Preview the prompt +
# Build brief — an original marketing website in the taste of Substack
> Reference: https://substack.com · UIDiscovery: https://uidiscovery.com/sites/substack · captured 2026-09-22 at a 1440px desktop viewport (+ 390px iPhone shots) · [full page](https://uidiscovery.com/media/captures/substack/full.webp) · [scroll video](https://uidiscovery.com/media/captures/substack/preview.mp4)
## 1. Goal
Build an original marketing website for **[the user's brand]** that feels as considered as Substack — 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 Substack: structure, rhythm, hierarchy, palette mood and type pairing.
- Never reuse Substack'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
- Substack (substack.com): Lifestyle marketing website, light.
- 1 section: Content.
- Spacing: long, content-rich sections (median ≈1700px tall at 1440).
- Type: system sans-serif headings over Spectral body. 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 #ffffff; 369 image elements (photo collage/gallery + small graphics); inline form (1 field, e.g. email capture), 230 buttons (tabs, toggles or per-card actions), 113 links (link lists / navigation).
- Slots: Heading (~8 words, like the reference); Body copy; Supporting visual (see image plan); Primary + secondary action.
- Topic (tone/length only — never reuse): “Make money doing the work you believe in”
- [Screenshot](https://uidiscovery.com/media/captures/substack/s-01.webp) · imagery: slot 1
## 5. Design system
### Colour
| Role | Hex | Use | Contrast on background |
|---|---|---|---|
| background | `#ff6719` | page background | — |
| foreground | `#363737` | body text, headings | 4.1:1 ⚠ below AA — adjust |
| accent | `#363737` | none captured — monochrome. Primary buttons invert (foreground fill, background text); add your brand colour only for small highlights | — |
| surface | `#777777` | cards, inputs, alternate bands | text on it 2.7:1 |
| muted | `#ffffff` | secondary text, borders | 2.9:1 — borders / large text only |
Captured palette: `#ff6719` `#ffffff` `#363737` `#777777` `#eeeeee`. Roles are assigned automatically — sanity-check them against the screenshot. Keep the palette's *mood* (light, warm) and proportions; swap the accent for the user's brand colour.
### Tokens
```css
:root {
--background: #ff6719;
--foreground: #363737;
--accent: #363737;
--surface: #777777;
--muted: #ffffff;
--font-heading: "Inter", ui-sans-serif, system-ui, sans-serif;
--font-body: "Spectral", 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: **Inter** (Google Fonts) — reference uses system sans-serif. The reference uses the system stack; Inter (or plain system-ui) keeps that neutral feel.
- Body: **Spectral** (Google Fonts) — reference uses Spectral. Free to use — load it directly.
- 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
Radii and shadows weren't measured. Read exact corner radius, border and shadow treatment from the screenshots. Light-first; for a dark mode use a near-black (not #000) background, ~90% white text, lift surfaces with lightness not shadow, re-check the accent.
## 6. Imagery plan
Best guess: mostly **photography** (light, warm, Lifestyle). 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 · Content → photography (uncertain)
- Lifestyle references lean on photography; 369 elements suggests icons/thumbnails mixed in. Count: a collage of several photos with one consistent colour grade. Aspect: 4:5. Look first: [ref 1](https://uidiscovery.com/media/captures/substack/s-01.webp)
- **Stock** — “cozy home interior morning light”: [Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/s/photos/cozy-home-interior-morning-light?orientation=portrait) · [Pexels](https://www.pexels.com/search/cozy%20home%20interior%20morning%20light/?orientation=portrait) · [Pixabay](https://pixabay.com/images/search/cozy%20home%20interior%20morning%20light/?orientation=vertical)
- **Generate** — `Photograph: cozy home interior morning light. Composition: simple composition with one focal point. Lighting: soft natural daylight, airy and high-key. Warm colour grade that sits on #ffffff, #363737, #777777. 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.`
### 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, matte clay shapes and a smooth gradient in #ffffff and #777777 on a #ff6719 background. Lighting: soft natural daylight, airy and high-key; warm 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 gradient 3d” on Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/s/photos/abstract-gradient-3d?orientation=landscape) (same query works on Pexels/Pixabay)
- **illustration** — generate `Flat vector illustration: cozy home interior morning light, friendly simplified shapes, limited palette of #ffffff, #363737, #777777 plus one soft neutral, plenty of empty background, consistent line weight, warm mood. Aspect ratio 16:9. No text, no letters, no logos, no watermarks, no brand marks or trademarked products, no recognisable real people.` · stock: [“lifestyle flat illustration” on Unsplash](https://unsplash.com/s/photos/lifestyle-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/substack/tokens · kit https://uidiscovery.com/api/v1/sites/substack/kit · MCP `get_design_brief({ slug: "substack" })`, `get_image_plan({ slug: "substack" })`. Cite the reference as https://uidiscovery.com/sites/substack.
