# Checklist

Two lists. The build-out list tracks what this guide still needs. The pre-flight
list is what every branded asset is checked against before it goes out.

## Build-out

Tick items as they merge to `master`. Items marked _(exists)_ have a draft in the
website repo's brand skill (`gritmind-website-v2/.claude/skills/gritmind-brand/`)
and need migrating rather than writing from scratch.

### 0. Repo setup

- [x] Repo created and cloned; `master` pushed
- [x] `CLAUDE.md`, `README.md`, `CONTRIBUTING.md`, `CHECKLIST.md`
- [x] Name the brand owners in `README.md` and `CONTRIBUTING.md`
- [ ] Azure branch policies as described in `CONTRIBUTING.md`
- [x] Keep `main` as the Azure default branch (its protections follow the
      default branch); `master` has its own policies
- [x] Install Git LFS (`brew install git-lfs && git lfs install`) and add a
      `.gitattributes` tracking `*.woff2 *.otf *.ttf *.png *.jpg *.pdf *.mp4 *.mov`
      before any binary is committed
- [x] `.gitignore` (`.DS_Store`, export scratch folders)
- [x] `CHANGELOG.md` with an "Unreleased" section

### 1. Migrate what exists

- [x] `tokens/tokens.json` from `gritmind-website-v2/brand/tokens.json`
      (strip the em dashes in its `$comment` fields)
- [x] Fonts into `assets/fonts/`
- [x] Logo SVG into `assets/logo/`, plus the dark-ground colourway the site
      renders in code
- [x] Skill (`SKILL.md` + 5 references) into `skill/gritmind-brand/`
- [ ] Switch the website to consume tokens and skill from a pinned brand tag,
      and delete its copies
- [x] Tag `v1.0.0` on `main`

### 2. Decisions to make first

These block parts of the guide. Each becomes a record in `decisions/`.

- [ ] Spelling: US (matches shipped site copy) or British (matches current skill)
- [ ] Canonical tagline and boilerplate ("Intentionally small, senior teams..."):
      long, short and one-line versions. The slogan is settled (`decisions/0005`)
- [x] Imagery: team photos are allowed in social posts about that person
      (`decisions/0001-team-photography.md`)
- [ ] Imagery: other photography (stock, events, client sites) - still open
- [ ] Social look: the Forbes LinkedIn quote card (`~/bison/video/src/gritmind/
      ForbesQuote.tsx`) uses a `#0e121d` ground, `#5ab28a` green, bold 700
      headlines and a dot grid, none of which are tokens. Either the tokens grow
      to cover it or the card is rebuilt on-brand. It also loads Alliance No.1,
      which is not a brand typeface.
- [x] Wordmark: the designer's drawn mark is the only logo, in both lockups
      (`decisions/0002-formal-mark.md`)
- [ ] When blue and green accents are used, and who decides
- [ ] Accent text contrast: light-mode mint `#5e8e81` is 3.55:1 on `#fafafa`,
      so it passes AA only for large text (dark-mode `#93e0c6` is 9.98:1). Allow
      small accent text in light mode or not, or add a darker text token
- [ ] Primary button colour: `web.md` says `#141936`, the navy token is
      `#131938`
- [ ] Which tools are supported for decks: HTML only, or also Keynote,
      PowerPoint, Google Slides templates

### 3. Foundations (`guidelines/foundations/`)

- [ ] Principles - signal over noise, the one-accent rule _(exists)_
- [ ] Voice and tone - word list, examples, before/after rewrites _(exists, partial)_
- [ ] Naming - company name usage, product and service names, capitalisation
- [ ] Logo - anatomy, construction, clear space, minimum sizes (print and screen),
      colourways, lockups, favicon and app icon, misuse examples, co-branding
      _(partial: horizontal and stacked lockups, two colourways and two mono
      versions each, the arches mark, PNG exports, which file to use, a few rules)_
  - [x] Horizontal and stacked SVG masters built from the designer's `.ai` by
        `scripts/import-logo-ai.py`
  - [ ] Website `Logo.astro` moved to the new horizontal master (consumer list
        in `decisions/0002-formal-mark.md`)
  - [x] Formal logo animation rebuilt in HTML and JavaScript from the `.aep`
        (`assets/graphics/gritmind-logo-animation.js`)
- [ ] Colour - palette, semantic roles, light and dark, accents, contrast table,
      usage proportions _(exists in tokens)_
- [ ] Typography - families, weights, scales per medium, fallbacks
      _(exists, web scale only)_
- [ ] Layout and grid - web, slide, document, social grids _(exists, scattered)_
- [ ] Iconography and glyphs _(exists in canvas reference)_
- [ ] Illustration and diagrams _(exists: canvas reference)_
- [ ] Brand graphics (`assets/graphics/`)
  - [x] Swoosh rebuilt from the designer's `.ai` as a generator plus SVG masters
  - [ ] Swoosh usage: where it appears, sizes, accent use, motion timing
- [ ] Data visualisation - chart rules across media _(exists, scattered)_
- [ ] Canonical figures and claims - every number we publish, its wording,
      source and sign-off date, plus a do-not-use list
- [ ] Imagery and photography - team photos decided (`0001`); the rest pending
      the decision above
- [ ] Motion - principles, timing, easing, signature move, reduced motion _(exists)_
- [ ] Accessibility - contrast, captions, focus, motion, alt text, as one page

