Sam Metcalf's AuthorDNA
The writing patterns that make your content uniquely yours
What is AuthorDNA?
AuthorDNA is a hidden linguistic profile - the subconscious patterns and habits unique to how someone writes. We analyze posts across 243 style metrics specific to B2B social content and compare them to thousands of other authors.
These are the markers most people don't even notice - but they're what makes writing sound authentic.
Does More Of...
Patterns you use more often than typical LinkedIn authors
Number of emoji in the opening hook
11x more signature
Whether the hook contains emoji
7x more signature
Count of positive/celebratory emoji
14x more signature
Whether any emoji are used in the post
5x more signature
See example from 10 Dec 2025
Variety of different emoji used (unique/total ratio)
5x more signature
Percentage of lines containing at least one emoji
6x more signature
Percentage of emoji that are positive/celebratory
10x more signature
See example from 10 Dec 2025
Does Less Of...
Patterns you use less often - that's part of your style too!
Hook lines relative to total lines
1.8x less Unique words divided by total words
1.1x less consistent
Percentage of words used only once
1.1x less consistent
Signature = unique to you
| Distinctive = stands out from average
| Consistent = reliable pattern
Your AuthorDNA Profile
You probably didn't realize, but your posts kick off with 11 times more emoji in the opening hook than the LinkedIn average. Not only that, but your opening lines are 7 times more likely to feature emoji at all, and you're deploying positive and celebratory emoji 14 times more often than your peers. You’re not just using emoji as decoration - you’re building the emotional tone of your post before you’ve even hit line two.
This works because it signals instant energy and approachability, turning even a scroll-stopper into a dopamine hit. Now try briefing that to a ghostwriter: "Start every post with more emoji than anyone else, but make sure they're always fresh and overwhelmingly positive." They’d look at you sideways. Because this isn’t something you could fake with a checklist - it’s muscle memory, not a style guide.
And let’s be real: you’re posting just 0.2 times per week. At that frequency, every post has to hit - and your audience feels it, even if you can’t explain it. This is exactly what Drumbeat captures - the patterns you can’t articulate but your audience feels. Your company’s message, in each team member’s authentic voice, at scale.
Signature Phrases
Your most frequently used words and phrases
Posting Consistency
08 Jul 2024 - 24 Oct 2025
0.2 posts/week avg
13/68 active weeks
55 inactive weeks
Deep Dive
Explore all 17 categories of writing style
Call-to-Action Patterns 7
| Feature | Your DNA | vs Others | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average position of CTAs in the post | Upper half | HIGH | STEADY |
| CTAs using command verbs (Click, Share, Comment, etc.) | 16% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Whether CTAs include emoji | 60% of posts | HIGH | STEADY |
| Whether any call-to-action exists | 87% of posts | HIGH | STEADY |
| CTAs phrased as questions vs statements | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Whether CTAs are concentrated at the end of the post | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Whether CTAs include hashtags | 0% of posts | LOW | STEADY |
Emoji Usage 38
| Feature | Your DNA | vs Others | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average distance between repeated emoji | 36% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Average emoji per line of text | 69% | HIGH | STEADY |
| Average number of emoji appearing together in clusters | 68% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Balance between positive and negative emoji | 46% | HIGH | STEADY |
| Count of neutral/functional emoji | 0.5 - 2.8 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Count of positive/celebratory emoji | 0.0 - 3.5 | HIGH | VARIES |
| Emoji count per 1000 words | 10 - 50 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Emoji count relative to sentence count | 66% | HIGH | STEADY |
| Emoji density in CTA sections | 7 - 93 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Emoji density in the hook section | 12 - 57 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Emoji usage in the middle section of the post | 7% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Emoji used to replace words entirely | 22% | HIGH | VARIES |
| How consistently emoji pair with specific words | 6% | HIGH | VARIES |
| How often the same emoji repeats across the post | 10% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Largest group of adjacent emoji | 71% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Number of different emoji types used | 1.2 - 4.1 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Number of emoji clusters (groups of adjacent emoji) | 0.0 - 1.0 | HIGH | VARIES |
| Number of emoji in call-to-action lines | 0.1 - 2.3 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Number of emoji in the opening hook | 1.1 - 4.0 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Percentage of emoji that are 'corpspeak' type | 5% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Percentage of emoji that are neutral/functional | 54% | HIGH | STEADY |
| Percentage of emoji that are positive/celebratory | 46% | HIGH | STEADY |
| Percentage of lines containing at least one emoji | 47% | HIGH | STEADY |
| Proportion of emoji appearing in clusters | 17% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Proportion of emoji that appear multiple times | 14% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Total count of repeated emoji across the post | 0.0 - 1.4 | HIGH | VARIES |
| Total number of emoji in the post | 1.3 - 5.0 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Variety of different emoji used (unique/total ratio) | 84% | HIGH | STEADY |
| Whether any emoji are used in the post | 93% of posts | HIGH | STEADY |
| Count of negative/warning emoji | ~0.0 | LOW | STEADY |
| How consistently the same emoji is used for bullets | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Number of bullet point lines using emoji as markers | ~0.0 | LOW | STEADY |
