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Name the cheapest, the fastest and the pick that meets the deadline

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

About this exercise

Write a prompt for plain text with exactly four lines: "Cheapest:", "Fastest:", "Pick for approval:" and "Reason:". The pick is the cheapest quote that delivers in 10 days or fewer. Reason shows the price difference from the cheapest as math. The buyer approves. Under 60 words.

Common mistakes when you ask AI for this

  • Picking the cheapest. The AI picks Pike because it is the lowest price. Try: Say: "The pick is the cheapest quote that delivers in 10 days or fewer."
  • Believing 'try to deliver sooner'. The AI treats Pike as possibly meeting the deadline. Try: Say: "Do not rely on promises to try for sooner."
  • Wrong lines. The AI writes a comparison table. Try: Quote the four labels.
  • 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

  • Quotes the four labels
  • States the deadline rule
  • Asks for the difference math
  • Mentions the buyer approves
  • Asks for plain text

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