ChatGPT prompts to make the most of generative AI in your marketing campaigns

From fear of AI replacing humans in certain marketing roles, to Google changing their Helpful Content Guidelines to seemingly accommodate for AI generated content – the use of generative AI in digital marketing has been a highly debated topic in 2023. Considering that 80% of industry professionals stating that they are already incorporating AI into their marketing activities, it is clear that the use of AI in marketing is not only inevitable, but is becoming an increasingly common tool for marketers to use.

Generative AI technology such as ChatGPT are just one of the many AI tools that marketers are using to streamline processes, saving them both time and money. The process of giving the AI tech a task and the technology then generating a response in return seems simple enough – but in practice, this is not the case. The general consensus when using generative AI is that what you put in, is equal to what you put out – meaning the more detailed the prompt, the more accurate and in-line with your campaign goals, the response will be.

Knowing how to prompt ChatGPT to produce responses that are both in-line with your brand guidelines, and are appealing to your target audience can be difficult. Having an understanding of the ChatGPT prompts to use in order to produce the best responses is the first step in incorporating generative AI technology into your marketing strategy.

Prompts for aligning ChatGPT with your brand

ChatGPT is intelligent in a way that it can digest information it has been given, and use that data to fuel future responses; because of this, you can prompt the tool to align with your brand before prompting it to generate content for your marketing campaigns.

In order to get an in-depth understanding of your brand, ChatGPT will need the following data:

• Brand name: The name of your company or band.
• Target audience: The demographics of your target audience relevant to the products or services you sell, including age ranges, gender identities, occupation, lifestyle, and pain points.
• Brand voice: The way in which you want to communicate your messaging to your audience – are you wanting to sound professional? Friendly? Empathetic? Do you want to appear as a friend? A teacher? A partner? This is essentially the personality of your brand, and greatly impacts the way in which your audience perceives you.
• Key products: the main products or services you want your target audience to purchase (if necessary)
  Competitors: give a basic outline of your main competitors, and the advantages you believe your brand has over them
• Brand story: provide information on the history of your company. When were they established, and by whom? Where did you start, and where are you now? What are your company values? How does all of this shape the brand you are today?
• Short term & long term goals: What do you want to achieve through your marketing campaigns? Think about this in both the short and long term: for short-term goals you want to be thinking about business success, and current performance – whereas you will want your long-term goals to be more strategic.

For the remainder of this article I will be using a fake brand called “LuxeTrek” (which was generated by ChatGPT), a travel brand targeting adventure-savvy millennials, offering a range of high-tech, travel products.

In order to get ChatGPT to align with my LuxeTrek brand, I would use the following prompt:

PROMPT: I am going to outline my brand to you. I want you to take the below details into consideration when providing responses for any future queries in this thread, this includes any details I require regarding content ideas, metadata, social media posts, content outlines & structures, analysis of copy, and short-form content generation.

Brand Name: LuxeTrek

Target Audience: LuxeTrek’s target audience comprises adventurous millennials and young professionals aged 25-40. They are predominantly tech-savvy, urban dwellers with a passion for travel and exploration. This audience values experiences over possessions and seeks unique, high-quality travel products and services that align with their active lifestyles. They often experience pain points related to finding the perfect balance between adventure and comfort during their travels.

Brand Voice: LuxeTrek adopts a friendly and empathetic brand voice. It aims to be a trusted travel companion, guiding and inspiring its audience with valuable insights, tips, and products to enhance their travel experiences. The brand’s tone is approachable, enthusiastic, and knowledgeable, fostering a sense of community among travellers.

Key Products: LuxeTrek offers a range of travel-related products, including high-quality, durable travel gear, eco-friendly adventure apparel, curated travel guides, and exclusive access to off-the-beaten-path experiences.

Competitors: LuxeTrek’s main competitors are established travel gear and adventure travel companies, including Regatta, Samsonite, and Aesop. The brand differentiates itself by prioritising sustainability and eco-friendliness in its product offerings. LuxeTrek also sets itself apart by curating unique travel experiences and providing expert advice on adventurous yet comfortable travel.

