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

# The Quality Gate

> The hard ranking check every account must clear early: more than 5 pages on Google/ChatGPT, and what to do if it doesn't.

Two gates keep an account honest. The outcome gate proves the engine is working: are enough pages
actually showing up on the search surfaces yet? The per-batch must-pass gate keeps each batch of
content at standard before it publishes. The first is about ranking, the second about the content
itself (the full checklist is the [Definition of Done](/sops/content-production-dod)).

## The outcome gate

> **STRICT:** by the Month-1 quality-gate point, if we don't have **more than 5 pages ranking on
> Google and/or ChatGPT**, escalate to Raymond **immediately** (high priority).

* A win = 5–10 pages ranking on page 1, positions 1–5.
* This is achievable even on a brand-new domain. See
  [Part 1 §1.7 Speed-to-rank](/theory/speed-to-rank).
* Check both surfaces: Google search (try keyword variants) and ChatGPT (capture every response
  that features a client page). See [Part 1 §1.2 Two search surfaces](/theory/two-search-surfaces).

## If the gate passes (more than 5 pages ranking)

* [ ] Screenshot and highlight the ranked pages.
* [ ] Share in the client Slack to celebrate the early win.

## If the gate fails (fewer than 5 pages ranking)

Run diagnostics and save them to Notion, then escalate:

* [ ] Log domain **DR**.
* [ ] Log **GSC indexing status** of every published page.
* [ ] Run `site:<url>` for each page.
* [ ] Log **Bing Webmaster** index status.
* [ ] Share findings with Raymond (raise priority as the gate date approaches; high priority at the
  gate itself).

Recovery actions to evaluate with Raymond: footer internal links to the hub and specific landing
pages, an announcement or listicle post, a press release, a Medium post, or other link-building. See
[3.9 Link-building](/sops/link-building) and [3.10 Press release](/sops/press-release).

## The per-batch must-pass gate

Every batch of new content clears the 15-item must-pass gate from the
[Definition of Done](/sops/content-production-dod#definition-of-done) before it counts as shipped.
This is the standing content-quality bar, applied to every new client pipeline and to each cycle's
first batch. Review cadence is monthly.

If the gate fails:

* [ ] A must-pass failure means the pipeline is not done. Fix the failing item and re-verify, and
  don't publish more posts until the gate passes.
* [ ] A nice-to-have failure gets logged as a Linear ticket, tagged `quality-gate-debt`, and
  scheduled for the next batch.
* [ ] If the same must-pass item fails twice, escalate to Raymond (internal chat, medium priority)
  and document the root cause on the client's Notion page.
* [ ] An indexing failure follows the Month-1 diagnostics ladder above.

## Is there a separate gate for ongoing cycles?

No separate doc, and no different number. Beyond Month 1 the standing bar is this per-batch must-pass
gate plus the [monthly review](/sops/client-review), which re-checks ranking, traffic, and
conversion each cycle. The "more than 5 pages" figure is the Month-1 outcome target; after that, the
monthly review is where ranking outcomes get re-examined against the cycle's plan.

***

## Related

* [3.1 — Onboarding Flow, Month 1](/sops/onboarding-month-1#day-4-—-quality-gate): where the gate first fires.
* [3.5 — Content production & Definition of Done](/sops/content-production-dod): the per-page quality bar the gate builds on.
* [Part 1 §1.7 Speed-to-rank](/theory/speed-to-rank): why early wins are achievable.
* [Part 1 §1.2 Two search surfaces](/theory/two-search-surfaces): Google and ChatGPT.