The headline formula check: two patterns that make a hero sound generated

Two formulas that wore out

The first is the corrective contrast: "Coffee for people, not for profit", "Software that works with you, not against you". It borrows authority by knocking down a position nobody holds. The second is the clipped pair: "Fresh bread. Every morning.", "Built for teams. Loved by clients." Two fragments with full stops imitate the rhythm of a confident advertising line. Language models produce both at a remarkable rate because they're compact and sound finished, and that's exactly why they've become AI headline clichés: they fit any business, so they say little about yours.

What the headline formula check reads

The Critic takes the text of the page's first h1, the hero headline on an Anticode page, and tests it against two patterns:

X, not Y

The headline ends with a comma, the word not, and a few more words, with or without a final full stop, question mark or exclamation mark.

Two fragments

The whole headline is exactly two sentences, each between 2 and 40 characters and each ending in a full stop, question mark or exclamation mark.

If either matches, the check fails and the detail quotes the headline, so you see exactly what it judged. On a multi-page site, each page's main headline is checked, and the result names the page.

What slips through, and what's caught unfairly

So the check catches the two shapes as written and nothing else: other formulas, including three-beat fragments and the "not just X" opening, are beyond it. And a two-sentence headline that genuinely informs fails like any other. When that happens, read the detail and decide; the check reports, it doesn't block. It also reads only the main headline, not section headings.

Writing a plain headline instead

A plain headline says what you do, for whom or where, in one sentence, with one detail nobody else could claim. It doesn't need a twist. Some rewrites:

• "Coffee for people, not for profit" becomes "A coffee roastery in Whitstable, roasting small batches every Tuesday".
• "Fresh bread. Every morning." becomes "Sourdough and pastries baked on Market Row from 6am".
• "Software that works with you, not against you" becomes "Release notes your users actually read, posted in-app and by email".

Specific headlines are longer, and that's fine: the hero headline in each Anticode design system scales with the screen width, and the Calm, Bold and Boldest setting lets you size it for the words you have. The homepage headline guide goes through the process step by step.

Fixing a failure in the builder

1. Click the headline in the preview with Edit on and type the new line, or ask for it in a sentence.
2. Keep it to one sentence, and put the most specific word early.
3. Check the hero on a phone width: a longer headline may want the Calm scale.
4. Look at the Report tab again to confirm the check now passes.

Limits

• Not enforced. The design gate doesn't include it, so a page with a formula headline can still be published.
• Two patterns only. It's a guard against the commonest shapes, not a judge of headlines.
• Main headline only. Section headings and other pages' content aren't read beyond each page's first h1.

Questions people ask

Is an X, not Y headline always bad?

No, but it's been used so often that it rarely lands. If yours says something only you could say, keep it and accept the cross in the Report tab.

Does the check read section headings?

No. It reads the first h1 on each page, which on Anticode pages is the hero headline.

Why did a three-word-sentence headline pass?

The fragment pattern matches exactly two sentences. Three fragments, or one long sentence, don't match.