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Walk from gross sales to net revenue in five lines

  • For FP&A and financial analysts
  • You practice Asking for a format you can use
  • Time about 5 minutes
  • Level Beginner

About this exercise

You're preparing a one-month revenue walk for a store owner. Write a prompt for plain text with exactly five lines starting "Gross sales:", "Discounts:", "Returns:", "Net revenue:" and "Net as % of gross:". Gross sales means merchandise only; shipping fees billed to customers are not part of it. Net revenue is gross sales minus discounts and returns. Show the math on the last two lines. Under 70 words.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Starting from the POS total. The AI uses $540,000 and includes shipping and tax. Try: Say: "Gross sales is merchandise only."
  • Subtracting the wrong things. The AI deducts free items or sales tax. Try: Add: "Subtract only discounts and returns."
  • No visible math. The AI gives totals with no working. Try: Add: "Show the arithmetic on the last two lines."
  • Markdown extras. The AI adds bold labels, headings and a closing note. Try: Say: "Plain text, no bold. Output only the lines asked for."
  • Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting and runs past word limits. Try: Ask for fewer words than the real cap and keep each part short.

What a strong prompt includes

  • Names the five labels
  • Defines gross sales
  • Defines net
  • Asks for the math
  • Caps length

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