talk-about-us

Talk About Us

"They have to be able to talk about us without us." - Anil Dash

A skill that helps you audit content for shareability using Anil Dash's framework. Ensure your website copy, SEO descriptions, and marketing content are so clear and compelling that others can share them authentically in your absence.

Supported platforms: Claude Code, Codex, OpenCode, ChatGPT

About

• Framework: Created by Anil Dash - read the original article
• Skill implementation: Olaf Alders
• The motivation: my blog post
• Status: Unofficial implementation - Anil Dash is not affiliated with or responsible for this project

This is an independent implementation created to make Anil's shareability framework easily accessible in AI coding assistants. All credit for the framework and principles goes to Anil Dash. Bug reports and issues should be directed to this repository, not to Anil.

What This Does

This plugin provides a systematic audit framework for content, applying four critical tests:

1. The Absence Test - Can someone authentically explain this when you're not there?
2. The Distinctiveness Test - Does this say what only YOU can say?
3. The Emotional Resonance Test - Is this emotionally gripping or comprehensively technical?
4. The Values-First Test - Are values embedded in how people naturally discuss this?

Real-World Example

Here's a small snippet of what the audit found when analyzing https://prettygoodping.com, a monitoring service:

❌ The Absence Test: FAIL

Current messaging was too technical: "Monitor SSL/TLS & Domain Expiry, Uptime, and Server Ping"

Problem: Heavy jargon that no one would naturally use when recommending the service. It requires technical knowledge to understand and isn't conversational.

✅ Recommended Fix:

Before:

"Monitor SSL/TLS & Domain Expiry, Uptime, and Server Ping" "PrettyGoodPing [Beta] is a configurable dashboard for web developers"

After:

"Sleep better knowing your sites are being watched" "We monitor your SSL certificates, domains, and uptime - and email you before things break. It's pretty good at it."

See the complete audit below

Installation

Claude Code

# Add the marketplace
claude plugin marketplace add oalders/talk-about-us

# Install the plugin
claude plugin install talk-about-us@talk-about-us

Codex

Tell Codex:

Fetch and follow instructions from https://raw.githubusercontent.com/oalders/talk-about-us/main/.codex/INSTALL.md

Or see docs/README.codex.md for manual installation.

OpenCode

Tell OpenCode:

Fetch and follow instructions from https://raw.githubusercontent.com/oalders/talk-about-us/main/.opencode/INSTALL.md

Or see docs/README.opencode.md for manual installation.

ChatGPT

Create a Custom GPT using the contents of SKILL.md as the instructions, or paste it directly into any conversation.

See docs/README.chatgpt.md for detailed instructions.

Local Development

Clone and test locally:

git clone https://github.com/oalders/talk-about-us.git
cd talk-about-us
claude --plugin-dir .

Usage

Once installed, the Talk About Us skill becomes available to Claude Code. Claude will automatically invoke this skill when you're:

• Reviewing website copy, About pages, or feature descriptions
• Writing SEO titles and meta descriptions
• Auditing marketing content before publication
• Refining messaging that feels generic or jargon-heavy

Example

You: Review the copy on our homepage for shareability

Claude: [Automatically uses the talk-about-us skill]
I'll audit your homepage copy using Anil Dash's shareability framework...

[Performs the four tests and provides specific feedback]

You can also explicitly request it:

You: Use the shareability audit on this paragraph: "We're passionate about innovation..."

Claude: [Applies the framework and suggests improvements]

The plugin works with both local content and live URLs:

You: Use the talk about us test to audit the content on the front page of https://www.prettygoodping.com/

Claude: [Fetches the URL and applies the shareability framework to the page content]

What Makes Content Shareable?

Content passes the shareability test when: