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Skillscaption-writer

caption-writer

Marketing & growth

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Updated 10-16 03:41

About this skill

Caption Writer

Writes organic social captions in three labelled variations (Short, Medium, Long) with distinct hooks, one call to action and platform-correct hashtags, for client approval before scheduling. Apply British English and east-african-english throughout.

Use When

  • The post, photo or video is approved and we need the organic post copy written for this week on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, LinkedIn, X or a WhatsApp broadcast, not paid ads.
  • We want short, medium and long options with different opening lines so the client can choose.
  • Our posts need a hashtag strategy: branded, niche, community and location tags per platform, how many to use and which banned or risky tags to avoid.
  • Our captions come out generic or AI-sounding and need rewriting in the brand voice with a clear call to action.

Do Not Use When

  • ad-copy-and-hook-lab for paid ad headlines, primary text and hooks.
  • email-copywriter for newsletters and promotional emails.
  • content-ideas for deciding what to post in the first place.
  • Stop before posting or scheduling to a live account; deliver the drafts for client approval.

Required Inputs

Artefact Source/provider Required? If absent
Client or brand name, industry and country/city Client brief Yes Default the market to Uganda/East Africa; ask for the brand and industry before writing.
Platform and content type (photo, video, carousel, text post, Reel, Story, broadcast) Content calendar or account manager Yes Stop and ask; conventions differ too much by platform to guess.
Topic, key message (one sentence each), primary goal and one CTA Approved post brief or 11-content-calendar row Yes Draft the key message from the brief, state the assumed CTA in the post notes and ask for confirmation before scheduling.
Tone, mandatory keywords, product names or campaign lines, and banned vocabulary 04-brand-voice-intake or client No Use the brand's published posts as the tone sample and apply the engine's banned-word list.
Visual, offer facts, prices, results and permissions Client source pack or authorised owner Conditional Hold the claim or visual; never invent names, prices, results or consent.
Standing hashtag set for the client Hashtag and keyword tagging output No Build the set from the East African community lists for this post and recommend a full strategy.

The full intake list is in the caption build method.

Workflow

  1. Confirm the platform, content type, goal and approval boundary; route to email-copywriter for email or to ad-copy-and-hook-lab for paid ads.
  2. Inventory the supplied facts, visuals, permissions and missing inputs; stop if the goal, audience or authority to post is unknowable.
  3. Apply the chosen platform's conventions from the caption build method; do not blend conventions across platforms.
  4. Write three variations (Short, Medium, Long), each with a distinct hook strategy (for example bold statement, question-led, story-led), one CTA and a platform-appropriate hashtag set drawn from the client's standard set or the East African community lists.
  5. For premium, executive, high-ticket or trust-sensitive posts apply premium-commercial-writing; for persuasion-led posts also apply its buyer-psychology reference (belief sequence, proof rules, readiness-matched CTA).
  6. Check each caption against the audience's situation, narrative job, first-line information hierarchy, readability, one-action CTA, accessibility needs (alternative description) and the factual and permission register; correct any failure and rerun the check.
  7. Run the anti-ai-slop humanising passes and the direct-marketing ethics filter for selling captions, then deliver in the output format with post notes (placement, timing, ambiguities to confirm before scheduling).

Platform conventions at a glance

Platform Length Hashtags Key rule
Instagram 125–150 characters for reach; up to 300 words for education or story Up to 5, in the caption (Instagram cap, register INSTAGRAM-HASHTAG-LIMIT-PRIMARY) Hook inside the first 125 characters; no more than 2 emojis in the hook line.
Facebook 40–80 characters for reach; up to 250 words for story or event 1–3 maximum Warm, neighbourly; put any link in the caption text.
LinkedIn 150–300 words for engagement; 50–100 words for reach 3–5, industry-relevant First 2 lines carry the post; 0–2 purposeful emojis.
TikTok 100–150 characters 3–5 (niche, trending or broad, branded) CTA drives comments.
WhatsApp broadcast Under 150 words None Warm personal greeting; one action only.
X / Twitter 240–280 characters; thread for longer (1/, 2/) 1–2, woven into the text Open with a take or observation, not an announcement.

Outputs

Artefact Consumer Acceptance condition
Three labelled caption variations (Short, Medium, Long) per request Client approver; scheduler Each differs in length and hook strategy; one CTA each; hashtag count and placement match the platform.
Post notes Client approver Placement, timing and every assumption (for example an assumed CTA) are listed for confirmation before scheduling.
Standing hashtag strategy document, when requested Social team Built with the hashtag reference: tiered sets, tags to avoid and a monthly review.

Evidence Produced

Evidence Format Acceptance condition
Claim, visual and permission register Inline table Every price, result, quotation and visual has a source or permission status, or is held.
Release checklist Checklist against the quality standards Unavailable checks (native-language review, alternative description) are marked not assessed.

Capability and Permission Boundaries

Read and search only; analysis is read-only. Publishing, spend, live account changes, outreach and personal-data processing need explicit, action-specific client authority. Drafting is permitted within the supplied brief; posting or scheduling to a live account needs separate approval.

Degraded Mode

Without a confirmed platform, key message or CTA, return the narrowest qualified result and mark the affected checks not assessed. Hook options and a draft caption for the most likely platform can still be delivered, with every assumption listed in the post notes.

Decision Rules

Condition Action Failure or risk avoided
The platform and content type are confirmed Apply only that platform's length, hook, hashtag and emoji rules. Copy that could be pasted unchanged onto any channel or brand.
The client needs a standing hashtag strategy (branded, niche, community and awareness tiers, tags to avoid, monthly review) rather than one caption's tags Build it with hashtag-and-keyword-tagging, then draw each caption's set from its standard set. Generic, untargeted tag lists pasted under every post.
The brief omits the CTA or contains an ambiguity Assume the most likely single action, flag it in the post notes and ask for confirmation before scheduling. A post scheduled with an action the client never chose.
A price, result, quotation or visual lacks a source or permission Hold that element or leave a visible placeholder in the register. Fabricated claims or unauthorised use of an image or person.
The post supports a premium offer, executive audience, high-ticket service or trust-sensitive category Apply premium-commercial-writing: create value, show proof or judgement, and ask for a next step without sounding desperate or discount-led. Discount-led copy that cheapens the offer.
The caption sells Use readiness-matched CTAs and run the direct-marketing ethics filter; never use fake scarcity, fabricated consensus or unsupported "brain" claims. Manipulative copy and downstream refunds or complaints.
The post uses AI-generated content Route it through the disclosure and human-review rules. Undisclosed AI content and platform or regulatory action.

Quality Standards

  • Each variation genuinely differs in length and approach; three different hook strategies, not three versions of one opener, and the hook works as a standalone sentence.
  • One CTA per caption, clear and specific, matching platform convention.
  • Hashtag count and placement match the platform rules.
  • British English (organisation, colour, programme, behaviour, analyse, recognise, centre, enquiry); active voice; no banned vocabulary or filler phrases from the caption quality standards.
  • Tone matches the brand descriptor, or 04-brand-voice-intake where provided; names, figures, quotations and platform rules are verified before use.
  • Premium or high-ticket captions show specificity, proof and value before asking for action; the sequence runs hook, proof, choice, consequence in plain language rather than decorative persuasion.
  • Output follows the labelled format, ready to copy, and passes the anti-ai-slop ship gate; a blocking factual, cultural, safety or permission defect stops release.

Anti-Patterns

  • Treating a strong hook as sufficient when the audience cannot understand the offer or next step. Fix: rewrite the information hierarchy and test the CTA on the target mobile format.
  • Using a visual or claim without permission, alternative description or source status. Fix: stop the post or supply the missing evidence.
  • Reusing the same hook across the three variations, or padding one caption into three lengths. Fix: give each variation its own structure and tone.
  • Blending platform conventions (LinkedIn buzzwords, stacked hashtags on X, hashtags on WhatsApp). Fix: apply only the chosen platform's rules.
  • Adding a price, result, quotation, platform limit or cultural claim without a traceable source. Fix: verify it or qualify/remove it.
  • Publishing, scheduling or changing a live account from drafting authority alone. Fix: obtain explicit action-specific authority and retain the approval record.

References