1. ./brands/{brand-slug}/brand-context.md

   -- brand identity, audience, USP

2. ./brands/{brand-slug}/product-marketing-context.md

   -- deep positioning, customer language, objections (read if it exists), voice

3. ./brands/{brand-slug}/sostac/03-strategy.md

   -- target segments, positioning, phasing

4. ./brands/{brand-slug}/sostac/04-tactics.md

   -- channel plan, budget, priorities

./brands/{brand-slug}/sostac/00-auto-discovery.md

./brands/{brand-slug}/sostac/00-auto-discovery.md

Setup: Before running research, check if

agent-browser

is available (

agent-browser --version

). If the command is not found, install it:

npm install -g agent-browser && npx playwright install chromium

. If installation fails, use

WebFetch

and

WebSearch

tools as alternatives for all research tasks in this section.

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• Sticker campaigns: Branded stickers in high-traffic areas the target audience frequents. QR codes linking to a landing page with a compelling offer. Track scans per location. Cost: $50-$200 for 1,000 stickers.
• Chalk art and temporary installations: Sidewalk chalk near events, campuses, or business districts. Eye-catching designs with a clear message. Photograph and share on social for amplification. Check local regulations.
• Creative QR placement: QR codes on coasters, bathroom mirrors, elevator walls, coffee sleeves, receipts, public bulletin boards. Each QR leads to a unique landing page to track which placement converts best.
• Guerrilla projections: Project brand messages or visuals onto buildings at night. Highly visible, temporary, no permanent alteration. Cost: $100-$300 projector rental. Check local laws.

• Trend-jacking: Monitor trending topics hourly. When a trend aligns with your brand, create content within 2 hours. Speed beats polish. The first brand into a trend gets disproportionate attention.
• Meme marketing: Create original memes relevant to your niche. Memes that make your audience feel seen get shared. Never force your product into a meme -- let the humor lead, brand follows.
• Provocative content: Hot takes that divide your industry. Boldly challenge conventional wisdom with data or logic. Engagement comes from debate. Avoid anything offensive -- provoke thought, not outrage.
• Reply-guy strategy: Systematically reply to high-profile accounts in your niche with genuinely insightful comments. Not "great post" -- add data, a counterpoint, or a resource. Build visibility through value in other people's comment sections.
• Platform-native stunts: Use platform features in unexpected ways. Unusual poll sequences, creative use of threads, interactive Stories that tell a story, collaborative posts that create something together.

• Reddit: Join relevant subreddits 4-6 weeks before any brand mention. Answer questions. Share expertise. Build karma. When you eventually reference your product, it is a trusted recommendation, not spam. 90/10 rule: 90% pure value, 10% brand-relevant.
• Facebook Groups: Become the most helpful member. Answer every question in your domain. Share frameworks and templates. After 2-3 months of consistent value, you are the default recommendation when someone asks "who does X?"
• Discord and Slack communities: Same principle. Be present, be helpful, be patient. Drop knowledge, not links.
• Niche forums and communities: Industry-specific forums, Indie Hackers, Product Hunt discussions, Stack Overflow, Quora. Wherever your audience asks questions, be the best answer.
• Build-in-public: Share your journey transparently on social media. Revenue numbers, user metrics, failures, lessons. Audiences root for transparent founders. This is a long-game guerrilla tactic that compounds.

• Cross-promotions: Partner with complementary (non-competing) brands to share audiences. Joint newsletter swaps, co-branded content, bundle deals. Both brands benefit. Cost: zero.
• Affiliate micro-networks: Recruit 10-20 micro-influencers or niche bloggers with small but engaged audiences. Offer generous commissions. 20 affiliates with 2,000 followers each equals 40,000 reach for zero upfront cost.
• Co-created tools: Partner with another brand to build a free tool, calculator, or resource that serves both audiences. Split the cost and the leads.

• Creative packaging and unboxing: Make the unboxing experience share-worthy. Unexpected inserts, handwritten notes, small gifts, clever copy on the packaging. Customers film unboxing videos for free.
• Email signature marketing: Every employee email becomes a micro-billboard. Rotate CTAs in signatures: new product, lead magnet, event. 50 employees sending 30 emails/day equals 1,500 daily impressions.
• Creative business cards: Cards that double as something useful -- a mini tool, a bookmark, a seed packet, a sticker. Something people keep instead of toss.
• Surprise and delight: Randomly upgrade orders, include unexpected gifts, send handwritten thank-you cards to top customers. Recipients share the experience. Cost per delight: $5-$20. Value in earned media and loyalty: immeasurable.