Brand Story: LuxeTrek was founded in 2010 by a group of avid travellers who were passionate about exploring the world without compromising on comfort or the environment. They started as a small blog sharing their travel adventures and soon realised there was a gap in the market for high-quality, eco-conscious travel products and personalised travel guides. Over the years, LuxeTrek has grown into a trusted brand known for its commitment to sustainable travel and inspiring others to embark on unforgettable journeys. The company’s core values include sustainability, authenticity, and community-building. Today, LuxeTrek continues to empower travellers with products and resources that make adventure accessible to all.

Short-term & Long-term Goals: In the short term, LuxeTrek aims to increase brand awareness and expand its product line, with a focus on sustainable travel gear and exclusive experiences. It also seeks to build a loyal online community of travel enthusiasts. In the long term, LuxeTrek plans to establish itself as a leading eco-conscious travel brand, expand globally, and become a one-stop destination for travellers seeking the perfect blend of adventure and comfort. Additionally, the brand intends to advocate for responsible tourism and environmental conservation through strategic partnerships and initiatives.

ChatGPT response:

Prompts for brainstorming ideas:

Now that ChatGPT has an in-depth understanding of your brand you will want to start generating some content ideas. Again, as with the above prompt you will want to ensure that this prompt provides all relevant information. When prompting for content ideas, it is important to include the following information:

• Include your (or the author’s) job role. This gives ChatGPT an idea of the author’s experience level, and the reasons behind the content creation.
• What type of content are you interested in: blogs? Social posts? Videos? Events? Ensure you specify the content type you are looking for in the prompt
• Reiterate your target audience in this prompt – whilst ChatGPT will already have an idea of your target audience if you have used the alignment prompt above, you might want to further understand the audience behind the content type (for example, there will be slight differences between the audience behind a TikTok video, to that of a blog)
• Give some details on the current trending topics that might spark audience interest

PROMPT: Write as if you are a senior marketing executive working at LuxeTrek who enjoys taking road trips, and has done so in America, Europe and Australia. Considering the above information about the brand, please can you give some ideas for blog topics, that discusses tips for travel, travel gear that provides home comforts on the road, and best destinations to visit – all centred around travelling during the holiday season. Whilst also taking account the target audience above, please note that these blogs are aimed at solo or small groups of adult travellers, and not for those planning to travel with teenagers or young children. Current trending topics are: looking for the winter sun, Christmas markets, and skiing.

ChatGPT response:

Prompts for metadata

Crafting the metadata necessary for technical SEO for every blog, content piece, and page on your website can be tedious and time consuming – especially when trying to optimise for organic search. This is one of the areas where ChatGPT can help marketers streamline processes, by producing several meta descriptions for website content in a fraction of the time it would take a human. As with the above, ChatGPT will need a detailed prompt in order to produce accurate and quality content. The following is the basic information that you will need to provide to chatGPT in your prompt for the best outcomes:

• Title of blog, webpage, or content piece
• Summary of the content available on this page
• Keywords
• The call-to-action (CTA) for this page (if necessary) – what are you looking to achieve with this content
• Tone of voice
• Desired word count (no more than 160 characters approx for meta description)

Imagine I had written the blogs suggested by ChatGPT above, and wanted to quickly generate the meta descriptions before launching on my website; the following is how I would prompt ChatGPT for this:

PROMPT: Considering the brand outlined above, and the information provided below, please write meta descriptions for each of these blogs – with the goal of a high ranking on the SERPs.

Title: Warm Getaways for the Winter Sun Seeker
Summary: The blog highlights destinations that offer a reprieve from winter’s chill, and provides recommendations for those seeking sunshine and relaxation during the holiday season. Throughout, there are subtle suggestions for eco-friendly travel gear ideal for beach and warm climate destinations.
Keywords: Winter sun, Christmas, Holiday Season,
CTA: Want to gear up with the best eco-friendly products for your Winter Sun getaway?
Tone of voice: Informative and adventurous
Word count: 160 words or less