| Percentage of emoji that are negative/warning | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Percentage of lines that contain only emoji | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Variety of different emoji used as bullets | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Whether emoji are used as bullet point markers | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Whether the post starts with an emoji | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Consistency of emoji bullet indentation | 0% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
Formality & Tone 9
| Feature | Your DNA | vs Others | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Count of positive contractions used | 0.0 - 2.5 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Number of different contraction types | 0.0 - 2.5 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Percentage of words that are contractions | 1% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Total number of contractions | 0.0 - 2.6 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Usage of positive contractions (it's, I'm, we're) | 1% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Variety of different contractions used | 58% | HIGH | STEADY |
| Count of negative contractions used | 7% | LOW | VARIES |
| Ratio of negative to positive contractions | 1:30 | LOW | VARIES |
| Usage of negative contractions (don't, won't, can't) | 5% | LOW | VARIES |
Function Words 21
| Feature | Your DNA | vs Others | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Usage of 'at' per 1000 words | 0 - 23 | HIGH | VARIES |
| Usage of 'for' per 1000 words | 12 - 27 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Usage of 'so' per 1000 words | 0-10 per 1k words | HIGH | VARIES |
| Usage of 'to' per 1000 words | 27 - 63 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Usage of 'who' per 1000 words | 0-10 per 1k words | HIGH | VARIES |
| Usage of 'with' per 1000 words | 5 - 24 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Usage of 'but' per 1000 words | ~0 per 1k words | LOW | STEADY |
| Usage of 'by' per 1000 words | ~0 per 1k words | LOW | STEADY |
| Usage of 'that' per 1000 words | 0-10 per 1k words | LOW | VARIES |
| Usage of 'which' per 1000 words | ~0 per 1k words | LOW | STEADY |
| Overall grammatical word usage | 190 - 267 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Usage of 'a' per 1000 words | 12 - 28 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Usage of 'and' per 1000 words | 15 - 45 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Usage of 'as' per 1000 words | 0-11 per 1k words | TYPICAL | VARIES |
| Usage of 'because' per 1000 words | 0-4 per 1k words | TYPICAL | VARIES |
| Usage of 'if' per 1000 words | 0-10 per 1k words | TYPICAL | VARIES |
| Usage of 'is' per 1000 words | 0-20 per 1k words | TYPICAL | VARIES |
| Usage of 'of' per 1000 words | 6 - 26 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Usage of 'on' per 1000 words | 0-20 per 1k words | TYPICAL | VARIES |
| Usage of 'the' per 1000 words | 23 - 47 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Variety of function words used | 53% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
Hashtag Usage 12
| Feature | Your DNA | vs Others | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average character length of hashtags | 6.3 - 7.9 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Proportion of hashtags in ALL CAPS | 7% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Proportion of hashtags placed at the end | 100% | HIGH | STEADY |
| Proportion of hashtags using CamelCase | 60% | HIGH | STEADY |
| Hashtag density per 100 words | 99% | LOW | VARIES |
| Proportion of hashtags in the opening | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Proportion of hashtags woven into the text | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Ratio of inline hashtags to end hashtags | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Total number of hashtags | 0.0 - 3.5 | LOW | VARIES |
| Whether any hashtags are used | 20% of posts | LOW | VARIES |
| Whether the opening line contains a hashtag | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Proportion of all-lowercase hashtags | 33% | TYPICAL | VARIES |
Opening Hooks 14
| Feature | Your DNA | vs Others | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of emoji in the hook | 0.4 - 2.8 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Whether the hook contains emoji | 87% of posts | HIGH | STEADY |
| Whether there's a blank line after the hook | 33% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Whether there's a clear opening hook section | 53% of posts | HIGH | STEADY |
| ALL CAPS words in the hook | 1% | LOW | STEADY |
| Hook lines relative to total lines | 38% | LOW | STEADY |
| Use of 'you/your' in the hook | 1% | LOW | VARIES |
| Whether the hook contains a question | 7% of posts | LOW | VARIES |
| Whether the hook starts with a conjunction | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Character count of the hook | 202 - 476 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Character position where the hook ends | 202 - 476 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Hook length relative to total post | 56% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Negation words in the hook | 0.0 - 0.6 | TYPICAL | VARIES |
| Where LinkedIn's 'see more' cuts off | 56% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
Line Structure 18
| Feature | Your DNA | vs Others | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average spacing between blank lines | 1.0 - 2.6 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Blank lines per 100 total lines | 28 - 51 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Proportion of blank space | 40% | HIGH | STEADY |
| Spacing between content-rich lines | 1.3 - 2.3 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Variation in line lengths | 44 - 797 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Percentage of single-word lines | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Ratio of lines starting with ALL CAPS | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Ratio of lines starting with numbers | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Ratio of lines starting with punctuation | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Ratio of lines starting with quotes | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Variation in block sizes | 17% | LOW | VARIES |
