How to be specific and clear
The rule of thumb is to provide just enough instructions and context to help guide the AI’s response. Here are some suggestions:- Be direct and state exactly what you want (i.e. summary, list, explanation).
- Mention the audience and tone.
- Ask for one thing at a time. Avoid overloading your prompt with multiple questions.
Examples
Example 1: Generating marketing ideas.
Example 1: Generating marketing ideas.
Be direct and unambiguous in your request.Vague:
Give me some marketing ideas.Specific:
Explain three effective digital marketing strategies for increasing social media engagement among millennials.
Example 2: Retrieving sales data.
Example 2: Retrieving sales data.
Explain how you want the information presented.Vague:
Give me the latest sales data.Specific:
Provide a summary of our Q2 2023 sales data, highlighting the top three performing regions in a bullet-point list.
Example 3: Writing about climate change.
Example 3: Writing about climate change.
Tailor the response to the intended audience and desired tone.Vague:
Write about climate change.Specific:
Write a persuasive speech for high school students on the importance of combating climate change, using an urgent and motivational tone.
Example 4: Explain the software features and what's in it for the customers.
Example 4: Explain the software features and what's in it for the customers.
Avoid combining multiple requests in one prompt.Vague:
Explain our new software features and how customers can benefit.Specific:
List and briefly describe the three new features introduced in our latest software update.Then, in a separate prompt:
Explain how each of these new features can improve productivity for our customers.
Need more help?
Need more help?
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