youtube-video-audit

Pack Availability Guard

Before telling the user to run a skill from another project-local pack, check .agents/project.json.enabled_packs. If the target pack is not enabled, recommend /pack install <pack> instead of the target skill. Global skills are always valid. Skills from this same pack are valid because the current skill is already running from that pack.

YouTube Video Audit

Invoke as /youtube-video-audit.

Report-First Approval Gate

Default to report-only: present findings, evidence coverage, assumptions, recommended artifact path, and proposed file changes in a pre-approval alignment page plus a concise conversation summary for user approval before creating or updating canonical research, spec, or task files.

Do not write or overwrite synthesized deliverables until the user explicitly approves, unless the user invoked an explicit write/update/fix mode or clearly asked to write files upfront. Raw evidence capture may be persisted before analysis when reproducibility requires it; report those raw paths separately and still gate synthesized research/report writes.

When stopping for approval, build and attempt to open the alignment preview page first, then ask the user to review it and approve, question, or request adjustments. Do not include Recommended next skill, Recommended next command, or downstream routing language. The approval request itself is the next action. Only emit next-skill routing after the approved artifact has been written or updated.

Staged Research Workflow

Use this staged workflow for synthesized research or report outputs that would create or update canonical research, spec, or task files.

1. Stage 1 - Research and clarify. Perform the research, run required source/code checks, and ask any needed clarification questions. Write only a non-canonical working packet: flat mode uses research/_working/preliminary-<skill>-research.md; product-path mode uses research/{slug}/_working/preliminary-<skill>-research.md. Replace <skill> with this skill's name value. Do not create or update canonical research, spec, or task files in Stage 1. Raw evidence or search logs may remain as supporting evidence where this skill already requires them, but synthesized deliverables stay in the working packet.
2. Stage 2 - Review alignment. Consume the working packet and build the review HTML alignment page. The page must render the full preliminary packet, evidence matrix, assumptions/confidence register, source coverage gaps, proposed canonical file changes, and approval gates. Stop for either feedback-only YAML or final compiled YAML. Feedback-only YAML revises the working packet and page, then remains in Stage 2.
3. Stage 3 - Finalize approved artifacts. Consume final compiled YAML only when it has no unresolved needs-clarification, unresolved down feedback, or other unresolved negative feedback. Apply approved edits first, archive the working packet to docs/history/archive/YYYY-MM-DD/HHMMSS/<original-working-path>, remove the active working packet, write the approved canonical artifacts to the unchanged output paths below, and convert the alignment page to confirmed with the approval record preserved.

Canonical output paths remain unchanged. Search logs and other supporting evidence remain allowed only where this skill's output contract already requires them.

Audit one YouTube video with raw evidence first, then synthesize why it performed the way it did and what should be changed or repeated. This is the single-video lane; use /youtube-channel-audit for channel-level patterns across multiple videos.

Evidence And Feedback Handling

Treat user feedback as input to evaluate, not as automatic ground truth.

• For factual, evidentiary, technical, or source-backed claims: verify against available evidence. If the user appears to misunderstand the evidence or states something factually incorrect, push back clearly and cite the evidence. Do not rewrite findings merely to agree.
• For taste, brand, positioning preference, risk appetite, prioritization, or other subjective judgment calls: weigh user feedback heavily and adapt the recommendation unless it conflicts with verified evidence.
• When feedback mixes facts and preference, separate them explicitly: correct the factual part, then incorporate the preference where it is a legitimate judgment call.
• When uncertain, say what is known, what is inferred, and what would change the conclusion.

Inputs

• Required: one YouTube video URL or video ID.
• Optional --owner-analytics <path>: user-provided CSV/JSON export or OAuth/API output from YouTube Studio or YouTube Analytics API.
• Optional --comments N: fetch up to N public top-level comments when public comment tooling/API access is available. Default 50, max 200.
• Optional --compare-channel <slug>: compare the video against existing raw channel evidence under research/youtube/data/<slug>/.

Process

1. Resolve Target and Tools

1. Extract the video ID from a normal watch URL, Shorts URL, youtu.be URL, embed URL, or raw 11-character ID.

2. Require yt-dlp for public metadata:

   command -v yt-dlp
   

3. Select a transcript Python interpreter. Prefer a workspace-local .venv; create it if missing. Install youtube-transcript-api into .venv only when the import check fails and network access is available.

4. Do not require API keys. If YOUTUBE_API_KEY is already present, optionally use the YouTube Data API to enrich public metadata and public comments. If it is absent, continue with yt-dlp and transcript evidence.

