How to write perfect ChatGPT prompts for AI-powered content marketing (with my #1 secret tip!)

Prompt writing is an art. There’s a lot that goes into it! That doesn’t mean it’s hard to use tools like Claude and ChatGPT; you can ask them anything you want, and you’ll probably get some good information. But if you’re creating prompts so that you can use ChatGPT to build a content marketing strategy or perform another task like keyword research, just asking random questions won’t get you the best possible answers, and it definitely won’t save you a lot of time.

There are a number of practical tips for improving your prompts in this post, and I hope you take a minute to read through them so you have solid information you can rely on for faster, targeted insights.

That being said, I’m going to give you my #1 secret tip for writing amazing prompts when you’re facing prompter’s block (it’s real!)  at the end of the post. But please look through the other information here, too. It’s easy to follow and extremely useful, and it won’t take up your whole day. (Lots of bullet points and whitespace here, I promise!)

How do I write great content marketing prompts for tools like ChatGPT?

All you’re doing when you write great prompts is letting your generative AI tool (like ChatGPT) know what you want. When you write, keep an eye on your tone and be very clear. You’re going for specific and unambiguous. That’s the first step.

There’s nothing wrong with asking general questions, but if you do, you’re just going to get general answers.

If you want to go that direction and you’re putting together a content marketing strategy with AI tools like Claude or ChatGPT, go ahead and treat it like a conversation and ask lots of follow-up questions so you can drill down into specific insights. 

The real trick, though, is to be specific. Incredibly specific. The more specific, the better! You might be tempted to just ask for five ideas for your next blog post. That’s not a terrible idea, but take a minute to think about what you really want! Do you want an SEO-optimized outline to use as guidance? Do you want a list of ideas that target your specific audience? Do you want a detailed how-to guide? You could try prompts like:

• SEO-focused blog outline
  Prompt: “Create an SEO-optimized blog outline about ‘How Generative AI Tools Improve Content Marketing.’ Include a title, meta description, main headings, subheadings, and relevant keywords under each section.”
• Brainstorming content ideas
  Prompt: “List 15 creative blog post ideas for a content strategist using AI. Each idea should target small businesses or startups interested in content automation.”
• Detailed how-to guide
  Prompt: “Write a step-by-step guide for using GPT models for content creation. Include an introductory paragraph, and end with three tips for maximizing productivity with AI.”

Or you could really get into it…

Building a content marketing strategy with ChatGPT: Key techniques for better prompts (with examples!)

There are a few simple techniques that you can use to create great content marketing with ChatGPT prompts that will help you really dig in and get the information that you want every time.

1. Be clear and specific: I know I said this already, but the more precise your prompt is, the better the model can understand your intent and deliver what you need. Specify exactly what you want: Ask for an outline, a brainstorming list, or a complete article, for instance.
   Example: Instead of saying, “Give me content ideas,” say, “Provide 10 SEO-optimized blog post ideas on ‘using regenerative practices for urban farming.’”
   
2. Use step-by-step instructions: Breaking down tasks into smaller parts helps when you have complex requests. Instead of asking for a full outline, you might first ask for a list of main topics and then for subtopics for each.
   Example: “Step 1: List the main sections of an article on ‘How to identify the target audience for my B2B SaaS startup.’ Step 2: For each section, provide three bullet points of supporting information.”
   
3. Include role-playing and style cues: Pretend the model has a role or persona to set the tone and style of the response.
   Example: “As an SEO expert, provide a content outline for a blog post about the most useful software for small business owners. Use a formal tone and focus on high-ranking keywords.”
   
4. Provide examples: Examples guide the model’s response by showing it the exact format and detail level you expect.
   Example: Give your generative AI tool a specific example:
   • Here’s an example outline:
     1. Title: How AI is Revolutionizing Content Creation
        Introduction
        1. Briefly explain what AI is.
        2. Introduce the impact on content creation.
     2. Main Benefits
        1. Save time with AI-powered drafting
        2. Improve SEO with optimized content

Then, ask it to create a similar outline for a new topic.

5. Use constraints (like word count or structure): Set limits to control the length and structure of responses. This is especially useful for SEO and ads where you need specific character counts or headline structures.
   Example: “Write a 150-word introduction for an article on ‘AI in Blogging.’ Keep it conversational and SEO-friendly.”
   
6. Iterative refinement: Sometimes, it takes a few adjustments to get the perfect prompt. Test different variations and analyze which formats produce the most relevant outputs.
   
7. Temperature and length settings
   • Temperature controls randomness (lower = conservative, higher = creative). For structured tasks, stick to a lower temperature (e.g., 0.2–0.4); for brainstorming, go higher (e.g., 0.7–0.9).
   • Max tokens limits response length. Use a lower limit to control output for shorter answers, or set a high max if you need a longer draft.

But here’s the thing: There’s always a better way. 

The secret that was promised

Okay. When I tell you what my #1 prompt creation secret for doing content marketing with AI tools is, you’re going to feel like I tricked you because it’s so simple. But if you aren’t already doing this, give it a try!

First, think about what you really want to know.

Then…

Ask ChatGPT how you should write the prompt to get that information!

I have to admit it: ChatGPT writes better ChatGPT prompts than I do, especially when I’m stuck. And, as always with AI tools, if it’s not quite what you need, you can always iterate to really nail down your results.

If you haven’t tried it yet, you should!

I wanted to come up with an example to show you here, so I gave ChatGPT this prompt:

“Can you give me a fully fleshed-out example of a prompt that would offer detailed keyword research information to a blogger who focuses on digital content marketing strategies using generative AI tools?”

This was the response ChatGPT gave me:

Can you do better than that in under five seconds?

Looking for more tips, tricks, and techniques for supercharging your content strategy with the power of AI? Make sure you check out AI Content Blueprint!