yt-ideation

What this skill does

# YouTube Ideation

You are generating and validating video ideas for a YouTube channel. Every idea must align with the content strategy and serve the target audience.

## Before You Start

You need from the user:

1. **Focus area** - What tool, niche, or topic to ideate around (e.g., "AI tools for professionals", "recent software updates", "productivity workflows")
2. **Research data** (optional) - If `/yt-research` was run first, load `niche-analysis.json` and `niche-report.md` for data-informed ideation
3. **Constraints** (optional) - Any specific requirements (e.g., "only short videos", "needs to be filmable this week", "must tie to a product launch")

If the user provided focus already, confirm and proceed.

## The Ideation Process

### Step 1: Load Context

Understand the creator's:

- **Content pillars** - What core topics does the channel focus on?
- **Audience** - Who are the viewers? What's their skill level?
- **Content types** - What formats work best? (tutorials, reviews, updates, comparisons)
- **Trending vs evergreen** - What's the balance between timely and long-lasting content?

### Step 2: Generate 15-20 Raw Ideas

Use these ideation methods:

**Method 1: Gap Analysis** (if research data available)

- Content gaps from competitor analysis
- Topics with high demand but low competition
- Complex concepts that need accessible translation

**Method 2: Trend Riding**

- Recent tool updates or feature launches
- Industry developments relevant to the audience
- Viral topics that can be made practical

**Method 3: Format Innovation**

- Existing topics in new formats (comparison, mega-guide, use-case compilation)
- Content types competitors aren't using
- Series potential (multi-part tutorials)

**Method 4: Audience Needs**

- Questions the audience is asking (Reddit, YouTube comments, community)
- Problems viewers face with the tools they use
- "How do I..." queries for the niche

For each idea, define:

- **Working title**
- **Content tier** (Tier 1: growth content, Tier 2: supporting content)
- **Content type** (Full Tutorial, Feature Tutorial, Update Video, Use Case Video, Comparison, etc.)
- **One-line angle** (what makes this video unique)
- **Timeliness** (trending/urgent or evergreen)

**Priority distribution:**

- 60-70% Tier 1 ideas (the growth engine)
- 30-40% Tier 2 ideas (supporting content)

### Step 3: Quick Self-Filter

Before validation, run each idea through a strategy test:

- Does it serve the target audience? (Must be yes)
- Can it be practically demonstrated? (Prefer yes)
- Does it support the content funnel? (Can we give away an asset?)
- Is it filmable in the current format?

Remove ideas that fail the test. Note why for transparency.

### Step 4: Validate Ideas

Spawn `idea-validator` sub-agents (5 ideas per agent) to assess:

- Search demand (YouTube autocomplete, Google Trends, forums)
- Competition level (existing videos, quality bar)
- Trend direction (rising, stable, declining)
- Audience fit (accessibility, practical value)

Each sub-agent returns an opportunity score (1-10) per idea.

### Step 5: Present Ranked Results

Present ideas to the user sorted by opportunity score:

```markdown
Here are your validated video ideas, ranked by opportunity:

| # | Title | Tier | Type | Demand | Competition | Score |
|---|-------|------|------|--------|-------------|-------|
| 1 | [title] | Tier 1 | Feature Tutorial | High | Low | 9.2 |
| 2 | [title] | Tier 1 | Update Video | High | Medium | 8.5 |
...

Top recommendation: [title] - [1 sentence why]

Which ideas do you want to develop into briefs?
```

Options:

- Pick 1-3 ideas to brief
- Generate more ideas in a different direction
- Refine a specific idea before briefing
- Go back to research

## Key Principles

- **Tier 1 first** - Always prioritize growth content (tutorials, use cases, updates). These drive channel growth.
- **Audience-appropriate** - Every idea must pass the "would the target viewer find this useful?" test.
- **Practical over theoretical** - Favor ideas where the viewer walks away with something they can DO.
- **CTA-ready** - Strong ideas include a natural asset giveaway (template, workflow, plugin) that ties to the creator's business.
- **Data-informed** - When research data is available, use it. Gut-feel ideation is a fallback, not the default.

## Overview

Generate and validate YouTube video ideas aligned with content pillars, audience strategy, and priority tiers.

## Prerequisites

- Access to the ORM environment or API
- Required CLI tools installed and authenticated
- Familiarity with ORM concepts and terminology

## Instructions

1. Assess the current state of the ORM configuration
2. Identify the specific requirements and constraints
3. Apply the recommended patterns from this skill
4. Validate the changes against expected behavior
5. Document the configuration for team reference

## Output

- Configuration files or code changes applied to the project
- Validation report confirming correct implementation
- Summary of changes made and their rationale

## Error Handling

| Error | Cause | Resolution |
|-------|-------|------------|
| Authentication failure | Invalid or expired credentials | Refresh tokens or re-authenticate with ORM |
| Configuration conflict | Incompatible settings detected | Review and resolve conflicting parameters |
| Resource not found | Referenced resource missing | Verify resource exists and permissions are correct |

## Examples

**Basic usage**: Apply yt ideation to a standard project setup with default configuration options.

**Advanced scenario**: Customize yt ideation for production environments with multiple constraints and team-specific requirements.

## Resources

- Official ORM documentation
- Community best practices and patterns
- Related skills in this plugin pack