How to Write AI Prompts That Actually Work for Your Business

Most people treat AI like a magic box—throw in a question and hope for gold. But if you want consistent, high-quality results, you need a better approach. I have had some people read my articles about how the future of work is humans leveraging AI tools to "Unsubscribe to Busy", and leverage AI for "busy-work" tasks, but they don't know how to get started. So, I wanted to write some steps that would work with any tool such as ChatGPT or your AI tool of choice and help you understand how to get the best results repeatably.

Here’s a simple, step-by-step framework you can use to write prompts that get AI to deliver exactly what you need:

1.?Start by giving context.

Tell the AI what role it’s playing. Is it an expert consultant? A project manager? A copywriter? Defining this ensures the response aligns with the right perspective.

Example: "You are a senior marketing strategist for SaaS companies."

2.?Define your goal clearly.

What’s the main outcome you want? Be specific. Instead of “write a plan,” try “create a 5-step marketing plan for a new SaaS product targeting solopreneurs.”

Example: "Your task is to create a 5-step email marketing strategy for a SaaS product targeting freelancers and small business owners."

3.?Guide the process.

Tell the AI how to approach the task. Use clear steps like: “First, analyze the audience. Next, outline the strategy. Finally, summarize it in bullet points.”

Example: "First, identify the core pain points of the audience. Next, outline a series of emails addressing these pain points with solutions. Then, suggest a call-to-action for each email."

4.?Add relevant context.

Include details that matter. For example, if you're working on a pitch, share your target audience, unique value proposition, and tone of voice.

Example: "The product is a project management tool that saves freelancers 10+ hours per week. The tone should be professional yet approachable."

5.?Specify the format.

Be clear about how you want the output. Should it be a numbered list? A conversational paragraph? A table? This removes guesswork and gives you a usable result.

Example: "Provide the strategy in a numbered list with each step clearly explained in 2-3 sentences."

The Finished Prompt

"You are a senior marketing strategist for SaaS companies. Your task is to create a 5-step email marketing strategy for a project management tool targeting freelancers and small business owners. First, identify the core pain points of the audience. Next, outline a series of emails addressing these pain points with solutions. Then, suggest a call-to-action for each email. The product saves freelancers 10+ hours per week. The tone should be professional yet approachable. Provide the strategy in a numbered list with each step clearly explained in 2-3 sentences."

I added a change to fit my business need by removing "The product saves freelancers 10+ hours per week" and replacing it with "The product is a recruitment service offering of permanent placements or contract placements."

This is the result:

Why this framework works:

When you give clear instructions, you eliminate confusion. That means:

• Fewer irrelevant responses
• Less time spent rewriting or clarifying
• Consistent, actionable results

Think of AI as a team member. The clearer your instructions, the better the results.

Next time you sit down to write a prompt, try this framework. It’s not magic—it’s precision. And precision delivers results.

Rob is passionate about breaking the cycle of repetitive, shallow work that keeps creators and entrepreneurs stuck. He challenges the mindset of relying on superficial content, encouraging deeper thinking and authentic, purpose-driven work. By empowering individuals to move beyond templates and embrace originality, Rob helps leaders and innovators create impactful movements that drive real growth and transformation.

I am also a technical recruiter who uses my insights and deep understanding of business to attract and provide my clients with the best people... or what I call "weapons" and "doers", for business flow. If you would like to discuss to working with me, send me a connection request and message.