Title: The Art of Packing Light: Holiday Travel Tips
Summary: This blog offers packing tips and a checklist specifically tailored to holiday season travel for adults or small groups. It includes advice on choosing versatile and sustainable travel gear.
Keywords: Packing, group travel, packing hacks, travelling light
CTA: Check out our compact luggage collection to make packing light a breeze
Tone of voice: Informative and adventurous
Word count: 160 words or less

Title: The Joy of Solo Holiday Travel: Tips for Adventurous Solo Travelers
Summary: The blog focuses on the solo traveller, offering insights into the freedom and adventure that solo holiday travel can bring. Discuss safety, packing essentials, and sustainable solo travel gear.
Keywords: Solo travel, travel tips, travel safety
CTA: Make solo travel easy with these holiday essentials
Tone of voice: Informative
Word count: 160 words or less

ChatGPT response:

Prompts for writing outlines & short form content

In a recent study conducted by Click Consult, we found that 63% of people could tell when a piece of content was written by AI – and more than half preferred human generated content (56%).

The general consensus in the digital marketing field is that AI generated content is not yet at the level necessary to produce long-form content ready for publishing, without either an expert reviewing or a heavy editing process. The best use of AI for content creation is for producing outlines for long-form content, or for short-form copy, such as social media posts or ads. As with all prompts, you are going to want to be as detailed or descriptive as possible for the best output.

Prompt for writing blog or article outlines:

For a detailed blog outline you will want to include the following details in your prompt:

• Blog title, if known. If the title is unknown, then ask ChatGPT to suggest a title in the prompt based on the blog topic(s) provided.
• Keywords – give details on where you want these keywords to be included (for example in the subheadings, and specific areas of the main body if necessary)
• A number of subheadings (or H2s & H3s) you want included in the article – this can be as specific or as vague as necessary
• An approximate word count for the article

Using one of the above blogs as an example, the following is how I would prompt ChatGPT to produce an outline:

PROMPT (title known): Taking into account the brand information detailed above, write an outline for a blog titled “Warm Getaways for the Winter Sun Seeker”. Include some of the keywords “Winter sun”, “Christmas”, & “Holiday Season,” in the subheadings, and take them into account when planning the main body. Include at least 5 subheadings, with a word count of 1500.

ChatGPT response:

PROMPT (title unknown): Taking into account the brand information detailed above, write an outline for a blog centred on the topic of travelling to warm holiday destinations in the winter – including recommendations for destinations, travel tips, and ‘eco-friendly’ travel gear essentials. Suggest a catchy title for the blog, and include some of the keywords “Winter sun”, “Christmas”, & “Holiday Season,” in both the title and subheadings, as well as taking them into account when planning the main body. Include at least 5 subheadings, with a word count of 1500.

ChatGPT response:

If we compare the adobe two responses to an example with a less detailed prompt, that does not have the same advantage of being aligned with LuxeTrek’s brand guidelines, then we get a different structure.

PROMPT: Write an outline for a blog that discusses warm holiday destinations in the winter. Suggest a catchy title for the blog, and include some of the keywords “Winter sun”, “Christmas”, & “Holiday Season,” in both the title and subheadings, as well as taking them into account when planning the main body. Include at least 5 subheadings, with a word count of 1500.

ChatGPT response:

As you can see, the final response is not only less detailed, but it also less attuned to LuxeTrek’s marketing goals. One clear difference between the brand-aligned structures, and the final one is the lack of discussion around eco-friendly travel. The first prompt doesn’t even mention eco-travel in the prompt, but because we have aligned it to our brand guidelines it understands this as an essential topic. This just shows the value of providing ChatGPT with a detailed prompt, and how these slight changes can be highly beneficial to your brand.