• Free tool as lead gen: Build a simple calculator, grader, template generator, or assessment tool related to your expertise. Offer it free with email capture. A well-built free tool generates leads indefinitely. Bridge to marketing-content for content-driven lead magnets.
• Waitlist and exclusivity: Launch with a waitlist even before the product is ready. "Request early access" creates desire. Add a referral mechanic: "Move up the list by inviting friends." Viral waitlists cost nothing.
• Localized blitzes: Concentrate all marketing energy on one neighborhood, city, or community. Dominate one small area before expanding. Hyper-local Facebook ads ($5/day), local event sponsorships, geo-targeted content, local press coverage. Win one zip code completely.

• Event adjacency: Set up outside a major event your audience attends. Distribute samples, stage an activation, or host a counter-event nearby. You reach the same audience without the sponsorship fee.
• Cultural moment hijacking: When a cultural moment explodes (award show gaffe, viral news, pop culture event), brands that react fastest with relevant, clever content win disproportionate attention.
• Competitor moment riding: When a competitor launches, has an outage, raises prices, or makes a misstep, be ready with a response. Pre-prepare response templates for predictable competitor moments.

• Pop-ups: Rent a small space for a weekend. Create an immersive brand experience. Cost: $500-$2,000. Revenue from sales plus invaluable content and word-of-mouth.
• Brand activations at existing events: Partner with event organizers for a booth, demo, or experience at local markets, festivals, or meetups. Lower cost than hosting your own event.
• Immersive digital experiences: AR filters, interactive web experiences, virtual events with unique formats. Low physical cost, high shareability.

1. Concept: What is the stunt? One-sentence pitch. How does it connect to the brand?
2. Risk assessment: Legal, reputational, physical safety. Score each 1-5. Any score above 3 requires mitigation plan.
3. Logistics: Location, timing, materials, people, permits, backup plan.
4. Content capture: Photographers, videographers, social media live coverage. The documentation IS the deliverable.
5. Amplification: Pre-seed with media contacts. Real-time social posting. Post-stunt press release. Follow-up content series.
6. Measurement: Media mentions, social reach, website traffic, lead generation, sentiment.

• The generous overdelivery: Give away something of disproportionate value for free. The generosity itself becomes the story.
• The public challenge: Challenge competitors, the industry, or the audience to do something bold. Accountability creates narrative tension.
• The reversal: Do the opposite of what every brand in your category does. If everyone is polished, be raw. If everyone is serious, be absurd. Contrast creates attention.
• The hidden message: Easter eggs, hidden codes, secret content, scavenger hunts. Discovery creates excitement and sharing.
• The countdown or limited window: Extreme time pressure (24 hours, one day only) creates urgency and FOMO that drives organic sharing.
• The user-powered outcome: Let the audience vote, decide, or create. When people feel ownership, they promote it.

• Comparison pages: "Us vs [Competitor]" landing pages targeting competitor brand keywords. Factual, specific, updated. Include a feature comparison table and honest assessments of both strengths and weaknesses. Honesty builds trust.
• Legal and ethical rules: Only state verifiable facts. Never disparage -- compare. Include disclaimers and dates. If a competitor improves, update the page. Deceptive comparisons destroy credibility.
• Feature comparison tools: Interactive calculators where users input their needs and see how options stack up. Fair tools that sometimes recommend the competitor (for use cases where they genuinely win) build massive credibility.

• Keyword conquesting: Bid on competitor brand keywords in paid search. Ad copy addresses why users search for the competitor: "Looking for [Competitor]? Compare before you commit." Bridge to marketing-paid-ads for campaign setup.
• Audience conquesting: Target competitor followers, website visitors, and email subscribers through lookalike and interest-based targeting. Serve ads addressing common competitor pain points.
• Content conquesting: Create content answering "[Competitor] alternatives," "[Competitor] vs [Your Brand]," "switching from [Competitor]." Target the decision moment.

• Name the category: Create a new term for what you do. If the category name sticks, you own the conversation.
• Define the criteria: Publish the framework by which the new category is evaluated. The creator of the criteria always wins the evaluation.
• Educate the market: Content, webinars, and PR that explain why the old category is insufficient and the new one is necessary.
• Be the reference: Become the primary resource, the most-cited source, the go-to expert for the new category.