| Average characters per line | 68 - 238 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Average lines per text block | 0.9 - 1.2 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Average words per line | 11 - 42 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Lines containing exactly one sentence | 56% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Number of visual text blocks | 2.9 - 6.3 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Percentage of very short lines (<5 words) | 16% | TYPICAL | VARIES |
| Predictability of line length pattern | Very consistent | TYPICAL | STEADY |
List Patterns 15
| Feature | Your DNA | vs Others | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average items per dash/bullet list | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Average items per emoji list | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Consistency of emoji bullet indentation | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Consistency of numbered list formatting | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Nesting depth of numbered lists | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Number of dash/bullet list sections | ~0.0 | LOW | STEADY |
| Number of emoji bullet list sections | ~0.0 | LOW | STEADY |
| Number of numbered list sections | ~0.0 | LOW | STEADY |
| Use of fraction-style numbering (1/, 2/) | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Variety of emoji used as bullets | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Whether any list structure is used | 0% of posts | LOW | STEADY |
| Whether dash/bullet lists are used | 0% of posts | LOW | STEADY |
| Whether emoji bullet lists are used | 0% of posts | LOW | STEADY |
| Whether numbered lists are used | 0% of posts | LOW | STEADY |
| Use of inline enumeration | 1% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
Vocabulary & Phrases 10
| Feature | Your DNA | vs Others | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Length of longest repeated phrase | 1.0 - 3.5 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Common idioms and expressions per 1000 words | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Count of idiomatic expressions | ~0.0 | LOW | STEADY |
| Count of words used only once | 46 - 90 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| How often three-word phrases repeat | 96% | TYPICAL | VARIES |
| How often two-word phrases repeat | 1.3 - 8.2 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Number of unique words used | 55 - 113 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Percentage of words used only once | 81% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Ratio of meaningful words to grammatical words | 3% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Unique words divided by total words | 76% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
Sentence Openings 16
| Feature | Your DNA | vs Others | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Count of sentences starting with There is/It is | 0.0-0.3 per post | HIGH | VARIES |
| Count of sentences starting with discourse markers | 0.0-0.5 per post | HIGH | VARIES |
| Count of sentences starting with pronouns | 0.9-3.9 per post | HIGH | STEADY |
| Count of sentences starting with subordinate clauses | 0.0-0.6 per post | HIGH | VARIES |
| Count of sentences starting with time words | 0.0-0.3 per post | HIGH | VARIES |
| Sentences starting with 'There is/are' or 'It is' (%) | 95% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Sentences starting with Actually, Basically, etc. (%) | 3% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Sentences starting with adverbs (%) | 5% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Sentences starting with pronouns (I, You, We, They) (%) | 21 - 52 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Sentences starting with subordinate clauses (%) | 6% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Sentences starting with -ing verbs (%) | 1% | LOW | VARIES |
| Count of sentences starting with -ing verbs | 0.0-0.3 per post | TYPICAL | VARIES |
| Count of sentences starting with adverbs | 0.0-0.5 per post | TYPICAL | VARIES |
| Count of sentences starting with conjunctions | 0.0-0.3 per post | TYPICAL | VARIES |
| Sentences starting with And, But, Or, So (%) | 95% | TYPICAL | VARIES |
| Sentences starting with time words (%) | 67% | TYPICAL | VARIES |
Closing Patterns 11
| Feature | Your DNA | vs Others | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of emoji in the closing | 0.1 - 2.8 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Whether the closing has emoji clusters | 20% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Whether the ending has a call-to-action | 60% of posts | HIGH | STEADY |
| Whether the ending includes emoji | 80% of posts | HIGH | STEADY |
| ALL CAPS words in the closing | 2% | LOW | VARIES |
| Whether the closing has a signature phrase | 7% of posts | LOW | VARIES |
| Whether the ending includes hashtags | 20% of posts | LOW | VARIES |
| Whether the ending is a question | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Character length of the closing | 152 - 477 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Closing length relative to total post | 54% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Whether there's a clear closing section | 87% of posts | TYPICAL | STEADY |
Paragraph Structure 13
| Feature | Your DNA | vs Others | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Opening paragraph length vs body average | 1% | HIGH | STEADY |
| Consecutive long paragraphs | 7% | LOW | VARIES |
| How frequently new paragraphs start | 28 - 57 | LOW | STEADY |
| How much paragraph length varies | 71% | LOW | STEADY |
