# Core messaging elements

These are the elements you extract from each asset in Execution Step 2. For each asset, pull the actual language (short quotes), tag it with the source, and note if the element is simply absent from that asset. "What good looks like" is your reference for judging quality in Steps 3 and 4, not a template to write from. This Skill diagnoses, it doesn't rewrite.

| Element | What it is | What good looks like |
|---|---|---|
| **Value proposition** | The core promise of value: what the buyer gets and why it matters. | One clear statement of the functional and emotional benefit, in the buyer's terms, not the company's. |
| **Positioning statement** | How the brand delivers that value better than or differently from the alternatives, for a defined audience. | Names the audience, the category, and the point of difference. Consistent with the value prop. |
| **Brand promise** | The experience the audience can expect every time they interact with the brand. | A consistent, ownable commitment, not a generic "quality and service." |
| **Target audience** | Who the messaging is for. | Specific enough to exclude someone. Consistent across assets meant for the same reader. |
| **Key benefits** | The concrete outcomes the audience gets. | Framed as outcomes for the buyer, laddering up from features. |
| **Brand / differentiation pillars** | The two to four themes the brand's story stands on. | Distinct, memorable, and actually differentiating, not table stakes every competitor could also claim. |
| **Proof points** | The evidence behind the claims (stats, named clients, credentials, results, testimonials). | Real, specific, and attached to the claim they support. |
| **Tagline / boilerplate** | The short brand line and the standard "about" paragraph. | Stated the same way everywhere it appears. Drift here is a fast tell. |
| **Tone & voice markers** | How the brand sounds: register, personality, signature phrases. | Recognizably one voice across assets, appropriate to the audience. |
| **Primary call to action** | The next step the asset asks the reader to take. | Clear, singular, and consistent with where the reader is in the journey. |

## Extraction notes

- **Quote, don't paraphrase.** "We're the operating system for field teams" is evidence. "They position around being an OS" is your interpretation and can't be traced. Capture the quote, then interpret.
- **Absence is data.** If an asset has no stated positioning, record "Absent" for that cell. Do not fill it with what the brand "probably" means.
- **One asset can contradict itself.** A homepage hero and its own footer boilerplate can disagree. Intra-asset conflicts count.
- **Tag the audience of each asset at intake**, so you can tell audience-appropriate variation apart from real inconsistency in Step 3.