5. Do not scrape logged-in YouTube Studio pages, bypass bot protections, or ask for private account credentials.

2. Persist Raw Evidence

Create:

research/youtube/data/<video-id>/

Persist public evidence before analysis:

• metadata-YYYY-MM-DD.json: raw yt-dlp --dump-json "VIDEO_URL" output.
• transcript/<video-id>.json: raw transcript JSON when available.
• transcript/transcript-summary.json: transcript text or failure reason.
• api/videos-list-YYYY-MM-DD.json: optional YouTube Data API videos.list response when YOUTUBE_API_KEY is already available.
• api/comment-threads-YYYY-MM-DD.json: optional public commentThreads.list response when available.
• owner-analytics/<source-file>: copy or cite user-provided owner analytics exports when supplied.

Record evidence gaps explicitly. Missing transcript, comments, likes, retention, CTR, impressions, traffic sources, or daily history are not failures.

3. Public Metadata Fields

Extract when present:

Field	Source and use
id, webpage_url, title, description	Identity, promise, and audit links
channel, channel_id, uploader, uploader_id	Channel identity
upload_date, timestamp, release_timestamp, live_status	Release timing and live/premiere context
duration, availability, age_limit, is_live, was_live	Format and access context
view_count, like_count, comment_count	Public performance snapshot
tags, categories, chapters	Topic, SEO, and structure signals
thumbnail, thumbnails	Packaging review evidence
subtitles, automatic_captions	Transcript availability signal

If YouTube Data API enrichment is available, include snippet, contentDetails, statistics, status, topicDetails, and liveStreamingDetails from videos.list. Respect quota costs and do not run repeated unnecessary API calls.

4. Owner Analytics Lane

When --owner-analytics <path> is supplied, inspect the local file format and parse only available fields. Support CSV or JSON with any of these fields:

• views, watch time, average view duration, average view percentage.
• impressions, click-through rate, traffic source, playback location, device type, geography.
• audience retention, relative retention, intro retention, end-screen metrics.
• likes, dislikes if owner-exported, comments, shares, subscribers gained, subscribers lost.
• daily or hourly time series after publish.

Treat owner analytics as private or owner-provided evidence. Cite local paths, avoid copying sensitive rows unrelated to this video into the report, and do not claim owner-only metrics unless they are present in the supplied evidence.

5. Analyze the Video

Analyze performance and content together:

• Release timing: date, weekday, time, recency, premiere/live/Shorts context, and any owner-provided first-24h or first-7d curve.
• Public performance: views, likes, comments, like rate, comment rate, views/day, views/minute, and comparison to channel median when --compare-channel evidence exists.
• Packaging: title promise, specificity, search/topic clarity, thumbnail focal clarity, description support, chapters, tags, and promise-match with the opening.
• Hook and structure: first 30-60 seconds, problem statement, payoff setup, pacing, chapter structure, recurring dead zones, outro and CTA.
• Content quality: clarity, credibility, examples, evidence, novelty, production value, and whether the video serves acquisition, trust-building, proof, education, launch support, community, or cleanup/repositioning.
• Audience response: summarize public comments into themes only when comments were captured; separate praise, objections, confusion, requests, and spam/noise.
• Owner analytics diagnosis: when present, connect retention, traffic, CTR, watch time, and time-series signals to concrete packaging or content hypotheses.

Do not fabricate transcript quotes, comments, thumbnails, retention curves, or metric values. Every major conclusion must cite the raw path, video metadata field, transcript excerpt, comment evidence, or owner analytics field that supports it.

6. Write Report

Create the research/youtube/ and research/youtube/data/<video-id>/ directories if they do not exist.

Save to:

research/youtube/video-audit-<video-id>-YYYY-MM-DD.md

Use this structure:

# YouTube Video Audit - [Title]

> Video: [URL]
> Video ID: [id]
> Channel: [channel]
> Published: YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM TZ if known
> Date captured: YYYY-MM-DD
> Public metadata: research/youtube/data/<video-id>/metadata-YYYY-MM-DD.json
> Transcript: [path or unavailable reason]
> Owner analytics: [path or not provided]

## Evidence Coverage

| Evidence | Status | Path or gap |
|---|---|---|
| Public metadata | Available | ... |
| Transcript | Available / Missing | ... |
| Public comments | Available / Missing / Not requested | ... |
| Owner analytics | Provided / Not provided | ... |
| Channel comparison | Available / Not provided | ... |

## Performance Snapshot

- **Views**: N
- **Likes**: N / unavailable
- **Comments**: N / unavailable
- **Views/day**: N
- **Views/minute**: N
- **Like rate**: N% / unavailable
- **Comment rate**: N% / unavailable
- **Channel comparison**: [above/below median, if evidence exists]

## Release Timing

[Publish date/time, weekday, recency, Shorts/live/premiere context, early curve if owner analytics exists.]

