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Reply to a refund request that falls outside the window

  • For Customer support teams
  • You practice Getting the tone right
  • Time about 5 minutes
  • Level Beginner

About this exercise

You work support at Brightway, an online kitchenware shop. Reply to Marcus in plain text, under 90 words. Start with "Hi Marcus," and make the last line exactly "Priya, Brightway Support". Our refund window is 30 days from delivery. After that we can only offer store credit. Do not promise a refund.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Copying the old macro. The AI sees the 45-day line and the day-40 refund note and treats them as current policy. Try: Add: "The window is 30 days. Ignore any other number in the notes."
  • Burying the no. The AI softens the message so much that Marcus can't tell whether he gets a refund. Try: Say: "Say in the second sentence that a refund isn't possible, then offer store credit."
  • Skipping the exact open and close. The AI writes its own greeting and a generic sign-off. Try: Give both: "Start with Hi Marcus, and end with the exact line Priya, Brightway Support."
  • 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

  • Asks for plain text
  • Sets a length limit
  • Names the reader and sign-off
  • States the policy

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