Most posts that feel "off" aren't badly written. They break a rule that only lived in the owner's head. Maybe you never show prices online, maybe you're closed on Sundays, maybe you hate the word "cheap". If nobody wrote it down, whoever makes your posts can't follow it.
The fix is a short brand brief. It takes half an hour, and it works the same whether your posts come from a freelancer, an agency or an AI tool.
1. Things you never say
Start here, because these are the mistakes that hurt.
- Words you don't like, such as "cheap", "best in town" or "guaranteed"
- Promises you can't make, like exact prices, arrival times or results
- Topics to stay away from
- For regulated businesses such as dental, medical or legal, the claims you're not allowed to make
Write each one as a short line: "Never show prices", "Never say we're the cheapest".
2. Things you always say
These are the phrases that make a post sound like you.
- How you describe yourself, for example "family-run since 2009" rather than "a company"
- Your area, written the way locals say it
- Your main call to action: call, book online or visit
3. Real offers, with end dates
An offer without an end date is a problem waiting to happen. Write down each one with the exact wording and the date it stops, for example "Free boiler check with any repair, until 30 November". When the date passes, it should never appear in a post again.
4. Facts that aren't on your website
Your website rarely says everything. Add the details that change what a post can say:
- Opening hours and days you're closed
- Your busy and quiet seasons
- Team names, if you're happy for them to be mentioned
- Years in business, awards, certifications
5. Visual rules
Keep this short and practical: your main colors, where the logo goes, what kind of photos you like (real jobs, not stock), and anything that's off limits, like a competitor's colors.
6. Two examples you love
Paste in two posts, yours or anyone's, that feel right. Examples explain tone faster than any list of adjectives.
How to hand it over
To a person: send it as a single page and ask them to check every post against it before it goes out.
To an AI tool: the brief only works if the tool remembers it. Pasting rules into a chat window every time is how they get forgotten. Look for a tool that saves your rules and applies them to everything it writes.
That's how Porch AI works inside Porchlight. You tell it things in plain words, like "we never show prices" or "we're closed Monday the 9th", or drop in your brand guide as a PDF or Word file. It saves each rule to your brand memory, and every post, caption and redesign follows them from then on. If a waiting post breaks a new rule, it rewrites it for you, and you can undo any change.
Keep it alive
Your brief isn't a one-off. Update it when an offer ends, when you add a service or when a post makes you wince. Ten minutes a month keeps every post on brand.