• Underdog positioning: Frame your smaller size as an advantage. More agile, more personal, more innovative, more aligned with customer needs. The audience roots for underdogs.
• Transparency as weapon: Share what big competitors hide. Publish your pricing, your roadmap, your revenue, your mistakes. Radical transparency differentiates instantly.
• Speed advantage: Launch features faster, respond to trends faster, adapt to feedback faster. Publicly demonstrate speed while implying competitors are slow.

• "Why I switched" content: Customer testimonials from former competitor users. Video testimonials are most credible. Focus on the specific pain point that drove the switch.
• Switching incentives: Discounted first period, free migration, concierge onboarding for competitor users. Remove every friction point in switching.
• Breakup campaigns: Email sequences targeting competitor users with empathetic messaging. "Frustrated with [pain point]? You're not alone. Here's what [number] people did about it." Never mock the competitor -- empathize with the user's frustration.
• Counter-programming: Launch features, content, or events timed to coincide with competitor launches. Capture attention during moments when the audience is actively evaluating options.

• Transparent pricing against opaque competitors: If competitors hide pricing, make yours radically transparent. Publish a pricing philosophy that explains your approach.
• Strategic free tiers: Offer for free what competitors charge for. Absorb the cost as a customer acquisition investment. The free tier is marketing spend, not lost revenue.
• Price comparison content: "What does [category] actually cost?" content that positions your pricing favorably through honest market analysis.

• Viral features: "Share your results" buttons, collaborative features that require inviting others, public profiles or portfolios, embeddable widgets with brand attribution, "powered by" badges on free-tier outputs.
• Network effects: The product becomes more valuable as more people use it. Marketplaces, communities, collaborative tools, shared databases. Each user is an acquisition channel.
• Content loops: Users create content within your product that is discoverable via search or social. Each user-generated page is a landing page.

• Feature gating: Gate features that deliver advanced value, not features needed to experience core value. Users must reach the "aha moment" on the free tier before hitting a gate.
• Usage limits: Free up to X uses, Y storage, or Z team members. Set limits where natural usage growth triggers the upgrade conversation.
• Conversion triggers: In-app prompts when users hit limits. "You've used 90% of your free plan. Upgrade to keep going." Show what they unlock.
• Reverse trial: Give full access for 14 days, then downgrade to free. Users experience premium value, then feel the loss. Loss aversion drives conversion.

• Landing page speed: Every 1-second delay in load time reduces conversions 7%. Compress images, minimize scripts, use fast hosting.
• Social proof placement: Testimonials near CTAs. Usage counters ("12,847 teams use this"). Real-time activity ("Sarah from Austin just signed up"). Logos of recognizable customers.
• CTA optimization: Specific CTAs outperform generic ones. "Start my free trial" beats "Submit." "Get my report" beats "Download." Use first person and benefit language.
• Exit intent: Capture leaving visitors with a compelling offer -- a discount, a lead magnet, a free tool. 10-15% of exit-intent popups convert.
• Form reduction: Every field you remove increases conversion. Name and email minimum. Ask for everything else after signup.
• FOMO and urgency (ethical use): Real scarcity (limited seats, limited stock, time-limited pricing) is ethical. Fake countdown timers and false scarcity destroy trust permanently. Only use genuine urgency.

• Content upgrades: A bonus resource specific to the blog post being read. "Download the checklist for this article" converts 5-15x better than a generic "subscribe to our newsletter."
• Interactive tools: Quizzes, assessments, and calculators that require email for results. Highest-converting lead gen format (20-40% conversion).
• Gated community access: Free Slack, Discord, or community access in exchange for email. Community membership feels more valuable than a newsletter.
• Spin-to-win and gamified popups: Gamified email capture (spin a wheel for a discount). Novelty drives higher opt-in rates. Use sparingly -- the tactic fatigues quickly.

• Integration partnerships: Build integrations with tools your audience already uses. Each integration is a distribution channel. Get listed in partner marketplaces and directories.
• API as growth engine: If your product has an API, developers who integrate it become distribution partners. Each integration creates lock-in and referral potential.
• Community-led growth: Build a community (forum, Discord, Slack) around your product category, not your product. Become the hub for the industry conversation. Community members become customers, advocates, and defenders.
• Co-marketing with complementary tools: Joint webinars, shared content, bundled offers. Each partner brings their audience. 4-5 co-marketing partners can double your reach for zero ad spend.

