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Push back on a supplier price increase with the cost impact shown

  • For Procurement
  • You practice Setting limits and rules
  • Time about 5 minutes
  • Level Intermediate

About this exercise

Your resin supplier announced a price increase. Write a prompt for an email to the rep, Tomas Reyes, that starts with a subject line, shows the annual cost impact as math, asks for the supporting cost data and a call this week, and neither accepts the increase nor claims a competing quote. Plain text, under 120 words.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Hinting at another supplier. The AI adds 'we are evaluating alternatives'. Try: Say: "Do not mention other suppliers or quotes."
  • Vague cost impact. The AI says 'a significant increase' with no figure. Try: Say: "Show the annual impact as math."
  • No subject line. The AI opens with Dear Tomas. Try: Say: "First line: Subject:".
  • Getting markdown back. AI adds bold, headings and bullets 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 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 a subject
  • Shows annual impact math
  • Asks for data and a call
  • Bans competitor claims
  • Asks for plain text

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