# ATTICUS AUDIT — Krusty Planet Pricing Proposal

**File:** `/tmp/krustyplanet/research/pricing-proposal-2026-04-10.md`  
**Date:** 2026-04-10  
**Auditor:** Atticus 🔍

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## VERDICT

**NEEDS REVISION**

The pricing structure is sound. The internal rationale is clear. But the customer-facing content will confuse the target audience (non-technical small business owners). Jargon remains unexplained, critical customer questions go unanswered, and one element risks alienating mainstream customers.

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## ISSUES FOUND

| # | Type | Location | Issue | Fix |
|---|------|----------|-------|-----|
| 1 | Clarity | Starter Kit | "Agent" — target customer won't know this term | Rewrite: "AI assistant that runs on your computer" |
| 2 | Clarity | Starter Kit | "Catalog skill" — jargon | Rewrite: "Pre-built capabilities (example: summarizing documents, managing a to-do list)" |
| 3 | Clarity | Custom Build | "Tool/API integration" — jargon | Rewrite: "Connects your AI to another service you use (example: your calendar, email, or database)" |
| 4 | Clarity | Monthly Support | "SLA" — not all business owners know this acronym | Rewrite: "Response time guarantee: 4 hours for urgent issues, 24 hours for everything else" |
| 5 | Gap | All tiers | "What counts as a skill?" — undefined | Add brief definition. Example: "A skill is a specific task your AI assistant can perform, like writing emails or analyzing spreadsheets." |
| 6 | Gap | Monthly Support | "Agent health monitoring" — what does this actually check? | Define concretely. Example: "Checks that your AI is online, responsive, and has sufficient disk space. Alerts sent to your email if something fails." |
| 7 | Gap | Monthly Support | "What happens if I cancel mid-month?" — no refund policy stated | Add: "Cancel anytime. If you cancel mid-month, you retain access for the rest of the billing period. No refunds for partial months." OR clarify the policy you want. |
| 8 | Gap | Monthly Support | "What qualifies as 'critical' vs 'standard'?" — undefined | Define with examples. Critical: "Your AI is down or returning errors." Standard: "Minor issues, questions, feature requests." |
| 9 | Gap | All tiers | No upgrade path mentioned | Add: "Starter Kit customers can upgrade to Custom Build within 30 days and pay only the difference ($350)." |
| 10 | Presentation | All tiers | "Monero (XMR) accepted" + "I2P darknet available" — will alienate some mainstream customers | Keep this if your target is privacy-obsessed niche. But acknowledge it filters customers. Alternative: Move to footer or contact page, not top-tier pricing card. |
| 11 | Tone | Design Decisions | "Cheap clown" phrasing — unnecessary punch-down tone | Rewrite: "$50/hr signals 'real professional' — competent but accessible." |
| 12 | Gap | Custom Build | "Walkthrough call" — how long? Phone or video? | Specify: "45-minute video call (Zoom/Jitsi/your choice)" |
| 13 | Gap | All tiers | What if deployment fails? — no satisfaction guarantee mentioned | Add clear policy. Example: "If we can't get your AI running, you don't pay." |

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## SLOP DETECTED

**None.** Clean writing. No Tier 1, 2, or 3 slop words found.

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## FACTUALITY

**Citations: N/A** — Internal proposal document, not a research document. Competitive landscape figures appear reasonable for market context. No blocking issues.

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## CLARITY ASSESSMENT (30-Second Test)

I read the three tiers as a non-technical small business owner would:

**Starter Kit ($150):**
- ❌ "Pre-configured agent deployment" — "Agent" is industry jargon. Business owner doesn't know what this means.
- ❌ "3 catalog skills" — What's a "skill"? What's "catalog"?
- ✅ "Maintenance guide" — Clear.
- ✅ "30-day email support" — Clear.

**Custom Build ($500):**
- ❌ "Custom skills (up to 3)" — Still unclear what a "skill" is.
- ❌ "Multi-agent setup (2-3 agents)" — Why would I need multiple? What does this do?
- ❌ "1 tool/API integration" — "API" is developer jargon.
- ✅ "Walkthrough call" — Clear concept.
- ✅ "60-day support" — Clear.

