Learn to Love AI

Here is a question, “Can AI be your new best friend?”

My answer is, “Yes, I think so.”

AI isn't going anywhere, so we must embrace it and use it to benefit us and our businesses. So, I did some training to help me understand what AI can do and how I should use it.

The first training I did was with MINT Business Club.

This training was an excellent introduction, and this is what I learned:

AI needs prompts, and Liza suggested using this SMART framework for writing effective AI prompts:

🅢 Set the Scene

🅜 Make it Specific

🅐 Adjust the Tone

🅡 Refine & Revise

🅣 Test & Try Again

After all, the results we get from AI will only be as good as the questions we ask it!

AI is here to assist, not replace us… well, that’s a relief! So, we need to learn how to use AI as a tool that will save us time and boost creativity.

So, let’s look at some Content creation

AI can really help with this, whether it is just for prompts or to do most of the job for you. It can save you loads of time but, we need to give it the right prompts.

Using the SMART framework above, here is an example of how I could ask ChatGPT to help me with some content.

🅢 Set the Scene

I’m an independent editor, typesetter, and proofreader.

🅜 Make it Specific

Please write a LinkedIn post about how I can help an indie author get their book published.

🅐 Adjust the Tone

Make it informal and helpful with a clear call to action.

This was the result:

🅡 Refine & Revise

Well, that’s pretty good, but it could be refined. So you can go on to ask something else, like, “Please revise this to a shorter Instagram post.”

This was the result:

🅣 Test & Try Again

You can keep testing things to find what works best for you. And don’t forget, you still want to edit the final result.

PS Another common thing to add to your request is to use English spelling!

I did some further training with NBSL which covered:

1. Choosing the right AI tools for your business.

2. Prompt engineering to strengthen your marketing plan.

3. Advanced prompts and instructions to help plan blog articles.

4. Using AI to create better copy for your website and social media posts.

One of the most important takeaways from this training though, was to stop thinking in terms of ‘AI’ but Digital Assistant. What do you think?

Also, you use AI as Novice Assistants who research, rewrite, and repurpose and Expert Assistants who critique, coach, and create.

You then need to ask for information giving a detailed brief or a consultation request.

But let’s look at the above points:

Choosing the right AI tool

There are many different AI tools: Chat GPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Copilot, Claude, and Meta AI.

You need to test them using the same prompts, and then decide which is best for you. Claude claims to be better for creative writing, while Perplexity claims to be better for research.

Prompt engineering to strengthen your marketing plan

In this training, it was suggested we use the word ‘brief’ rather than ‘prompt’, especially for lengthy, more detailed requests.

Advanced prompts and instructions to help plan blog articles

When using AI to plan and write blog articles, you may ask several questions but you may also want to use a combination of results from different AI tools.

Step 1: explain what you need and ask how it is done

Example: Please write a short blog about […]

Acting as my research assistant please provide a breakdown for the structure and key elements of this blog.

We will call it ‘Blog template’

[Note: if you name it you can go back to it later and use it as a prompt again.]

Step 2: To refine your results, you can ask how it is not done.

Example: To continue preparing my blog, acting as my research assistant, please provide a list of common questions about this service.

We will call it ‘Blog questions’

Step 3: You can then add further details such as tone of voice, using UK spelling, etc.

You can also ask for improvements:

Example: Thank you, this is a great draft blog. I have two follow-up questions for you:

1. How can the blog be improved? Please share this advice in table format.

2. What can be done to further improve this article?

Step 4: Then…

You can ask: Please could you now rewrite the blog making sure to include the improvements suggested and the original information I shared.

Using AI to create copy for your website and social media posts.

You can use AI to improve your website and social media copy but copying and pasting your existing copy and asking for it to be improved.

Remember to be specific about how you want the copy improved, whether you want the tone changed, bullet points added etc

Other points picked up from this training included:

1. AI remembers everything and uses it going forward so it is important to say that is wrong… give it a label… or say that it is good… and give results a name. You may also want to save successful prompts in a Word document.

2. Don’t forget to edit any final results. If you have come up with a blog from AI you will always want to edit the copy as AI could churn out the same copy to someone else. If someone happened to ask the same ‘prompt’ they could get the same result, it isn’t uniquely ‘yours’!

3. If you use AI to help with a blog, when the copy is finalised, you can then ask it to produce social media posts from the finished blog. Remember to be specific about which social platform, to use UK spelling, and whether you want emojis, etc.

I hope this helps xx

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