Amplify AI results: The Power of Context and References
How to fill knowledge gaps and benefit from a reference library.
How to spot a beginner working with an AI tool? They’ll ask direct questions without context.
“Write an outline about X.”
“Rewrite this intro in the style of Y.”
“Improve this draft about Z.”
The algorithm will happily carry out your command, but the result will be ok—and only if you’re lucky.
You exponentially improve the AI's performance by feeding it with context and references.
“Great intros have these x characteristics, and here are five examples.”
“The article targets keyword Z for reader profile B, and the client is X doing Y. Now write me an engaging intro for this article.”
“Please rephrase the headings (H1, H2s, H3s) in the following outline based on the style and structure of the example outlines from {customer’s/project’s} blog below.” (From our prompt template Rough to polished outline transformer.)
To consistently get good results from this approach requires two habits:
Ask the AI for the desired characteristics of your output.
Build a reference library.
Habit 1: Ask the AI for the characteristics your output needs
Unsure what characteristics make a great intro? Ask the AI.
Don’t know how to describe the style and structure of a piece of text? Ask the AI.
Not great at describing or determining visual styles for images? Ask the AI.
You get the idea.
Being an expert writer, marketer, or designer is helpful when using AI and writing prompts. But a tool like ChatGTP can also fill in gaps in your knowledge if you’re not.
Say you ask ChatGPT for the characteristics of a well-written article introduction. You can then use those to craft a prompt—usually after some further human tweaking.
You: "What are the characteristics of an engaging and well-written article introduction?"
AI: "An engaging and well-written article introduction should have the following characteristics:
A strong hook to grab the reader's attention.
A clear and concise overview of the topic.
A brief explanation of why the topic is important or relevant.
A preview of the main points or arguments that will be discussed in the article.
An inviting tone that encourages readers to continue reading."
You: "Write an engaging introduction for a 1,000-word article about urban gardening. The introduction should include a strong hook, a concise overview of the topic, an explanation of the importance of urban gardening, a preview of the main points that will be discussed, and an inviting tone that encourages readers to continue reading."
You can apply this approach to any deliverable, task, or skill you want to use AI for.
Habit 2: Build a reference library
References the AI can imitate or take inspiration from are another quality booster.
“I want you to write this introduction in the style of the below reference intros.”
“Change the wording of these draft headers to match the tone and style of the examples below.”
That's straightforward enough. Find some good paragraphs you've written in the past, include them in your prompt, and voilà.
Things get messy quickly as you'll need references for all kinds of purposes:
Intros and conclusions.
Article titles and section headers.
Outlines and drafts.
Style references for brands A, B, and C.
You'll also find yourself needing references you used previously. And you might want to rate their performance, so you can remember which ones worked well with the AI and which didn't.
The solution is to create reference cards, ideally using a note-taking app like Notion. This way, you can filter and sort them in different ways depending on what you're looking for.
I structure my cards as in the image below. Here's a fantastic example of a style reference guide someone has made for Midjourney.
Need help? Got questions? Leave a comment below
Leave a comment below or message me if you're struggling to make a prompt work or are unsure how to set up your reference library effectively. I'd also love to hear about topics you'd like to see covered or prompt template wishes.
I'll be back next week with another article, and paid subscribers can expect more prompt templates before then.
Have a good end to your week and an even better weekend!
Tim
New and updated prompt templates
🤖 AI log
For this article, I've used the following AI tools, tricks, and templates:
Notion AI commands:
Improve writing
Simplify language
Prompt generator for Midjourney. “A creative professional standing in front of a huge, futuristic, glowing machine. In the machine's background is a library with books but also pictures, which the professional feeds to the machine. Shot with digital cameras with high-quality lenses to create a crisp and modern look. --ar 3:2”