• No trademark infringement (using competitor logos, names in misleading ways)
• No false advertising or deceptive claims
• No trespassing or property damage for street marketing
• No astroturfing (fake reviews, fake grassroots movements, undisclosed paid endorsements)
• No data privacy violations for growth hacks
• No spam (CAN-SPAM, GDPR, platform rules)
• No manipulation of vulnerable populations
• No safety hazards in physical stunts

• Competitor keyword bidding: Legal but check jurisdiction. Do not use competitor trademarks in ad copy where prohibited.
• Ambush marketing: Legal if you avoid trademark use and exclusivity zone violations. Ethically gray -- assess brand fit.
• Controversy marketing: Legal but reputationally risky. Ensure the stance is genuine, defensible, and core to brand values.
• Scraping for outreach: Check terms of service and local data regulations. Prefer opt-in sources.
• Aggressive retargeting: Legal but can feel invasive. Cap frequency. Respect opt-outs immediately.

• Branded search volume (Google Trends, Search Console) before and after campaigns
• Direct traffic spikes correlated with campaign timing
• Social mention volume and sentiment
• Organic follower growth rate changes
• Inbound inquiry volume
• PR pickup and earned media value

• AI-driven A/B testing: Use AI to generate and test hundreds of headline, CTA, and landing page variations simultaneously. Speed of experimentation is the competitive advantage.
• Predictive growth modeling: AI models that predict which user segments are most likely to refer, convert, or churn. Concentrate guerrilla tactics on high-potential segments.
• Automated trend detection: AI-powered social listening that identifies emerging conversations your brand can jump on before competitors. First-mover advantage on trends is measured in hours.
• Personalized guerrilla at scale: AI enables personalized outreach, content, and offers at volumes previously impossible. One-to-one guerrilla tactics delivered one-to-many.

• Algorithm mechanics: TikTok's FYP tests content with small audiences first. Optimize for watch-through rate (keep videos short, hook in 0.5s, loop-able endings), shares, and saves. These signals trigger broader distribution.
• Sound-first creation: Trending sounds are distribution channels. Monitor trending sounds daily. Create content that fits trending audio within 24-48 hours.
• Creator seeding: Seed content with 10-30 micro-creators simultaneously. If one hits, the trend cascades. Budget: $50-$200 per creator for product seeding.

• Meme fluency: Understand meme formats, lifecycles, and platform norms. A meme used wrong is worse than no meme. Stay current -- meme formats expire in days.
• Template creation: Create original meme templates featuring your product or brand concept. If the template spreads, every instance is brand exposure.
• Community meme culture: Encourage your community to create memes about your brand or category. Feature the best ones. A brand with a meme culture has an organic content engine.

• Community as product: The community around your product becomes a reason to stay. Switching costs increase when leaving means losing a community.
• User-generated growth loops: Community members create content, answer questions, and recruit new members. The community scales itself.
• Community data as advantage: Community conversations reveal needs, objections, feature requests, and language that inform every other marketing channel.

1. Read brand context and SOSTAC (Section 0). Always.
2. Clarify scope: Budget guerrilla tactics, viral campaign, competitive disruption, growth experiments, referral program, or full guerrilla strategy?
3. Assess risk tolerance: Conservative brands need lower-risk tactics. Challenger brands can push boundaries. Ask if unclear.
4. Assess current state: Check

   ./brands/{brand-slug}/campaigns/guerrilla/

   for prior work.
5. Deliver actionable output: Specific campaigns, experiment plans, stunt briefs, competitive analyses -- never vague inspiration. Every deliverable includes a risk assessment.
6. Save deliverables: Write all outputs to

   ./brands/{brand-slug}/campaigns/guerrilla/

   .
7. Recommend the first move: What to execute first, what to test, and what to measure.

• Paid advertising beyond keyword conquesting -- route to marketing-paid-ads.
• Influencer seeding beyond micro-creator outreach -- route to marketing-influencer.
• PR stunts requiring media relations -- route to marketing-pr.
• Social media calendars and community management -- route to marketing-social.
• SEO beyond competitor keyword targeting -- route to marketing-seo.
• Email automation for referral and switching campaigns -- route to marketing-email.
• Content creation for comparison pages -- route to marketing-content.