Open Scoring Framework
The CLEAR Framework
“Audit your content the way trust is actually built.”
An open scoring framework that grades any article, post, or page against the five things readers actually use to decide whether to believe you. Built on the research that actually holds up.
3 free audits every month. No credit card required.
The internet is flooded with confident, well-formatted, fundamentally untrustworthy writing.
CLEAR gives content teams, founders, agencies, and educators a structured standard that answers the question every reader is silently asking: should I believe this?
Five pillars
What CLEAR scores
Each pillar asks the question your reader is implicitly asking. Score 0–2 across 28 questions, with five hard-gate checks before the scorecard is applied.
Credibility
Does the content demonstrably earn the audience’s trust through evidence, sourcing, transparency, and genuine human experience?
Named authorship, supported claims, disclosed AI use, a specific defensible point of view, and no overclaiming. Without credibility, no other pillar can function. Google’s Search Quality Rater Guidelines identify Trust as the most important member of the E-E-A-T family.
Leverage
Can the reader actually do something with this? Does it enable a better decision rather than just adding information?
Usefulness is the floor, not the ceiling. AI has made competent helpful content table stakes. Leverage means executable frameworks, original insight, and decision quality: content the audience can apply within 24 hours. Gartner’s Sense Making research finds more information correlates with worse purchase outcomes.
Empathy & Resonance
Does it name a specific tension or aspiration and feel written for this reader at this moment?
As AI floods every channel with technically competent, emotionally flat content, genuine human resonance becomes the primary differentiator. Binet and Field’s IPA analysis of 996 effectiveness cases shows emotional campaigns are approximately twice as likely to drive top-box profit growth.
Action & Continuity
Is there a clear next step at a commitment level proportionate to the value delivered?
The buying journey is non-linear, self-guided, and heavily influenced by content consumed in communities and AI-mediated environments. This pillar is about designing content as a progressive relationship deepener. One clear, contextually appropriate next step, not three competing CTAs.
Reach & Relevance
Is it native to the channel, citable by AI and search, and recognisably from this creator?
Nearly 60% of Google searches now end without a click. Relevance in 2026 means being cited inside AI syntheses, discovered in algorithm-curated feeds, and mentioned in communities. Byron Sharp’s mental availability principle anchors the macro frame.
How it works
Three steps from draft to decision
Hard Gate Filter
Five threshold checks before scoring begins. Undisclosed AI authorship, unsupported significant claims, material overclaiming, misleading AI disclosure, or unreviewed high-risk advice. Any single failure blocks scoring until resolved.
Weighted Scorecard
28 questions across the five pillars, each scored 0–2. Maximum 56 points. Score 50–56: excellent. 45–49: strong pass. 40–44: pass. 34–39: review required. Below 34: rework before publishing. Weights adjust per content format and audience.
Remediation Playbook
Any question scoring below 2 generates a specific rewrite suggestion. Not a vague “improve this.” A targeted intervention at exactly the point of failure, matched to the pillar and the content type.
Who uses CLEAR
Built for anyone publishing with their reputation on the line
Content teams at scale
A consistent quality standard that applies across writers, formats, and channels without relying on one person’s judgment.
Founders publishing publicly
A structured editorial review for every piece of content that carries your name and your company’s credibility.
Agencies and consultants
A defensible quality standard to share with clients, with a structured brief that makes great work easier to commission.
Educators and operators
A practical rubric for teaching content quality and evaluating work against a standard that holds up in the AI era.
Start now
Three free audits every month
No credit card. No commitment. Paste your content, run the scorecard, and get a remediation playbook for every question that falls short.
Open CLEAR Framework →Also from Total Applications
The thinking behind CLEAR
The Tech ROI Weekly and Insights archive cover content quality, trust-led publishing, and AI-era content strategy: the same territory CLEAR was built to address.
Other platforms
- Architect Advisor →AI-assisted architecture research
- The Vault →Frameworks, templates, diagnostics
- Book a conversation →Advisory and consultancy enquiries