Basics of prompting: making chatbots your best friend

Ready to get everything out of ChatGPT and Gemini? The right prompting method is the key. In this blog, we'll dive into the six basics of a great prompt. Using them correctly will give you more accurate and more relevant answers.

Not every element is most crucial

The following pillars (Task, Context, Example, Persona, Format, and Tone) are not all equally important in crafting your prompt. You can achieve good results by simply adding a task and context, for instance.

• Very important: Task/Assignment
• Important: Context and Example
• Great to add: Persona, Format and Tone

Add context to the task

Context helps the chatbot understand the subject matter of the conversation. Specify your target audience and the specific message you expect them to get out of your work. By providing context, you help the chatbot generate a more personalized and relevant response.

This is often the trickiest pillar to get right in your prompt. You want to clearly define your desired results and avoid an overload of semi-useful information. Ask yourself: what is the background of the audience and in what environment are they? For example: "I want a resume that will be sent to an HR manager at a renowned tech company."

Show an example

A suitable example can be very helpful in guiding the chatbot. Do you want to adopt a specific structure from a job posting, or do you want an email draft that aligns with previous communication with a customer? Provide a brief example. ChatGPT, Gemini or another chatbot will then follow that structure.

Specify the persona the chatbot needs to adopt

By assigning a persona to your chatbot, you can make the interaction more personal and tailored to your specific needs. For example, you can set the chatbot to take on the role of an experienced scientist, a creative writer, or a comedian. The more developed and specific the persona, the more natural the output will be and the closer it will align with your desired outcome.

In all shapes and formats

The format refers to the desired structure or style of the response you receive. Do you want a bulleted list, a table with specific columns and titles, a detailed essay, or a short poem? By specifying the desired format, you ensure that ChatGPT and Gemini present the answer in the way you want it presented.

Looking for output that's formal, informal, or with a sense of humour?

The tone of your prompt determines the final writing style, which is highly dependent on your target audience. We often get this wrong because there are so many words that have similar meanings and connotations. Are you happy, glad, content, delighted, overjoyed, ... and so on.

What can we conclude?

By keeping these six pillars in mind, you can refine your prompts and significantly improve the quality of your chatbot's responses. Experiment with different prompts and discover which approach works best for your specific needs.