> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.marketer.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Knowledge and Skills

> Route approved sources into workspace context and govern the reusable procedures agents follow.

**Knowledge** and **Skills** solve different problems:

* Knowledge holds approved source material, brand facts, reference context, and grounded artifacts.
* Skills holds reusable working procedures and the conditions under which agents should use them.

Open [Knowledge](https://app.marketer.com/dashboard/knowledge-base) or [Skills](https://app.marketer.com/dashboard/knowledge-base/skills) and confirm the active workspace.

## Decide what you are adding

| Material                     | Route                    | Example                                            |
| ---------------------------- | ------------------------ | -------------------------------------------------- |
| Approved brand identity      | **Brand kit material**   | Voice, visual rules, enduring positioning          |
| Facts and reference evidence | **Reference knowledge**  | Product proof, research, audience source material  |
| Reusable method              | **Working procedure**    | Launch QA, naming method, review checklist         |
| Mixed or unclear source      | **Let the agent decide** | Use only when you will inspect the resulting route |

Put changing performance numbers in Analytics or their owning surface. Put a repeatable method for evaluating those numbers in a Skill.

## Follow the context lifecycle

<Steps>
  <Step title="Establish authority">
    Confirm source owner, effective date, approved use, and whether a newer source conflicts. Remove secrets and personal data the workspace should not retain.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Build or upload">
    Use **Build from website** for the canonical public site, or route approved files through Sources. Wait for a terminal state and verify the resulting Brand kit, Knowledge, or Skill badge.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Inspect grounding">
    Review the **Standing index**, open **Recent artifacts**, and inspect the sources named by **Grounded in N**. Distinguish sourced fact from synthesis and recommendation.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Govern procedures">
    Review Brand foundation, active Skills, **Ready to promote**, proposed and archived items, and learning evidence. Read every imported procedure before activation.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Verify in a fresh task">
    Test one fact or method in a new task, require the named source or procedure, then run a nearby negative test that should not trigger the Skill.
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Go deeper

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Knowledge sources" icon="database" href="/product-guides/knowledge-sources">
    Build from a website, route files, change destinations, inspect grounding, and test retrieval.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Skills" icon="list-check" href="/product-guides/knowledge-skills">
    Audit active procedures, promote candidates, import approved Skills, and test both sides of the trigger.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Important boundaries

* The **Standing index** is compact context, not the entire knowledge base.
* A website build reflects the site when research ran; rebuild after material changes.
* Moving a source out of Brand kit does not guarantee previously extracted brand details disappear.
* Images and fonts behave as brand assets rather than ordinary factual documents.
* **Brand foundation** is always on and is not deleted like an ordinary Skill.
* Imported Skills become active after import, so the preview is an approval boundary.
* Usage and win rate are review signals; **Outcomes pending** is not 0% performance.

## Completion check

* Every important source has an owner, date, authority, and intentional route.
* Website and file work reached a terminal state.
* Artifact claims can be traced to the named sources.
* Active Skills have a specific trigger, scope, steps, branches, approvals, stop conditions, and final check.
* Imported or promoted Skills were reviewed for overlap, secrets, unsupported authority, and stale assumptions.
* Fresh positive and negative tests confirmed retrieval and Skill scope.

## If context is wrong

Check source state, route, effective date, and conflicts before editing the prompt. Replace stale evidence, reroute incorrect material, and retest in a new task. When a Skill is ignored or overused, correct **When to use**, exclusions, scope, or status rather than duplicating the procedure.

## Next step

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Use context in chat" icon="at" href="/working-with-marketer/chat-and-context">
    Attach the exact record and verify how the agent uses it.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Apply context to creative" icon="images" href="/product-guides/creatives">
    Carry approved evidence and methods into Briefs and Studio.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>


## Related topics

- [Chat and context](/working-with-marketer/chat-and-context.md)
- [Skills](/product-guides/knowledge-skills.md)
- [Knowledge sources](/product-guides/knowledge-sources.md)
- [Create a reusable Skill](/templates-use-cases/reusable-skill.md)
- [Next steps](/get-started/next-steps.md)