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Explain a gift card balance from the ledger, no blame

  • For Small business owners
  • You practice Keeping the AI to your sources
  • Time about 5 minutes
  • Level Beginner

About this exercise

Reply to Hannah. Start with the line "Hi Hannah," and show the two uses of the card as two lines, each in the form "Oct 3: $35". Then state the total and the remaining balance in one sentence, and offer to check the register receipts. Plain text, under 80 words, and do not suggest she forgot or made a mistake.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Accusing the customer. The AI says 'you may have forgotten' about the online order. Try: Say: "Do not suggest she forgot or made a mistake."
  • Skipping the itemized lines. The AI summarizes in prose. Try: Show the line format "Oct 3: $35".
  • No math or offer. The AI says the balance is zero without the total or next step. Try: Say: "State the total and offer to check receipts."
  • Getting markdown back. AI adds bold and headings by default, which show up as stray symbols where this is pasted. Try: Say "plain text, no bold, no headings, no asterisks".
  • Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting and usually runs long, so a vague "keep it short" lands well over the limit. Try: Cap each part instead of the total, for example "each line under 15 words".

What a strong prompt includes

  • Gives the opening line
  • Shows the line format
  • Bans blame
  • Asks for plain text
  • Sets a length limit

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