feat(skills): add marketing skills collection

shared/skills/referrals/references/affiliate-programs.md

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+# Affiliate Program Design
+
+Detailed guidance for building and managing affiliate programs.
+
+## Contents
+- Commission Structures
+- Cookie Duration
+- Affiliate Recruitment
+- Affiliate Enablement
+- Tools & Platforms (Referral Program Tools, Affiliate Program Tools, Choosing a Tool)
+- Fraud Prevention (Common Referral Fraud, Prevention Measures)
+
+## Commission Structures
+
+**Percentage of sale:**
+- Standard: 10-30% of first sale or first year
+- Works for: E-commerce, SaaS with clear pricing
+- Example: "Earn 25% of every sale you refer"
+
+**Flat fee per action:**
+- Standard: $5-500 depending on value
+- Works for: Lead gen, trials, freemium
+- Example: "$50 for every qualified demo"
+
+**Recurring commission:**
+- Standard: 10-25% of recurring revenue
+- Works for: Subscription products
+- Example: "20% of subscription for 12 months"
+
+**Tiered commission:**
+- Works for: Motivating high performers
+- Example: "20% for 1-10 sales, 25% for 11-25, 30% for 26+"
+
+---
+
+## Cookie Duration
+
+How long after click does affiliate get credit?
+
+| Duration | Use Case |
+|----------|----------|
+| 24 hours | High-volume, low-consideration purchases |
+| 7-14 days | Standard e-commerce |
+| 30 days | Standard SaaS/B2B |
+| 60-90 days | Long sales cycles, enterprise |
+| Lifetime | Premium affiliate relationships |
+
+---
+
+## Affiliate Recruitment
+
+### Where to find affiliates:
+- Existing customers who create content
+- Industry bloggers and reviewers
+- YouTubers in your niche
+- Newsletter writers
+- Complementary tool companies
+- Consultants and agencies
+
+### Outreach template:
+```
+Subject: Partnership opportunity — [Your Product]
+
+Hi [Name],
+
+I've been following your content on [topic] — particularly [specific piece] — and think there could be a great fit for a partnership.
+
+[Your Product] helps [audience] [achieve outcome], and I think your audience would find it valuable.
+
+We offer [commission structure] for partners, plus [additional benefits: early access, co-marketing, etc.].
+
+Would you be open to learning more?
+
+[Your name]
+```
+
+---
+
+## Affiliate Enablement
+
+Provide affiliates with:
+- [ ] Unique tracking links/codes
+- [ ] Product overview and key benefits
+- [ ] Target audience description
+- [ ] Comparison to competitors
+- [ ] Creative assets (logos, banners, images)
+- [ ] Sample copy and talking points
+- [ ] Case studies and testimonials
+- [ ] Demo access or free account
+- [ ] FAQ and objection handling
+- [ ] Payment terms and schedule
+
+---
+
+## Tools & Platforms
+
+### Referral Program Tools
+
+**Full-featured platforms:**
+- ReferralCandy — E-commerce focused
+- Ambassador — Enterprise referral programs
+- Friendbuy — E-commerce and subscription
+- GrowSurf — SaaS and tech companies
+- Mention Me — AI-powered referral marketing
+- Viral Loops — Template-based campaigns
+
+**Built-in options:**
+- Stripe (basic referral tracking)
+- HubSpot (CRM-integrated)
+- Segment (tracking and analytics)
+
+### Affiliate Program Tools
+
+**Affiliate networks:**
+- ShareASale — Large merchant network
+- Impact — Enterprise partnerships
+- PartnerStack — SaaS focused
+- Tapfiliate — Simple SaaS affiliate tracking
+- FirstPromoter — SaaS affiliate management
+
+**Partner Relationship Management (PRM):**
+- Introw — Full PRM with deal registration, commissions, tiers, QBRs, and partner engagement tracking ([integration guide](../../../tools/integrations/introw.md))
+
+**Self-hosted:**
+- Rewardful — Stripe-integrated affiliates
+- Refersion — E-commerce affiliates
+
+### Choosing a Tool
+
+Consider:
+- Integration with your payment system
+- Fraud detection capabilities
+- Payout management
+- Reporting and analytics
+- Customization options
+- Price vs. program scale
+
+---
+
+## Fraud Prevention
+
+### Common Referral Fraud
+- Self-referrals (creating fake accounts)
+- Referral rings (groups referring each other)
+- Coupon sites posting referral codes
+- Fake email addresses
+- VPN/device spoofing
+
+### Prevention Measures
+
+**Technical:**
+- Email verification required
+- Device fingerprinting
+- IP address monitoring
+- Delayed reward payout (after activation)
+- Minimum activity threshold
+
+**Policy:**
+- Clear terms of service
+- Maximum referrals per period
+- Reward clawback for refunds/chargebacks
+- Manual review for suspicious patterns
+
+**Structural:**
+- Require referred user to take meaningful action
+- Cap lifetime rewards
+- Pay rewards in product credit (less attractive to fraudsters)