## Packaging Diagnosis

- **Title promise**: ...
- **Thumbnail signal**: ...
- **Description/tags/chapters**: ...
- **Expectation match**: ...

## Content and Retention Diagnosis

- **Hook**: ...
- **Structure**: ...
- **Pacing**: ...
- **Credibility and evidence**: ...
- **CTA/outro**: ...

## Audience Response

[Comment themes or explicit evidence gap.]

## Owner Analytics Findings

[Only include when owner analytics were supplied; otherwise state the gap.]

## What Worked

1. [Finding] - [evidence]
2. [Finding] - [evidence]
3. [Finding] - [evidence]

## What Hurt Performance

1. [Finding] - [evidence]
2. [Finding] - [evidence]
3. [Finding] - [evidence]

## Recommended Fixes

| Priority | Change | Why | Evidence | Human check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High / Medium / Low | ... | ... | ... | ... |

## Reusable Lessons

[What to repeat or avoid in future videos, scoped to this video's evidence.]

7. Summarize In Thread

After saving the report, output the performance headline, top 3 strengths, top 3 weaknesses, highest-priority fix, evidence gaps, report path, and raw data paths.

Constraints

• Public-first by default; owner analytics are optional and must come from user-provided files or already-authorized API output.
• Do not bypass login walls, bot protections, access controls, or YouTube Studio UI restrictions.
• Do not invent metrics, comments, transcript quotes, thumbnails, or retention data.
• Separate public evidence from private or owner-provided analytics in both raw paths and report language.
• Do not treat one video as a channel trend. Route channel-level pattern questions to /youtube-channel-audit or /creator-metrics-review.
• Do not perform external account actions or make automated channel changes.

Approved Artifact Handoff

After an approved synthesized write, explicit write/update mode, or any direct artifact mutation:

• List every created or updated synthesized artifact path in the final response.
• State the verification performed, such as readback, schema/check command, or why no executable verification applies for a Markdown-only strategy artifact.
• Check and report the relevant git status for intended artifacts when the project is a git repository. If intended artifacts are modified or untracked, make the next action shipping, committing, or an explicit dirty-artifact handoff before recommending downstream strategy work.
• Do not imply the research workflow is complete while approved artifacts remain untracked or uncommitted unless the user explicitly asked not to ship.
• If stopping for approval before writing, the approval request remains the next action; do not include downstream routing.

Intent-Aware Routing

Before applying the default ## Next-Skill Routing sequence, classify the user's immediate intent and route to the missing action that best serves that intent:

• Strategy refresh: recommend the missing or stale positioning, programming, portfolio, metrics, or product-media artifact.
• Recording prep: recommend the missing series spec, script, build proof, walkthrough guide, or validation artifact needed before recording.
• Upload prep: recommend packaging, title/thumbnail, description, chapters, or final metadata work before broader strategy work.
• Performance review: recommend metrics, cadence, portfolio, peer benchmark, or owner-analytics export work before new content planning.
• Owner analytics or private/manual platform evidence: route to an explicit manual/guide handoff instead of inventing unavailable metrics.
• Dirty intended artifacts: route to shipping/commit/handoff first, not another creator strategy skill.

Use the default next-skill sequence only when no stronger user intent, missing artifact, manual blocker, or dirty-artifact handoff applies.

Next-Step Routing

After writing the artifact, recommend the next contextual creator-media skill in the final response as Recommended next skill: <command>.

Default recommendation: /youtube-vid-research when the user needs neutral context from an external reference video; /youtube-format-research from the remotion pack when the next step is to reuse the video's format, design, pacing, edit, or production grammar; /youtube-competitive-research when the user asks why the video worked or what to learn from a specific competitor; /youtube-concept-research when the audit should inform a new video concept; /youtube-description-optimizer when description support, CTA/link structure, chapters, hashtags, disclosures, or metadata/search alignment are the main next step; /youtube-title-thumbnail-audit when title/thumbnail packaging changes are the main next step; otherwise /creator-metrics-review when owner analytics or channel comparison evidence suggests broader performance review.

If the user asks whether the issue is unique to this one video, recommend /youtube-channel-audit. If the user asks what to make next, recommend /content-programming after the audit report exists.

Alignment Page

When this skill produces durable deliverables (research, specs, plans, reports, prototypes, or any document output), build a full-depth HTML alignment page following ALIGNMENT-PAGE.md in this skill's directory. Output: alignment/youtube-video-audit-{topic}.html.

Default Shipping Contract

Follow the shared shipping contract convention in CLAUDE.md.