Preview the prompt +
# Build brief — an original marketing website in the taste of Stuff You Should Know
> Reference: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-stuff-you-should-know-26940277 · UIDiscovery: https://uidiscovery.com/sites/stuff-you-should-know · captured 2026-09-23 at a 1440px desktop viewport (+ 390px iPhone shots) · [full page](https://uidiscovery.com/media/captures/stuff-you-should-know/full.webp) · [scroll video](https://uidiscovery.com/media/captures/stuff-you-should-know/preview.mp4)
## 1. Goal
Build an original marketing website for **[the user's brand]** that feels as considered as Stuff You Should Know — same structure, rhythm and polish, entirely new identity and content.
## 2. Originality rules
- Build an ORIGINAL design for the user's own brand in the same *taste* as Stuff You Should Know: structure, rhythm, hierarchy, palette mood and type pairing.
- Never reuse Stuff You Should Know's logo, name, product imagery, illustrations, icons, screenshots or copy. Write new copy for the user's product.
- If the user hasn't said what their product is, ask first (or use clearly marked placeholders like [Brand], [Product], [Audience]).
- Reference screenshots are for looking at, not for embedding or tracing.
## 3. The taste, in short
- Stuff You Should Know (iheart.com): Entertainment marketing website, dark, colorful.
- 2 sections: Content → Blog.
- Spacing: long, content-rich sections (median ≈1700px tall at 1440).
- Type: one family (Open Sans). Imagery: mostly photography.
## 4. Page structure (top to bottom)
### 1. Content — supporting content that deepens one idea.
- Layout: text + media block. Tall, ≈1.9 screens (1700px at 1440), own light band #f6f8f9; 26 image elements (photo collage/gallery + small graphics); inline form (2 fields, e.g. email capture), 32 buttons (tabs, toggles or per-card actions).
- Slots: Heading (~4 words, like the reference); Body copy; Supporting visual (see image plan); Primary + secondary action.
- Topic (tone/length only — never reuse): “Stuff You Should Know”
- [Screenshot](https://uidiscovery.com/media/captures/stuff-you-should-know/s-01.webp) · imagery: slot 1
### 2. Blog — signal an active, credible team through recent writing.
- Layout: 3-up card grid: image, title, meta. Tall, ≈1.9 screens (1700px at 1440), own light band #f6f8f9; 26 image elements (photo collage/gallery + small graphics); inline form (2 fields, e.g. email capture), 32 buttons (tabs, toggles or per-card actions).
- Slots: Title + “All posts” link; 3 post cards: cover image, title, date/author.
- [Screenshot](https://uidiscovery.com/media/captures/stuff-you-should-know/s-02.webp)
Inner pages also captured (Contact, Security): https://uidiscovery.com/sites/stuff-you-should-know?view=pages
## 5. Design system
### Colour
| Role | Hex | Use | Contrast on background |
|---|---|---|---|
| background | `#27292d` | page background | — |
| foreground | `#e6eaed` | body text, headings | 12.0:1 |
| accent | `#0055b7` | primary buttons, links, highlights — sparingly | 2.1:1 ⚠ not for text; use as a fill with #ffffff text (7.0:1) |
| surface | `#55565b` | cards, inputs, alternate bands | text on it 6.1:1 |
| muted | `#cc032e` | secondary text, borders | 2.5:1 — borders / large text only |
Captured palette: `#27292d` `#55565b` `#0055b7` `#c6002b` `#e6eaed` `#cc032e`. Roles are assigned automatically — sanity-check them against the screenshot. Keep the palette's *mood* (dark, cool) and proportions; swap the accent for the user's brand colour.
### Tokens
```css
:root {
--background: #27292d;
--foreground: #e6eaed;
--accent: #0055b7;
--surface: #55565b;
--muted: #cc032e;
--font-heading: "Open Sans", ui-sans-serif, system-ui, sans-serif;
--font-body: "Open Sans", ui-sans-serif, system-ui, sans-serif;
--radius: 12px; /* calibrate from the screenshot */
}
/* Tailwind v4 — in globals.css after @import "tailwindcss"; */
@theme {
--color-background: var(--background);
--color-foreground: var(--foreground);
--color-accent: var(--accent);
--color-surface: var(--surface);
--color-muted: var(--muted);
--font-heading: var(--font-heading);
--font-sans: var(--font-body);
}
```
### Typography
- Headings: **Open Sans** (Google Fonts) — reference uses Open Sans. Free to use — load it directly.
- Body: same family — a single-family system; create contrast with size and weight, not a second face.
- Scale (starting point, sizes weren't measured — calibrate against the 1440px screenshot): display clamp(2.5rem, 5vw, 4.25rem), h2 clamp(1.75rem, 3vw, 2.5rem), h3 1.25rem, body 1rem–1.125rem / 1.6, small 0.875rem. Headings: tight tracking (-0.02em), line-height 1.05–1.15.
### Spacing & rhythm
Sections run ≈1700px tall at 1440 (median; range 1700–1700px, captures cap at 1700px) — long, content-rich chapters. Start with 96–128px vertical padding per section on desktop and about two-thirds of that on mobile. One continuous background — separate sections with space and type, not colour bands. 8px spacing grid, 1200–1280px max content width, 24px (mobile) / 32–48px (desktop) gutters.
