Library › Writing AI › Finance and accounting

Answer a client's invoice dispute, conceding one point

Practice: Keeping the AI to your sources. About 5 minutes.

About this exercise

A client disputed two charges on their invoice. Reply in under 100 words, plain text: open by saying what you're correcting and the credit amount, then explain why the other charge stands by quoting the contract clause number. Give the corrected total, and don't apologize more than once or offer anything the notes don't approve. Write a prompt that gets you exactly that.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting. Ask for "under 100 words" and it often lands well over. Try: Cap each part instead: "5 sentences, each under 18 words."
  • Opening with an apology. The AI starts with "We apologize for the confusion" before saying what's changing. Try: Add: "First sentence: what you're correcting and the $170 credit."
  • Giving in on the second charge. To keep the client happy, the AI waives the service call or offers a goodwill credit. Try: Add: "The $175 stands. Cite section 4.2 and the 8:40 PM time. No goodwill credit."
  • Leaving out the new total. The AI explains the changes but never gives the number to pay. Try: Add: "Give the corrected total, $1,665.00."
  • Ignoring where it will be pasted. AI loves bold and headings, which show up as stray ** and # symbols in the email. Try: Name the place and the format: "For the email. Plain text, no bold or headings."

What a strong prompt includes

  • Leads with the correction
  • Cites the contract
  • Gives the new total
  • Rules out extra offers
  • Sets a word limit

Practice this now ↑

Related exercises