| Average change in length between paragraphs | 84% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Average sentences per paragraph | 0.7 - 3.1 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Average sentences per paragraph | 0.7 - 3.1 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Closing paragraph length vs body average | 71% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Consecutive short paragraphs | 1.6 - 4.6 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Length of your longer paragraphs (80th percentile) | 1.6 - 3.8 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Total number of paragraphs | 2.9 - 6.3 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Typical paragraph length (median) | 0.4 - 2.9 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Variation in length changes between paragraphs | 55% | TYPICAL | VARIES |
Parts of Speech 9
| Feature | Your DNA | vs Others | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Balance/distribution of different word types | Moderately varied | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Percentage of auxiliary/helper verbs | 6% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Percentage of words that are adjectives | 7% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Percentage of words that are adverbs | 5% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Percentage of words that are determiners | 7% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Percentage of words that are nouns | 17 - 22 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Percentage of words that are prepositions | 9 - 14 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Percentage of words that are pronouns | 10% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Percentage of words that are verbs | 11 - 16 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
Post Basics 7
| Feature | Your DNA | vs Others | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average word complexity (syllables per word) | 1.4 - 1.6 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Count of complex words (3+ syllables) | 7 - 20 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| How easy the text is to read (higher = easier) | 49 - 71 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Percentage of complex words (3+ syllables) | 8 - 16 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Total sentence count | 3.7 - 8.7 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Total syllables in the post | 103 - 239 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Total word count of the post | 69 - 159 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
Punctuation Style 17
| Feature | Your DNA | vs Others | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exclamation marks per 1000 words | 8-48 per 1k words | HIGH | STEADY |
| Multiple exclamation marks per 1000 words | 0-12 per 1k words | HIGH | VARIES |
| Percentage of sentences ending with exclamation | 16 - 60 | HIGH | STEADY |
| Semicolon usage per 1000 words | 0-6 per 1k words | HIGH | VARIES |
| Colon usage per 1000 words | 2-14 per 1k words | LOW | STEADY |
| Ellipsis (...) usage per 1000 words | 0-2 per 1k words | LOW | VARIES |
| Em dash (—) usage per 1000 words | ~0 per 1k words | LOW | STEADY |
| En dash (–) usage per 1000 words | ~0 per 1k words | LOW | STEADY |
| Mixed punctuation clusters per 1000 words | ~0 per 1k words | LOW | STEADY |
| Multiple question marks per 1000 words | ~0 per 1k words | LOW | STEADY |
| Percentage of sentences ending with a question | 67% | LOW | VARIES |
| Percentage of sentences trailing off with ellipsis | 74% | LOW | VARIES |
| Question marks per 1000 words | 0-3 per 1k words | LOW | VARIES |
| Quotation mark usage per 1000 words | ~0 per 1k words | LOW | STEADY |
| Comma usage per 1000 words | 13-50 per 1k words | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Hyphen usage per 1000 words | 0-27 per 1k words | TYPICAL | VARIES |
| Parentheses usage per 1000 words | 0-9 per 1k words | TYPICAL | VARIES |
Quotes & Narrative 10
| Feature | Your DNA | vs Others | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average length of quoted passages | 0 - 207 | HIGH | VARIES |
| Total characters in quoted content | 0 - 221 | HIGH | VARIES |
| Use of story transitions | 17% | HIGH | VARIES |
| Whether the post contains quotations | 60% of posts | HIGH | STEADY |
| Lines starting with quotation marks | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Presence of dialogue attribution patterns | 0% | LOW | STEADY |
| Lines using past tense | 38% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Number of narrative/story signals | 0.2 - 2.6 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Number of quotation blocks | 0.0 - 1.4 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Whether the post tells a story | 53% of posts | TYPICAL | STEADY |
Sentence Rhythm 16
| Feature | Your DNA | vs Others | Consistency |
|---|---|---|---|
| Percentage of sentences over 20 words | 48% | HIGH | STEADY |
| Percentage of sentences under 8 words | 20% | LOW | STEADY |
| Average number of clauses per sentence | 1.9 - 3.2 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Average number of words per sentence | 15 - 25 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Average words per sentence | 15 - 25 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| How much sentence length varies (normalized) | 58% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| How often paragraphs contain just one sentence | 54% | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Length of your longer sentences (80th percentile) | 25 - 39 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Length of your shorter sentences (20th percentile) | 4 - 17 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Overall sentence complexity | 29 - 75 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Parenthetical breaks per 1000 words | 0-9 per 1k words | TYPICAL | VARIES |
| Typical sentence length (median) | 12 - 26 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Variation in clause count across sentences | 1.0 - 3.5 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Variation in sentence lengths | 6 - 16 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Word count of shortest sentence | 1 - 13 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
| Word count of the longest sentence | 27 - 43 | TYPICAL | STEADY |
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