Five passes to turn a smooth, generic draft into copy only your company could have written. Banned patterns, specificity checks, and human texture.
Run the passes in order. Facts first, style second. Polishing an empty sentence only shines it.
Keep your own banned-phrase list below. Add a phrase each time a new tell shows up.
Finish with the competitor-swap test. If the paragraph still reads true with their name on it, it is not yours yet.
flowchart LR
D["Draft"] --> P1["Facts"]
P1 --> P2["Patterns"]
P2 --> P3["Rhythm"]
P3 --> P4["Texture"]
P4 --> P5["Read aloud"]Search the draft for these. Keep a word only if you chose it on purpose.
| Pattern | Examples to search for | Repair |
|---|---|---|
| Sale-selling verbs | unlock, elevate, supercharge, leverage (as a verb) | Use the plain verb: use, build, fix, show |
| Throat-clearing | in today’s fast-paced world, it is important to note, let’s dive in | Delete. Start at the point |
| Empty adjectives | seamless, robust, cutting-edge, game-changing, holistic | Replace with a checkable detail |
| Self-announcement | this article will explore, in this guide we will cover | Do the thing instead of announcing it |
| Faux-profound closers | at the end of the day, the future is bright | End on the last fact or the next step |
| Contrast setup | not just X, but Y | State Y |
| Long dashes as rhythm | em dashes in every other sentence | Use a period or a comma |
| Texture | Prompt | Your detail |
|---|---|---|
| Mistake | What did we get wrong the first time? | |
| Reader phrase | What do buyers actually say? | |
| Constraint | What could we not do, and why? | |
| Surprise | What did we not expect? | |
| Preference | What would we pick, and why? |