### Shape, depth & theme
Confident colour blocks — let full-bleed colour bands and big shapes carry the personality. Read exact corner radius, border and shadow treatment from the screenshots. Dark-first; for a light mode swap background ↔ foreground, lighten the surface, keep the accent and re-check contrast.
## 6. Imagery plan
Best guess: mostly **photography** (dark, cool, Entertainment). Inferred from element counts, colours and industry — not from the pixels — so open the linked screenshots and match the real style before sourcing anything.
### Slot 1 · 1. Content → photography
- Entertainment references lean on photography. Count: a collage of several photos with one consistent colour grade. Aspect: 4:5. Look first: [ref 1](https://uidiscovery.com/media/captures/stuff-you-should-know/s-01.webp)
- **Stock** — “concert stage lights crowd dark”: [Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/s/photos/concert-stage-lights-crowd-dark?orientation=portrait) · [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/search/concert%20stage%20lights%20crowd%20dark/?orientation=portrait) · [Pixabay](https://pixabay.com/images/search/concert%20stage%20lights%20crowd%20dark/?orientation=vertical)
- **Generate** — `Photograph: concert stage lights crowd. Composition: simple composition with one focal point. Lighting: low-key, moody directional light with deep shadows. Cool colour grade that sits on #f6f8f9, #0055b7, #55565b. Photorealistic, natural textures, shallow depth of field, 35mm lens. Aspect ratio 4:5. No text, no letters, no logos, no watermarks, no brand marks or trademarked products, no recognisable real people.`
- **No imagery (type-led)** — 2. Blog: No imagery needed — type, spacing and colour do the work. If the screenshot shows a background graphic, rebuild it in CSS (gradient, grid, noise) or a short muted video, not a stock photo.
### If the screenshots show a different style
Open the refs first and name what you actually see (photo / product UI / illustration / abstract gradient or 3D / type only). If it differs from the guess, switch routes — UI is built in code, type-only needs no image, otherwise:
- **abstract 3D / gradient** — generate `Abstract 3D render: soft, glossy glass-like shapes and a smooth gradient in #0055b7 and #cc032e on a #27292d background. Lighting: low-key, moody directional light with deep shadows; cool tone. Minimal and calm, generous negative space on one side for text. Aspect ratio 16:9. No text, no letters, no logos, no watermarks, no brand marks or trademarked products, no recognisable real people.` · stock: [“abstract dark gradient 3d” on Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/s/photos/abstract-dark-gradient-3d?orientation=landscape) (same query works on Pexels/Pixabay)
- **illustration** — generate `Flat vector illustration: concert stage lights crowd, friendly simplified shapes, limited palette of #f6f8f9, #0055b7, #55565b plus one soft neutral, plenty of empty background, consistent line weight, cool mood. Aspect ratio 16:9. No text, no letters, no logos, no watermarks, no brand marks or trademarked products, no recognisable real people.` · stock: [“music flat illustration” on Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/s/photos/music-flat-illustration?orientation=landscape) (same query works on Pexels/Pixabay)
- **Licences:** Unsplash and Pexels images are free for commercial use under their own licences; Pixabay under the Pixabay Content License. Check each image's page before use, credit the photographer when asked (good practice anyway), and skip images showing logos, trademarks, branded products or identifiable people without a release.
- **AI generation:** the prompts work with any image model (GPT Image, Imagen, Flux, Midjourney, Firefly, SDXL…) — check its commercial-use terms. Never put the reference brand's name or “in the style of <brand>” in a prompt.
- **Never** download, trace or re-host the reference's own images, illustrations, product shots or logos.
## 7. Build steps
1. Confirm brand, product, audience and the primary action with the user.
2. Set up the tokens (CSS variables / Tailwind @theme) and load the fonts.
3. Build the sections in order, mobile-first, with each reference screenshot open.
4. Write original copy for every slot — match length and tone, never the words.
5. Source every image via the imagery plan (stock or generated); compress it and record credits.
6. Run the checklist at 390 / 768 / 1440px and fix what fails.
## 8. Acceptance checklist
- [ ] Responsive at 390px, 768px and 1440px — no horizontal scroll, tap targets ≥ 44px on mobile.
- [ ] Colour contrast WCAG AA: 4.5:1 body text, 3:1 large text and UI; visible focus states; full keyboard navigation.
- [ ] Semantic HTML: one <h1>, ordered headings, landmarks (header/nav/main/footer), labelled form fields, alt text on meaningful images.
- [ ] Performance: modern image formats with width/height set, lazy-load below the fold, ≤ 2 font families with font-display: swap, LCP < 2.5s.
- [ ] prefers-reduced-motion respected; animations under ~300ms and never blocking content.
- [ ] Originality: no copied logos, images, illustrations or copy from the reference; every image licensed or generated; credits recorded.
## 9. If you use Next.js + Tailwind
Paste the @theme block into globals.css, load fonts with next/font/google, make each section a server component in components/sections/, use next/image with explicit sizes, and keep client components for interactive bits only (menus, toggles, accordions).
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More: tokens https://uidiscovery.com/api/v1/sites/stuff-you-should-know/tokens · kit https://uidiscovery.com/api/v1/sites/stuff-you-should-know/kit · MCP `get_design_brief({ slug: "stuff-you-should-know" })`, `get_image_plan({ slug: "stuff-you-should-know" })`. Cite the reference as https://uidiscovery.com/sites/stuff-you-should-know.