### 4. Production (`guidelines/production/` + `templates/`)

For each: the spec, a template or master file, and a short pre-flight addendum.

- [ ] Web and UI _(exists)_
- [ ] Decks - title, divider, statement, stat, content, chart, quote, closing
      _(spec exists; template does not)_
- [ ] Documents - one-pager, proposal, SOW, case study, report _(spec exists)_
- [ ] Social - LinkedIn post, carousel, banner, profile image; X; OG cards
      with exact sizes per platform _(OG spec exists)_
- [ ] Video - title cards, lower-thirds, captions, end card, sound _(exists)_
  - [x] Production process: `guidelines/production/video.md`
  - [x] New-hire announcement template: `templates/video/new-hire/`, with a
        Claude skill; each hire is a folder outside the repo
  - [x] Rule on the new-hire template's exceptions: decisions 0004 (photo
        treatment, accent) and 0005 (slogan); "Social loops" in `video.md`
  - [ ] Remotion starter in `templates/video/`: theme from tokens, font gate,
        per-format layout and safe zones, beat helper, the motion vocabulary
        as primitives, stills and sfx scripts
  - [ ] Move the Forbes quote card into the starter once its look is decided
- [ ] Email - signature, newsletter _(exists, minimal)_
- [ ] Recruiting - job posts, careers assets
- [ ] Print - business cards, letterhead, event banners, stickers and merch
- [ ] Events and talks - speaker slides, booth, name badges
- [ ] Partner and co-branding - logo pairing, "in partnership with" lockups

### 5. Tooling

- [x] Script to assemble `skill/gritmind-brand/` from tokens, guidelines and assets
- [x] Script to export logo PNGs from SVG masters: `scripts/build-logo-exports.mjs`
- [x] A rendered, browsable version of the guide: `reference/index.html`
- [ ] Host the reference page somewhere the team can open it
- [ ] A lint step for the repo: em dashes, Title Case headings, hex values not
      found in `tokens.json`

## Pre-flight (every asset)

Run this before anything branded goes out. Each production guideline adds its own
medium-specific items.

**Signal**
- [ ] One accented element per view. If two things are accented, remove one.
- [ ] One accent colour per piece (red unless a scoped blue or green is approved).
- [ ] One idea per slide, card or frame.

**Mark**
- [ ] Logo from `assets/logo/`, not redrawn or screenshotted
- [ ] Correct colourway for the ground; clear space and minimum size respected
- [ ] Not stretched, rotated, recoloured to the accent, or given effects

**Type**
- [ ] Alliance No.2 for prose and headings; JetBrains Mono for numbers, dates,
      labels and code
- [ ] Headings at weight 500, tracking `-0.02em`, sentence case

**Colour**
- [ ] Every colour is a token value; ground is `#fafafa` or `#20243a`, never
      pure white or black
- [ ] Text meets contrast (4.5:1 body, 3:1 large); colour never carries meaning
      alone

**Words**
- [ ] No em dashes, no exclamation marks, no banned words (leverage, seamless,
      cutting-edge, revolutionise, unlock, empower, game-changing)
- [ ] Every number is real and sourced
- [ ] Would this sentence survive on a competitor's site? If yes, sharpen it.

**Motion and media**
- [ ] Durations and easing from tokens; spring curve on the logo only
- [ ] Reduced-motion version shows the resolved end state
- [ ] Captions on anything with speech; no flashing above 3 Hz

**Delivery**
- [ ] Exported at the spec size for the destination
- [ ] File named to convention
- [ ] Checked in dark mode or on the darkest ground it will appear on