Prompts for writing ad copy

Due to their short, punchy nature and less of a need to have a tailored flow or research behind them, using AI for short-form copy, such as ads or social media posts, has a wider use in the digital marketing industry. That being said, it is highly recommended that all copy generated by AI is reviewed and edited before posting for the best results.
When prompting generative AI for ad copy, ensure you provide the following details in the prompt:

• The platform on which the ad will be shown i.e. Facebook, Instagram, Google, etc.
• The type of content shown alongside the ad i.e. video, carousel, still image
• The number of ad varieties you would like – either for multiple ads, or for A/B testing copy
• Keywords
• Word count (if necessary)
• Information about your product or service
• Target audience
• Main benefits or USPs of the product/service

Using a fake AI generated product for the LuxeTrek brand – the ‘EcoVoyage Convertible Backpack’ – I would prompt ChatGPT with the following:

PROMPT: Keeping in mind the above brand information, can you write three captivating Facebook ads promoting our ‘EcoVoyage Convertible Backpack’. Ensure that the headlines grabs the attention of our target audience (refer to above brand guidelines) and appeals to people going on backpacking, interrailing, or hiking/camping trips where they would need a lot of storage in a compact piece of luggage. Include one ad that would specifically appeal to festival goers. The main benefits of the product include: an eco-concious choice, versatile product, beneficial for efficient organisation, comfortable, durable, and weather resistant. All ads will include a carousel of images showcasing smiling people using the bag in adventurous places, highlighting some of the main features. Include some of the keywords ‘eco-friendly’, ‘weather-resistant’, and ‘packing light’. Please keep the wordcount to under 50 words, including the headline and CTA in this wordcount.

ChatGPT response:

Prompt for writing social media posts

Due to its ability to craft numerous attention-grabbing captions in a short time span, generative AI can empower users to enhance their online presence and make a significant impact in the fast-paced world of social media.

To prompt for a social media post, the information you will want to include in your prompt is very similar to what you would include for ad copy:

• The platform on which you will be making the post i.e. Facebook, Instagram, Google, etc.
• The type of content shown alongside the post i.e. video/reel, carousel, still image
• The number of captions you would like, so you can either choose the best fit for your product – or if you have several posts promoting the same product planned in your content schedule
• #Hashtags or keywords
• Word count (if necessary)
• Information about your product or service
• Target audience
• Main benefits or USPs of the product/service

PROMPT: Keeping in mind the above brand information, can you write three captivating Instagram posts promoting our ‘EcoVoyage Convertible Backpack’. Ensure that the captions grab the attention of our target audience (refer to above brand guidelines) and appeal to people going on backpacking, interrailing, or hiking/camping trips where they would need a lot of storage in a compact piece of luggage. Include one post that would specifically appeal to festival goers. The main benefits of the product include: an eco-conscious choice, versatile product, beneficial for efficient organisation, comfortable, durable, and weather resistant. All posts will include an Instagram reel showcasing smiling people using the bag in adventurous places, highlighting some of the main features. Include a combination of the following hashtags in the copy – choose the ones you feel fit best with the ads you produce: #EcoTravel #SustainableAdventures #TravelWithPurpose #EcoFriendlyGear #VersatileBackpack #AdventureReady #ExploreResponsibly #TravelSmart #PackLight #LuxeTrekAdventures #GreenTravel #BackpackersParadise #AdventureAwaits #ConvertibleBackpack #OutdoorExploration #EcoConsciousTravel #Wanderlust #TravelEssentials #ExploreTheWorld #SustainableLiving

ChatGPT response:

Prompts for rewriting content

There are several situations in which you will need to rewrite already written content, for example adapting a social post for different platforms, or changing the tone or sentiment behind an ad. In theory this seems like a simple concept, but in practice rewriting content can be a very difficult thing to do. In this context, AI can be an extremely useful tool as it can rewrite and adapt copy for its desired needs in mere seconds.

Prompts for rewriting content are generally much simpler than the examples we have previously gone through. You will want to use the following structure as a guide:

Re-writing for different social media platforms: Taking into account the brand guidelines above, please rewrite the following text in a way that better suits [INSERT SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM]. Please keep the caption to less than [WORD LIMIT]:

[INSERT TEXT]

PROMPT: Taking into account the brand guidelines above, please rewrite the following text in a way that better suits Twitter*. Please keep the caption to less than 240 characters, including #hashtags:

“Unleash your inner adventurer with the EcoVoyage Convertible Backpack! This eco-conscious wonder is here to transform your backpacking and hiking trips. With its spacious design, efficient organization, comfort, and durability, it’s your ultimate backpacking companion. Say goodbye to the hassle of packing and embrace the call of the wild. The EcoVoyage Convertible Backpack – where your journey begins! #ExploreNature #EcoFriendly”

ChatGPT response:

*Although Twitter is now officially known as X, ChatGPTs data only goes up to January 2022 and will therefore only know the social platform as Twitter, and not its rebranded name.