shared/skills/referrals/references/program-examples.md

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+# Referral Program Examples
+
+Real-world examples of successful referral programs.
+
+## Contents
+- Dropbox (Classic)
+- Uber/Lyft
+- Morning Brew
+- Notion
+- Incentive Types Comparison
+- Incentive Sizing Framework
+- Viral Coefficient & Metrics (Key Metrics, Calculating Referral Program ROI)
+
+## Dropbox (Classic)
+
+**Program:** Give 500MB storage, get 500MB storage
+
+**Why it worked:**
+- Reward directly tied to product value
+- Low friction (just an email)
+- Both parties benefit equally
+- Gamified with progress tracking
+
+---
+
+## Uber/Lyft
+
+**Program:** Give $10 ride credit, get $10 when they ride
+
+**Why it worked:**
+- Immediate, clear value
+- Double-sided incentive
+- Easy to share (code/link)
+- Triggered at natural moments
+
+---
+
+## Morning Brew
+
+**Program:** Tiered rewards for subscriber referrals
+- 3 referrals: Newsletter stickers
+- 5 referrals: T-shirt
+- 10 referrals: Mug
+- 25 referrals: Hoodie
+
+**Why it worked:**
+- Gamification drives ongoing engagement
+- Physical rewards are shareable (more referrals)
+- Low cost relative to subscriber value
+- Built status/identity
+
+---
+
+## Notion
+
+**Program:** $10 credit per referral (education)
+
+**Why it worked:**
+- Targeted high-sharing audience (students)
+- Product naturally spreads in teams
+- Credit keeps users engaged
+
+---
+
+## Incentive Types Comparison
+
+| Type | Pros | Cons | Best For |
+|------|------|------|----------|
+| Cash/credit | Universally valued | Feels transactional | Marketplaces, fintech |
+| Product credit | Drives usage | Only valuable if they'll use it | SaaS, subscriptions |
+| Free months | Clear value | May attract freebie-seekers | Subscription products |
+| Feature unlock | Low cost to you | Only works for gated features | Freemium products |
+| Swag/gifts | Memorable, shareable | Logistics complexity | Brand-focused companies |
+| Charity donation | Feel-good | Lower personal motivation | Mission-driven brands |
+
+---
+
+## Incentive Sizing Framework
+
+**Calculate your maximum incentive:**
+```
+Max Referral Reward = (Customer LTV × Gross Margin) - Target CAC
+```
+
+**Example:**
+- LTV: $1,200
+- Gross margin: 70%
+- Target CAC: $200
+- Max reward: ($1,200 × 0.70) - $200 = $640
+
+**Typical referral rewards:**
+- B2C: $10-50 or 10-25% of first purchase
+- B2B SaaS: $50-500 or 1-3 months free
+- Enterprise: Higher, often custom
+
+---
+
+## Viral Coefficient & Metrics
+
+### Key Metrics
+
+**Viral coefficient (K-factor):**
+```
+K = Invitations × Conversion Rate
+
+K > 1 = Viral growth (each user brings more than 1 new user)
+K < 1 = Amplified growth (referrals supplement other acquisition)
+```
+
+**Example:**
+- Average customer sends 3 invitations
+- 15% of invitations convert
+- K = 3 × 0.15 = 0.45
+
+**Referral rate:**
+```
+Referral Rate = (Customers who refer) / (Total customers)
+```
+
+Benchmarks:
+- Good: 10-25% of customers refer
+- Great: 25-50%
+- Exceptional: 50%+
+
+**Referrals per referrer:**
+
+Benchmarks:
+- Average: 1-2 referrals per referrer
+- Good: 2-5
+- Exceptional: 5+
+
+### Calculating Referral Program ROI
+
+```
+Referral Program ROI = (Revenue from referred customers - Program costs) / Program costs
+
+Program costs = Rewards paid + Tool costs + Management time
+```
+
+**Track separately:**
+- Cost per referred customer (CAC via referral)
+- LTV of referred customers (often higher than average)
+- Payback period for referral rewards

