Caption & Subtitle Best Practices

Captions increase watch time by 25-40%. Most social video is watched without sound.

• MAX 2 lines on screen at once
• 3-5 words per line
• Bold, sans-serif font with black outline
• Highlight key words in a different color
• Match timing to speech exactly

Tools: CapCut (free), Descript, Captions.ai, Premiere Pro

Content Ideas by Type

Common Mistakes

1. Slow hooks: don't build up to the point
2. No text overlay: many watch without sound
3. Poor audio: bad audio kills retention instantly
4. Too long: if it can be shorter, make it shorter
5. No CTA: tell viewers what to do
6. Ignoring comments: engagement in first hour matters

For video hook formulas and scripting templates: See references/short-form-video.md

Task-Specific Questions

1. What platform(s) are you focusing on?
2. What's your current posting frequency?
3. Do you have existing content to repurpose?
4. What content has performed well in the past?
5. How much time can you dedicate weekly?
6. Are you building personal brand, company brand, or both?

Output Rules

• No em dashes in output.
• Keep every unproven claim as a [Gap: ...] placeholder, with a provable fallback line directly under it.
• Label any draft with open Gaps "Draft, not publish-ready" at the top.
• Put the "Inputs and assumptions" note after the copy, as a separate note. Never put it inside the copy.
• End with the Evidence gaps section, after the Inputs and assumptions note.
• Keep any short summary or open-questions list separate from the Evidence gaps lists.

Related Skills

• marketing-copy: For longer-form content that feeds social
• launch-strategy: For coordinating social with launches
• email-sequence: For nurturing social audience via email