**Monthly Support ($300/month):**
- ✅ "Up to 10 hours of work" — Clear benefit.
- ❌ "Agent health monitoring" — What does this actually monitor? What do I get?
- ❌ "4hr critical response SLA" — SLA is acronym jargon.
- ✅ "Cancel anytime" — Clear.

**Bottom Line:** A tech-savvy customer understands this in 30 seconds. A non-technical business owner (the stated target) stops at "agent" and "skill" and doesn't know if this service is for them.

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## CONSISTENCY CHECK

**Tier progression logic:** ✅ Sound  
Starter (basic) → Custom (advanced) → Monthly (ongoing support). Logical.

**Potential contradictions/continuity gaps:**
1. Starter Kit says "3 catalog skills" but Custom Build says "up to 3 custom skills". A customer reasonably asks: "What's the difference? Are 'catalog skills' pre-made and 'custom skills' are new for me?" — This distinction needs explicit clarification.
2. No path from Starter → Custom upgrade mentioned. A customer who buys Starter and later wants Custom has no guidance.

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## PRESENTATION RISKS (Gotchas)

A skeptical reader spots:
1. **"Up to 10 hours" in Monthly Support** — Customer thinks: "Am I paying $300 for hours I might not use?" Need to frame the value (proactive monitoring, priority response, expertise on retainer) more clearly.
2. **"Cancel anytime" without refund policy** — Ambiguous. Does "cancel anytime" mean I get my money back for unused time? Clarify.
3. **Monero/I2P in customer-facing pricing** — Suggests "this service is for darknet users." If that's intentional, acknowledge it filters customers. If not, move to secondary page.
4. **No guarantee mentioned** — What if deployment fails? What if I'm not satisfied? Small businesses are risk-averse. Address this explicitly.

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## TONE ASSESSMENT

**Professional?** Yes. No fluff, direct, rationale explained.  
**Corporate?** No. Authentic, relationship-focused.  
**Will it attract the target?** The structure and strategy will. The current jargon won't.

**Specific fix needed:** "Cheap clown" phrasing in internal rationale. Unnecessary punch-down that doesn't serve the document. Replace with neutral language.

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## RECOMMENDATIONS

### Mandatory (Must Fix Before Publishing)

1. **Add a customer-facing preamble** (top of pricing page):
   > "Krusty Planet sets up AI assistants on your own hardware. You own your data. No cloud subscriptions. One-time setup fees, optional ongoing support."

2. **Define "agent" and "skill" in plain language:**
   - Agent = "AI assistant that runs on your computer or server"
   - Skill = "A specific task your AI can perform, like writing emails or managing data"

3. **Define "API integration" in plain language:**
   - "Connects your AI to another tool you use (e.g., your calendar, project software)"

4. **Clarify Monthly Support terms:**
   - What "health monitoring" includes (concrete list)
   - Refund policy for mid-month cancellation
   - Definition of "critical" vs "standard" with examples

5. **Add satisfaction guarantee or "what if it fails" policy.**

### Recommended (Highly Suggested)

6. **Add upgrade path** — Starter → Custom within X days, pay difference only.
7. **Move Monero/I2P to secondary page or contact section** — Unless intentionally filtering for privacy-obsessed niche.
8. **Specify walkthrough call length and format** — "45-minute video call (your platform or ours)."

### Optional (Polish)

9. **Add example customer profiles** — "Starter Kit is ideal for: solopreneurs testing AI. Custom Build is ideal for: small teams with specific workflows."
10. **Add FAQ link or section** — Answer "What if I'm not technical?" "Do I need my own hardware?" "What happens when support ends?"

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## FINAL NOTES

This proposal shows clear strategic thinking. The three-tier structure is smart for conversion. The pricing is competitive without signaling "low-quality." The internal rationale is well-reasoned.

The customer-facing content needs sharpening for the target audience. A non-technical small business owner sees "agent deployment" and "catalog skills" and doesn't know what they're buying. The document assumes industry knowledge the target doesn't have.

**Fix the mandatory items. Then: APPROVED.**

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— Atticus 🔍  
VERDICT: **NEEDS REVISION**