shared/skills/referrals/references/viral-mechanisms.md

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+# Viral Mechanisms
+
+Virality can be **engineered through product design**, not just bought with reward programs. But don't force it — decide *whether* virality fits your product before building anything.
+
+## Contents
+- Viral Potential Spectrum (the diagnostic)
+- The 7 Viral Mechanisms
+- Referral Best Practices (presentation, timing, friction)
+- Affiliate Mechanics (buyout clauses, the 20/80 power law, launch tactics)
+
+---
+
+## Viral Potential Spectrum
+
+Before engineering virality, place your product on the spectrum. **Don't force virality where it doesn't naturally fit.**
+
+**Natural viral potential (build for it):**
+- **Collaboration tools** — value grows when you invite others (docs, whiteboards, project management)
+- **Communication tools** — you can't use them alone (email, scheduling, messaging)
+- **User-facing outputs** — every use produces something others see (design, video, forms, links)
+
+**Limited viral potential (don't force it):**
+- **Backend / infrastructure** — invisible to end users
+- **Competitive-advantage tools** — users *hide* that they use them (their edge)
+- **Internal-only tools** — never leave the org
+- **Infrastructure** — plumbing no one talks about
+
+If you're on the limited end, invest in referral programs, content, and partnerships instead of embedding viral loops that won't fire.
+
+---
+
+## The 7 Viral Mechanisms
+
+Most are **non-incentive** — the loop is built into the product, not paid for.
+
+### 1. "Powered By" Badges
+A small attributed badge on user-facing output ("Powered by [Product]"). Every page/form/widget a customer ships becomes an ad. Often free-tier only (paid tier removes it).
+
+### 2. Exposure Loops
+The product's normal use exposes it to non-users.
+- **Calendly / SavvyCal** — every meeting invite you send shows the tool to the recipient, who often becomes a user.
+- **Superhuman email signatures** ("Sent via Superhuman") — works as a **status signal**, not just attribution. The signature signaled early-adopter status, so recipients *wanted* it. Exposure loops are strongest when using the product confers status.
+
+### 3. Social Sharing
+Make output natively shareable with a branded hook.
+- **#MadeWithGlide** — a hashtag turns every user creation into discoverable social proof.
+- One-tap "share to X/LinkedIn" on any milestone, result, or artifact.
+
+### 4. Embed Options
+Let users embed their content elsewhere; the embed carries your brand and a link back.
+- **Notion, Figma, Loom** — embedded docs, designs, and videos spread the product to every viewer on every host site.
+
+### 5. Watermarks / Mandatory Badges
+Like "Powered By" but harder to remove — baked into the output itself.
+- **OpusClips** watermark on generated clips.
+- **"Made in Webflow"** badge on free-plan sites.
+Free tier carries the mark; paid tier removes it. The free users become the distribution.
+
+### 6. Referral Programs
+Explicit incentives for referring. Covered in detail in [program-examples.md](program-examples.md) and below. The one *incentive-driven* mechanism on this list — use it when the product itself doesn't naturally spread.
+
+### 7. Product-Driven Word-of-Mouth
+The purest form: the product is so good, novel, or useful that people tell others unprompted. Not a mechanism you bolt on — it's earned through the product experience. Engineering the other six makes this easier to trigger.
+
+---
+
+## Referral Best Practices
+
+Detail beyond the core referral loop (trigger → share → convert → reward).
+
+### Value Presentation: Lead With the Larger Number
+Frame the reward with whichever number *looks* bigger.
+- On a $25 product, say **"$10 off"** — not "40% off."
+- On a $500 product, say **"20% off"** — not "$100 off" if the percentage frames better... but usually the absolute dollar figure wins for smaller prices.
+- Rule of thumb: **under ~$100, lead with the dollar amount; over ~$100, test the percentage.** Always pick the bigger-*feeling* number.
+
+### Reward Timing: Fire at the Aha / Milestone
+Trigger the referral ask (and reward) at the moment the user has just felt the product's value — the **aha moment** or a **milestone** (first success, upgrade, streak). Motivation to share peaks right after value is experienced, not at signup.
+
+### Double-Sided Rewards
+Both referrer and referred get value. Higher conversion than single-sided, and gives the referrer a generous, non-selfish reason to share ("here's $10 for you too").
+
+### Friction Reduction
+Every extra step kills share rate.
+- **One-click sharing** — pre-generated link, no form.
+- **Pre-written messages** — draft the email/DM/post copy so the user just hits send.
+- In-product placement at the trigger moment, not buried in settings.
+
+---
+
+## Affiliate Mechanics
+
+Detail deferred from the partnerships side — for building an affiliate motion into a referral/partner strategy.
+
+### Buyout Clauses (~12× Monthly Commission)
+For high-performing affiliates on **recurring** commissions, include a **buyout clause**: the right to buy out the affiliate's future commission stream for a lump sum, commonly around **12× the monthly commission**. Protects margin on a customer the affiliate referred once but earns on forever, and gives the affiliate an attractive cash-out.
+
+### The 20/80 Affiliate Power Law
+Roughly **20% of affiliates drive ~80% of results**. Don't spread effort evenly across a long tail of dormant sign-ups. **Identify super-promoters and invest in them** — higher tiers, custom assets, co-marketing, direct relationship, early access. Recruiting 1,000 passive affiliates is worth less than activating 10 great ones.
+
+### Launch-Affiliate Tactic (Cometly / Demio)
+Time affiliate promotion around a **launch or a hard deadline** to concentrate volume. Cometly drove **$251K on a single launch day** by mobilizing affiliates simultaneously; Demio ran launch-window affiliate pushes. The mechanic: give affiliates a shared date, shared assets, and a reason for their audience to act *now* (bonus, cohort, closing offer) so promotion stacks instead of trickling.