Rewriting for tone: Taking into account the brand guidelines above, can you add a sense of [SENTIMENT] to [INSERT TEXT].

PROMPT: Taking into account the brand guidelines above, can you add a sense of urgency to this Facebook ad copy:

“EcoVoyage Backpack: Where Adventure Meets Sustainability!

Elevate your backpacking and hiking trips with this eco-conscious, weather-resistant backpack. Stay organized, comfortable, and ready for any terrain.

Adventure Awaits!”

ChatGPT response:

Prompts for data analysis & testing

Producing ideas and content is not the only way ChatGPT can be used in digital marketing. AI can be used as a second pair of eyes to critique your own work, evaluate previously used copy, or to suggest additional variations of your copy to use in an A/B test.

PROMPT: Can you critique this text for a Facebook ad, and based on these critiques suggest ad variations we can use to A/B test the copy. The ad is for our ‘EcoVoyage Convertible Backpack’, with its main benefits being an eco-concious choice, versatile product, beneficial for efficient organisation, comfortable, durable, and weather resistant. This ad considers our target audience (outlined in the brand guidelines above), and is specifically targeted at festival goers.

“Festival-Ready Fun with EcoVoyage Convertible Backpack
Party in style with our spacious, weather-resistant backpack. Stay comfortable and organised during your festival adventures.
Let’s Party!”

ChatGPT response:

The ChatGPT downfalls

While the above showcases that generative AI tools such as ChatGPT can be incredibly useful for marketers, they are not without their downfalls.

ChatGPT is only as smart as the information it is trained on, and that knowledge base only goes as far as January 2022 (accurate at the time of writing). That means that in our current month of November 2023, all the information provided by ChatGPT is almost 2 years out of date.

It is also worth noting that ChatGPTs algorithm is built to please, and therefore has been known to give inaccurate or fictional information when the answer to your query is unknown.

Using ChatGPT to generate content for YMYL brands

YMYL (Your Money, Your Life) brands need to be extra cautious when using ChatGPT to generate content due to the stricter standards these brands are upheld by in Google’s guidelines. If you are a YMYL brand wanting to use ChatGPT other generative AI tools to produce content it is best to keep the following information in mind:

Accuracy: as previously mentioned, ChatGPTs up-to-date knowledge is limited. The general public rely on YMYL brands to publish accurate and expert information and research that generative AI tools such as ChatGPT just cannot provide.

E-E-A-T: as mentioned above, YMYL brands are held at an extremely high standard in Google’s guidelines, and value knowledge from all brands (but YMYL in particular) to be written with experience, expertise, authority, and trustworthiness in mind.

A human touch: AI does not have a full understanding of human emotion and this might be reflected in the way in which content is written. Due to the sensitive nature of some of the topics YMYL brands will be producing, an empathetic voice might be beneficial – something that AI brands might not be able to do with precision or reliability.

Industry regulations: generative AI might not be able to produce content that is in-line with specific industry regulations.

Using generative AI in your marketing campaigns

Generative AI is proving to be a useful tool for marketers to streamline their content writing process. That being said, it is important to remember that AI is simply a tool to aid with writing, and should not be used to replace human writers altogether.

With generative AI, input = output; essentially, the more detailed and informative the prompt you give – the more likely you are to generate a response that will both align with your brand guidelines, and appeal to your target audience.

The above guidance will help you to write descriptive prompts that you can feed into ChatGPT and produce content that can be used in your marketing campaigns. For the best results, always keep in mind that AI generated responses will need reviewing, and editing before being published as part of a campaign.

It is clear that the use of generative AI in marketing practices is becoming commonplace. As marketers, we need to continually upskill and understand how to best use this evolving technology, and adapt our current processes accordingly to allow our brands to thrive.