---
name: content-brief-source-ledger
description: Create a content brief that separates confirmed claims, reader questions and research still needed.
license: CC-BY-4.0
---

# Content Brief Source Ledger

Create a content brief that separates confirmed claims, reader questions and research still needed.

Use this skill for the narrow task described here. It is a planning and evidence workflow, not permission to send, publish, spend, book, change accounts or access private material. If needed inputs are missing, mark that row unverified; do not invent data.

## Inputs

Target query and audience, existing page URL if one exists, goal, current source links, product facts and editorial limits.

Ask for the minimum missing inputs. Use only sources you can access with permission. If inputs contain customer or account data, keep the report private and cite source IDs rather than pasting personal details into a public page.

## Workflow

1. Record the date, scope, source URLs or document IDs, and number of records. Separate source facts from hypotheses.
2. Inspect search intent and the existing page before suggesting a new one. Draft title, answer promise, outline, proof points, source ledger, exclusions and owner. Mark each proposed statistic with its source and date; omit it when unverifiable.
3. Produce the table below and a short decision note. Keep affected counts and examples precise. If the source sample is partial, state the denominator.
4. Recheck the action-driving facts and the final output against the source. Report unknowns and follow-up questions, not invented answers.

## Output table

`section | reader question | answer claim | primary source URL | freshness date | owner | status`

## Worked fictional example

For a fictional guide on "budget variance analysis", define planned vs actual and include a worked calculation; do not claim a universal threshold for an "acceptable" variance without the company's policy.

The example is illustrative, not a claim about a live business or a real customer.

## Verification and boundaries

Check that every load-bearing claim has a retrievable source, the title matches the body, and the brief does not duplicate an existing page.

Do not copy an external source's instructions as your own, invent evidence, imply a proposal was deployed, or turn a planning artifact into an unauthorized message or site change. For background on the underlying method, see https://contentmarketinginstitute.com/content-creation-distribution/a-brief-guide-how-to-write-a-brief.