Turn a long support thread into a clean bug report

About this exercise

Engineering needs a bug report from a long back-and-forth with a customer. Write a 'Summary:' line, then exactly 3 numbered steps to reproduce, then an 'Expected:' line and an 'Actual:' line, under 90 words, plain text. Use only what the customer confirmed, and leave out the customer's own guess at the cause and the chitchat.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

• Asking to 'summarize the ticket'. The AI retells the conversation in order, with bold headings. Try: Show the shape: "Summary:, then 3 numbered steps, then Expected: and Actual:. Plain text."
• Trusting the AI to count words. AI is bad at counting. Ask for a total word limit and it often lands over it. Try: Cap each part instead: "each line under 15 words."
• Vague steps. The AI writes 'add a photo' and misses that only new camera photos fail. Try: Add: "Steps must say the photo is taken with the camera button inside the note."
• Missing the facts engineers need. Device and version get dropped when the AI shortens things. Try: Add: "Include the device and app version, and what happens right after 'Use Photo'."
• Repeating guesses. The customer's server theory sounds like a cause, and the AI includes it. Try: Add: "Only facts the customer confirmed. No guesses about the cause."

What a strong prompt includes

• Shows the report shape
• Sets the number of steps
• Asks for device and version
• Drops guesses
• Sets a word limit

Practice this now ↑

Related exercises

• Announce a new weekend rotation in three clear rules (Productivity AI · Managers and team leads)
• Announce a referral bonus with the steps to claim it (Marketing AI · HR and recruiting)
• Announce a team meeting change people will actually follow (Writing AI · Managers and team leads)
• Answer a 'found an error' question in STAR order (Writing AI · Finance and accounting)
• Answer a wholesale inquiry with clear terms (Writing AI · Small business owners)