websitebox/website/PLAN.md

# WebsiteBox Marketing Site — Positioning & Plan

## Brand Positioning

**One-liner:** Own your website. No platform can take it down.

**Elevator pitch:** WebsiteBox gives you a fully working WordPress website on your own server in 45 minutes. No coding required. No content policies to worry about. Fully auditable code — read every line before you buy. One-time purchase options instead of recurring platform fees.

## Target Audiences (Priority Order)

### 1. Adult Content Creators
- **Pain:** Major platforms (Tumblr, Instagram, Patreon alt sites) routinely deplatform adult content. Even "adult-friendly" hosts have opaque TOS enforcement. Shared hosting providers can shut down accounts with no warning.
- **Message:** Your content is legal. Your hosting shouldn't be a liability. WebsiteBox deploys on VPS providers with explicit "legal content" policies. You own the server. Nobody can flip a switch.
- **Proof:** Age verification built in. BuyVM recommendation ($3.50/mo, explicit legal-content policy).

### 2. Journalists & Activists
- **Pain:** Hosted platforms can be pressured by governments or corporations. Data stored on third-party platforms is subject to subpoena/seizure at the platform level. Content moderation policies are opaque and inconsistently applied.
- **Message:** Your words on your server. No telemetry, no analytics, no third-party dependencies. Every line of code is auditable. Your data never leaves your server unless you explicitly send it somewhere.
- **Proof:** Fully auditable code, zero telemetry, all data in one visible directory.

### 3. Privacy-Conscious Individuals
- **Pain:** WordPress.com, Squarespace, Wix all collect user data, serve tracking scripts, and hold your content hostage behind their platform.
- **Message:** True privacy means true ownership. WebsiteBox doesn't phone home. No analytics. No tracking. No accounts to create with us. You download the code and run it yourself.
- **Proof:** No telemetry claim backed by auditable source code.

### 4. Free Speech Advocates / Independent Publishers
- **Pain:** Content moderation across platforms is inconsistent and expanding. "Acceptable use" policies shift without notice.
- **Message:** The only content policy is the law. Self-hosting means your site exists as long as your server is paid for.
- **Proof:** VPS-agnostic (works anywhere), content-permissive provider recommendations.

### 5. Non-Technical Creators Who Want Independence
- **Pain:** Feel locked into Squarespace/Wix because self-hosting seems hard. Don't want to learn Linux/Docker/nginx.
- **Message:** One command. 45 minutes. No coding. If you can copy-paste into a terminal, you can own your website.
- **Proof:** Step-by-step guide walks through every click.

## Competitive Positioning

| Alternative | WebsiteBox Advantage |
|------------|---------------------|
| WordPress.com | No content restrictions, no platform fees, you own the data |
| Squarespace / Wix | No vendor lock-in, no monthly platform tax, full WordPress ecosystem |
| Shared hosting (GoDaddy, etc.) | Better security defaults, no oversold servers, full root access |
| Manual server setup | 45 min vs hours/days, security preconfigured, one-command deploys |
| Ghost / Other CMS | WordPress has 40%+ market share = more themes, plugins, tutorials |

## Messaging Framework

### Primary Message
**"Your website, your server, your rules."**

### Supporting Messages
1. **One command to deploy** — No DevOps degree required
2. **Fully auditable code** — Read every line before you buy. No black boxes.
3. **Secure by default** — SSL, firewall, backups, brute-force protection out of the box
4. **Buy once, own forever** — One-time purchase options vs competitors' recurring fees
5. **No content police** — Self-hosting means the only content policy is the law
6. **WordPress inside** — 40% of the web runs on it. Thousands of themes and plugins.

## Pricing Strategy

WebsiteBox is a **paid product with auditable code**. It is NOT free and NOT branded as "open source." Buyers can read and verify every line of code before purchasing.

See `PRICING.md` for the detailed pricing reference.

### Tier 1: Standard ($49 one-time) — placeholder price
- Full WebsiteBox deployment, all current features
- Buyers can audit the full source code
- No future updates included
- Community support via issue tracker
- **Positioning:** "Buy it, own it, run it forever"

### Tier 2: Lifetime Updates ($149 one-time) — placeholder price
- Everything in Standard
- All future updates and improvements forever
- Security patches
- Priority issue responses
- **Positioning:** "Buy once, stay current forever"

### Tier 3: Managed ($25/month) — placeholder price
- Everything in Lifetime Updates
- Setup assistance
- Ongoing technical support
- Server health monitoring
- Priority bug fixes
- **Positioning:** "We handle the technical side so you don't have to"

### Additional costs (separate from WebsiteBox pricing):
- VPS hosting: $3.50-6/month
- Domain name: $1-12/year

### Key messaging rules:
- Do NOT say "free" anywhere
- Do NOT say "open source"
- DO say "auditable code" / "read every line before you buy"
- DO emphasize one-time purchase vs competitors' recurring fees

## Site Structure

Single-page scrolling site with these sections:

1. **Hero** — Headline, subheadline, CTA button
2. **Problem** — Why self-hosting matters (tabbed for different audiences)
3. **How It Works** — 3-4 step visual flow
4. **What's Included** — Feature grid
5. **Cost** — Transparent pricing breakdown
6. **Who It's For** — Audience cards
7. **Security** — Trust signals
8. **FAQ** — Common objections
9. **Get Started** — Final CTA with install command
10. **Footer** — Links, license, source code

## Design Direction

- **Clean, modern, minimal** — Think Stripe/Linear aesthetic
- **Dark-friendly** — Dark backgrounds with accent colors (not corporate blue)
- **Typography-forward** — Large, clear type. No decorative clutter.
- **Color palette:** Dark charcoal/near-black background, white text, green or teal accent for CTAs
- **No stock photos** — Use icons, code snippets, terminal mockups
- **Mobile-first** — Many creators browse on phones

## Questions / Uncertainties for Review

1. **Managed hosting tier** — Should the site advertise a managed option? Who would provide it? At what price point?
2. **Support model** — Is there a paid support offering, or is all support community-based (Git issues)?
3. **Brand voice** — The brief focuses on adult content as primary use case. Should the marketing site lead with that audience explicitly, or keep it as one of several use cases? (Current plan: keep it content-agnostic on the surface, but make the adult content use case clearly visible to those looking for it.)
4. **Logo / brand assets** — Does WebsiteBox have a logo? Should one be designed?
5. **Analytics on the marketing site itself** — Privacy-first product, but do we want analytics to measure conversion? If so, what tool? (Plausible? Self-hosted Umami?)
6. **Domain for the marketing site** — What domain will this live on? Is it the same as the Git server (constantprojects.xyz)?
7. **Call-to-action destination** — Should the CTA link to the guide.md hosted version, or directly to the install command?
8. **Testimonials** — Are there any beta users who could provide quotes?
9. **Legal disclaimer** — Should there be a disclaimer about content legality varying by jurisdiction?
10. **Comparison page** — Worth having a dedicated "WebsiteBox vs X" comparison, or keep it in the FAQ?