**Migrated from GitHub issue icub3d/decentcom#79** **Original Author:** @icub3d **Original Date:** 2026-04-17T21:59:16Z --- # Feature: Brand voice guidelines and user-facing copy sweep ## Overview Establish brand voice and comparative-copy guidelines for decentcom, then sweep user-facing strings and the README to remove named references to competing services. Internal developer docs (CLAUDE.md, design docs, code comments) keep their references for clarity. ## Background Split from #78. decentcom's user-facing messaging should stand on its own merits. Naming competitors in marketing copy tends to read worse than leading with our own strengths, and it also drifts out of date. Internal docs are a different audience — mentioning "Discord terms" there actually helps new developers onboard, so the sweep is scoped to user-facing surfaces only. This issue is a dependency for #80 (in-app About component) and #81 (landing site) — both consume the brand voice doc as their copy source. ## Requirements - [x] New `docs/brand.md` covering: - One-line value props (identity ownership, no passwords, self-hostable, cryptographically secure). - Tone of voice guidance (what we sound like: plain, confident, not aggressive). - Comparative-copy rules: lead with strengths; when contrasting, use generic terms ("other products", "centralized services", "typical platforms"); never name specific competitors in user-facing copy. - [x] Sweep and replace named competitor references in: - `README.md` - All user-facing strings under `client/src/**` (JSX text, button labels, placeholder text, toasts, modal copy, error messages visible to users). - [ ] Explicitly out of scope: - `CLAUDE.md` and other agent/contributor docs. - `docs/design/**`. - Source code comments. - Test fixtures and test code. - Git history (do not rewrite). ## Task List - [x] Draft `docs/brand.md` (voice + value props + comparison rules). - [x] Run `rg -i "discord|slack|matrix|teams|irc" README.md client/src` and catalog every user-facing hit. - [x] Replace each user-facing hit with a generic equivalent that preserves meaning. - [x] Update `README.md` to open with our own framing instead of "Discord alternative". - [x] Review PR for tone consistency against `docs/brand.md`. ## Test List - [x] Final grep: no competitor names in `README.md` or user-facing paths under `client/src/**`. - [x] Brand doc is self-contained enough that a copywriter could draft About / landing copy from it without extra context. - [x] README's new opening reads well on GitHub's project landing. ## Open Questions - Do we want a short tagline (e.g., "Your identity. Your server. Your community.") in `docs/brand.md` that both #80 and #81 can reuse? (Recommendation: yes, include 2-3 candidates for later selection.) ✓ Done — three candidates included in `docs/brand.md`. ## Dependencies - Split from #78. - Blocks: #80 (In-app About component), #81 (Landing site) — both consume this brand doc.

icub3d commented

2026-04-26 16:46:14 +00:00

Owner

Migrated from GitHub issue icub3d/decentcom#79
Original Author: @icub3d
Original Date: 2026-04-17T21:59:16Z

Feature: Brand voice guidelines and user-facing copy sweep

Overview

Establish brand voice and comparative-copy guidelines for decentcom, then sweep user-facing strings and the README to remove named references to competing services. Internal developer docs (CLAUDE.md, design docs, code comments) keep their references for clarity.

Background

Split from #78. decentcom's user-facing messaging should stand on its own merits. Naming competitors in marketing copy tends to read worse than leading with our own strengths, and it also drifts out of date. Internal docs are a different audience — mentioning "Discord terms" there actually helps new developers onboard, so the sweep is scoped to user-facing surfaces only.

This issue is a dependency for #80 (in-app About component) and #81 (landing site) — both consume the brand voice doc as their copy source.

Requirements

New docs/brand.md covering:
- One-line value props (identity ownership, no passwords, self-hostable, cryptographically secure).
- Tone of voice guidance (what we sound like: plain, confident, not aggressive).
- Comparative-copy rules: lead with strengths; when contrasting, use generic terms ("other products", "centralized services", "typical platforms"); never name specific competitors in user-facing copy.
Sweep and replace named competitor references in:
- README.md
- All user-facing strings under client/src/** (JSX text, button labels, placeholder text, toasts, modal copy, error messages visible to users).
Explicitly out of scope:
- CLAUDE.md and other agent/contributor docs.
- docs/design/**.
- Source code comments.
- Test fixtures and test code.
- Git history (do not rewrite).

Task List

Draft docs/brand.md (voice + value props + comparison rules).
Run rg -i "discord|slack|matrix|teams|irc" README.md client/src and catalog every user-facing hit.
Replace each user-facing hit with a generic equivalent that preserves meaning.
Update README.md to open with our own framing instead of "Discord alternative".
Review PR for tone consistency against docs/brand.md.

Test List

Final grep: no competitor names in README.md or user-facing paths under client/src/**.
Brand doc is self-contained enough that a copywriter could draft About / landing copy from it without extra context.
README's new opening reads well on GitHub's project landing.

Open Questions

Do we want a short tagline (e.g., "Your identity. Your server. Your community.") in docs/brand.md that both #80 and #81 can reuse? (Recommendation: yes, include 2-3 candidates for later selection.) ✓ Done — three candidates included in docs/brand.md.

Dependencies

Split from #78.
Blocks: #80 (In-app About component), #81 (Landing site) — both consume this brand doc.

icub3d

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Feature: Brand voice guidelines and user-facing copy sweep #57