name: hk-cantonese-copy
description: "Use when asked 幫我寫廣東話文案, 寫香港 IG post, 改成港式口語, Facebook 專頁帖文點寫, Threads 文案, 寫粵語廣告, or write marketing copy and social posts for a Hong Kong audience. Produces copy in Traditional Chinese with Hong Kong usage at the chosen register (書面語, 口語化書面語, or full written Cantonese), natural English code-mixing, versions per platform (Instagram, Facebook, Threads, and a caution note for LIHKG), hashtags, and a checklist that catches Simplified characters, mainland vocabulary and claims that need evidence."
version: 1.0.0
Hong Kong Cantonese Copy (香港粵語文案)
Copy written for mainland readers and run through a character converter does not read as Hong Kong. The vocabulary is wrong (視頻, 質量, 信息), the rhythm is wrong, and the absence of everyday English code-mixing gives it away at once. Hong Kong readers also switch register: a bank's website uses standard written Chinese with Hong Kong terms, while a café's Instagram speaks in written Cantonese. This skill writes copy at the right register for the platform and checks it reads as local.
Write in Traditional Chinese with Hong Kong usage. Hong Kong standard forms are preferred where they differ from Taiwan forms (for example 裏 rather than 裡, 綫 in official style); state the choice if the brand has its own style guide. Product claims must be accurate under the Trade Descriptions Ordinance (商品說明條例); confirm any regulated claim (health, finance, property) with the client's compliance team.
Required Inputs
Ask for these if not provided, otherwise infer and label the assumption:
- Brand and product, and what the post must achieve (awareness, a sale, a sign-up, an event)
- Audience: age, district or lifestyle, and whether they are local Hongkongers, new arrivals or tourists
- Register: 書面語 (standard written Chinese), 口語化書面語 (mostly written, with a few Cantonese touches), or 全粵語口語 (written Cantonese)
- Platforms: Instagram, Facebook, Threads, WhatsApp broadcast, website, or print
- Brand voice and taboo words, and any existing posts to match
- Facts: prices in HK$, dates, addresses, terms and conditions
Output Structure
1. 語域選擇 (register)
One line on the register chosen and why. Typical defaults: banks, government-facing and property use 書面語; retail, food and lifestyle use 口語化書面語 or 全粵語; youth brands use 全粵語 with heavier code-mixing.
2. 主文案 (main copy)
A headline, the body and a call to action at the chosen register. Written Cantonese uses the standard characters: 嘅、咗、喺、嚟、啲、冇、佢、睇、啱、嘢、畀、唔、係、嗰、咁、乜. Code-mixing follows real usage: everyday English words people actually say ("book 位", "check 吓", "sale", "deadline", "chill", "OT") and brand or product names left in English. Do not force English where locals use Chinese, and do not transliterate English words that are normally written in English.
3. 平台版本 (platform versions)
| 平台 | 長度 | 語氣 | 要點 |
- Instagram: first line carries the hook before "more"; short lines; emoji in moderation; 5 to 10 hashtags mixing Chinese and English (#香港美食 #hkfoodie); location tag
- Facebook: slightly longer, older audience, clear details (地址、時間、價錢), link in the post
- Threads: conversational, short, a question or a light joke; reply-friendly
- LIHKG (連登): caution note only. The forum is hostile to brand advertising; disguised posts by brands or paid users are usually spotted and backfire, and posing as an ordinary user is deceptive. Recommend listening and, at most, a transparent official account; do not write astroturf posts
- WhatsApp broadcast or website, if asked
4. 本地化檢查表 (localisation checklist)
5. 備選 (alternatives)
Two alternative headlines, one more playful and one more formal.
Quality Checks
Anti-Patterns
- Converting Simplified copy to Traditional and calling it done. Vocabulary and rhythm still read as mainland.
- Over-slanging. Forced 潮語 dates fast and can sound like a brand trying too hard.
- Mixing registers by accident. 書面語 sentences with one stray 嘅 look like an error, not a style.
- Taiwan forms for a Hong Kong audience (軟體, 網路, 計程車, 捷運).
- Undisclosed brand posts on forums. On LIHKG and elsewhere this damages trust and may breach platform rules.
- Puns that only work in Mandarin. Cantonese pronunciation decides whether a pun lands.
Example Trigger Phrases
- "幫我寫個 IG post 宣傳我哋銅鑼灣新開嘅 café,要港式口語。"
- "將呢段簡體文案改成香港人睇得順嘅繁體廣東話。"
- "Facebook 專頁同 Threads 各寫一個版本,推週末限定優惠。"
- "銀行理財講座嘅宣傳文案,要正式少少,用書面語。"
- "Write Cantonese social copy for our Hong Kong launch."