Good Prompts

How Do I Write Good AI Prompts? Don’t Use AI like Google!

In order to get the most out of AI tools, you need to ask good questions. Asking only superficial questions gives very general and perhaps inaccurate information. It is important to use these tips to get the most out of your conversations with generative AI tools. We encourage you to follow the CREATE framework explained below when crafting your generative AI prompts to get the most helpful information from these tools.

The CREATE prompt engineering framework and these tips for getting the most out of a generative AI tool came from Dave Birss, popular AI author and public speaker. To learn more from Dave Birss on the topic of writing effective AI prompts using the CREATE framework, using AI to enhance your writing, and how AI can be used in the research process, check out his LinkedIn Learning Course titled, How to Research and Write Using Generative AI Tools. You will need to access LinkedIn Learning using your Fisher account to access this content.

Additional Resources

Please explore the additional resources listed below to help create the best AI prompts.

A useful article on what prompts are and how to craft them effectively: https://www.arimetrics.com/en/digital-glossary/prompt
ChatGPT Guide: Use these prompt strategies to maximize your results: https://the-decoder.com/chatgpt-guide-prompt-strategies/
How to write an effective GPT-3 or GPT-4 prompt: https://zapier.com/blog/gpt-prompt/
Best Tips on how to use Chat GPT effectively: https://www.technologyforyou.org/best-tips-on-how-to-use-chat-gpt-effectively/

CREATE Framework

C - Character

Your first sentence in your prompt should tell the generative AI tool what role or character you want it to play while responding to you. You might tell the generative AI tool to act as a marketing expert with 20 years experience, or an expert python coder, or a national best-selling author who specializes in creative writing.

R - Request

Your next sentence should ask the generative AI tool to perform a specific task. Be as specific as possible with detail and context in this section.

E - Examples

This section is optional, but can be very useful. If you have examples of what a good response to your prompt looks like, provide that to the generative AI tool as an example of what you are looking for. This will increase the usefulness of the response you receive quite a bit because the AI can mimic the patterns found in this good example to provide a better response.

A - Adjustments

Generative AI is meant to be a tool to facilitate a conversation, so asking one prompt, getting a response, and moving on is not the most ideal way to use these tools. Once you get a response, you should ask the generative to tweak its result to better match what you are looking for, or dive into a certain aspect of the response in greater depth. Don't hesitate to tell the tool where it went wrong and how to do it differently to give a better response. These adjustments are key to getting what you hope for out of a generative AI tool.

T - Type of Output

This sentence should tell the generative AI exactly what kind of format you would like to see your output in. This may be things like paragraph form, table, bulleted list, poem, or may include things like word limit or length.

E - Extras

This are some extra tips you may add to your conversation with the generative AI tool you are using to create even better responses. If you are starting a conversation, you may want to tell the generative AI to ignore everything you've talked about before and start the conversation with a fresh start. You may also ask the generative AI to ask you follow up questions that it needs to understand before providing its response to you. You can also ask the generative AI tool to explain its thinking or show its work when giving you an answer, so you can see the final answer, but also where it came up with the answer. You can follow this path to see if it is accurate or not, or where it may have gone in a direction you did not anticipate.

To get even more out of your conversations with generative AI tools, try these more advanced options as well.

Try talking into your AI tool instead of typing. Most AI tools now have the option to use your microphone to talk directly into the tool instead of typing your entire prompt. Most people provide more detail and context in a request that is spoken than a request that is written out. This is also a great way to make sure you are having a conversation with the AI tool which includes a back and forth flow of information from both sides.
Be very specific in what you are asking the system. The more general the question, the more general and usually unhelpful the response will be. You need to ask good questions in order to get responses that are useful.
Ask questions in complete sentences. Unlike a Google search, you should not be typing only keywords. Generative AI models are built to have a conversation, so ask questions as if you were talking to a person, not a computer.
Provide context around the question you are asking. The AI does not have any context or background information to what you are asking about. You must provide any specific information you want to be included, a description of who your audience is, and who the AI should be writing in the style of, as well as the ideal format you want the output to be like. For example, you may suggest the output is written in formal tone, informal tone, or in academic language, etc. depending on what you are looking for from the tool.
Continue to refine your results. Remember, that the AI will remember everything that you’ve told it within the given conversation. So that means if the first response you get is not quite what you were looking for, keep asking questions or giving more detailed instructions about how you want the output to look. The more time you spend in a conversation, the better you will be able to receive helpful information.
Understand the boundaries of the AI tool you are using. Depending on the tool you are using, the system may not have access to recent news or articles posted on the web. GPT 3.5 for example only has access to data from 2021 and prior. GPT 4 has access to data through December 2023. Each new version has access to more recent data, but may not be real time data. Check the limitations of each tool to fully understand these before starting your conversations.
Give the AI text to work with. Don’t be afraid to copy and paste some piece of text for the system to work with. For example, enter a portion of a research article or a textbook and ask the system to summarize the text for you in common language. This is a great way to get another perspective on a piece of text, especially one that may be more complicated. Perhaps the system can help you understand that content in a different way.
Ask the same prompt again. You can ask the AI tool the same prompt again and again and it will provide a new answer each time. You can then generate three or four examples of responses and take what you like best from each one to make a really great resource with your own contributions as well.

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