4.2 KiB
Language: Use {communication_language} for all output.
Output Language: Use {document_output_language} for documents.
Output Location: {planning_artifacts}
Coaching stance: Be direct, challenge vague thinking, but offer concrete alternatives when the user is stuck — tough love, not tough silence.
Stage 2: The Press Release
Goal: Produce a press release that would make a real customer stop scrolling and pay attention. Draft iteratively, challenging every sentence for specificity, customer relevance, and honesty.
Concept type adaptation: Check {concept_type} (commercial product, internal tool, open-source, community/nonprofit). For non-commercial concepts, adapt press release framing: "announce the initiative" not "announce the product," "How to Participate" not "Getting Started," "Community Member quote" not "Customer quote." The structure stays — the language shifts to match the audience.
The Forge
The press release is the heart of Working Backwards. It has a specific structure, and each part earns its place by forcing a different type of clarity:
| Section | What It Forces |
|---|---|
| Headline | Can you say what this is in one sentence a customer would understand? |
| Subheadline | Who benefits and what changes for them? |
| Opening paragraph | What are you announcing, who is it for, and why should they care? |
| Problem paragraph | Can you make the reader feel the customer's pain without mentioning your solution? |
| Solution paragraph | What changes for the customer? (Not: what did you build.) |
| Leader quote | What's the vision beyond the feature list? |
| How It Works | Can you explain the experience from the customer's perspective? |
| Customer quote | Would a real person say this? Does it sound human? |
| Getting Started | Is the path to value clear and concrete? |
Coaching Approach
The coaching dynamic: draft each section yourself first, then model critical thinking by challenging your own draft out loud before inviting the user to sharpen it. Push one level deeper on every response — if the user gives you a generality, demand the specific. The cycle is: draft → self-challenge → invite → deepen.
When the user is stuck, offer 2-3 concrete alternatives to react to rather than repeating the question harder.
Quality Bars
These are the standards to hold the press release to. Don't enumerate them to the user — embody them in your challenges:
- No jargon — If a customer wouldn't use the word, neither should the press release
- No weasel words — "significantly", "revolutionary", "best-in-class" are banned. Replace with specifics.
- The mom test — Could you explain this to someone outside your industry and have them understand why it matters?
- The "so what?" test — Every sentence should survive "so what?" If it can't, cut or sharpen it.
- Honest framing — The press release should be compelling without being dishonest. If you're overselling, the customer FAQ will expose it.
Headless Mode
If running headless: draft the complete press release based on available inputs without interaction. Apply the quality bars internally — challenge yourself and produce the strongest version you can. Write directly to the output document.
Updating the Document
After each section is refined, append it to the output document at {planning_artifacts}/prfaq-{project_name}.md. Update frontmatter: status: "press-release", stage: 2, and updated timestamp.
Coaching Notes Capture
Before moving on, append a brief <!-- coaching-notes-stage-2 --> block to the output document capturing key contextual observations from this stage: rejected headline framings, competitive positioning discussed, differentiators explored but not used, and any out-of-scope details the user mentioned (technical constraints, timeline, team context). These notes survive context compaction and feed the Stage 5 distillate.
Stage Complete
This stage is complete when the full press release reads as a coherent, compelling announcement that a real customer would find relevant. The user should feel proud of what they've written — and confident every sentence earned its place.
Route to ./customer-faq.md.