BACKEND: THE LINES A CHECK SHOULD STOP

Six kinds of line that must never reach a customer, each with an example and why.
Every example line below is made up on purpose, to show what the check stops. None of them is a claim.


HOW TO USE IT

1. Save this whole file in your project's top folder, next to the rules file.
2. In the check prompt at the end, replace the blank in item 5 with your approved prices, or write "none approved".
3. The rules file tells the agent to run this check before it shows you anything.
4. Run it again yourself as its own step, with the check prompt at the end of this file.
5. Fix or cut every line it stops, then run it again.
6. Nothing ships until the check comes back CLEAR and you've read the piece yourself.


1. A RESULT WITH NO EVIDENCE
Example line: "Our AI agents make your team three times faster."
Why it stops: a result needs proof you can show, such as a report, a dated export or a screenshot. Without it, it's a guess said as a fact.
Let it through when: the source is named and on file, with the date it was measured.

2. A MADE-UP CLIENT
Example line: "A dentist we work with booked out her whole month."
Why it stops: unless that client is real, on file and agreed to be described, it's invented. One invented client makes every real one harder to believe.
Let it through when: the client is on file and you have their permission in writing.

3. A PROMISE YOU CAN'T KEEP
Example line: "You'll have a full calendar by the end of the month."
Why it stops: nobody controls what customers do. A promise about an outcome needs terms you've agreed and can meet.
Let it through when: it's a promise about your own work, such as what you deliver and by when, and you can keep it.

4. A NUMBER WITH NO SOURCE
Example line: "Nine out of ten owners say they're too busy to post."
Why it stops: a number with no source can't be checked, and readers repeat it.
Let it through when: its source and the date it was checked are on file, or it's sample data marked EXAMPLE.

5. A PRICE THAT ISN'T APPROVED
Example line: "Book this week and the setup is half price."
Why it stops: a price or a discount is a promise to every reader. Only prices on your approved list go out.
Let it through when: the price matches your approved list word for word.

6. A KEY OR A PASSWORD
Example line: API_KEY="EXAMPLE-not-a-real-key"
Example line: password: EXAMPLE-not-a-real-password
Why it stops: anyone who reads it can use it. Keys belong in a file that is never shared, such as .env.
Let it through when: never. If one ever leaks, cancel it and make a new one.


SEARCH FOR THESE

A quick pass anyone can run with the editor's search (Cmd+F on a Mac, Ctrl+F on Windows):
- A number right before the letter x, and the words "times faster" and "times more"
- client, customer, case study, testimonial
- promise, will have, by the end of
- % and any other figure
- $, price, discount, off, free
- key, token, password, secret

Not every hit is a problem, but every hit gets read.


THE CHECK PROMPT

Paste it into a new chat, with your draft where it says. In Claude Code you can type: Run the check in check-lines.txt on [file].

============ COPY FROM HERE ============
You are checking a draft before it goes out. Read it as if someone else wrote it, line by line.

Stop any line that is one of these six:
1. A result with no evidence on file.
2. A client who isn't on file, or is described without their permission.
3. A promise about an outcome nobody controls.
4. A number with no source and date, unless it is marked EXAMPLE.
5. A price or discount that isn't on this approved list: [paste your approved prices, or write "none approved"].
6. A key, token or password.

For each line you stop, give the line word for word, which of the six it is, and a fix or "cut it".
If you're not sure about a line, stop it and say why.
If nothing stops, write CLEAR and nothing else.

The draft:
[paste the draft here]
============ COPY TO HERE ============