Business programme
Start-Up, Scale-Up by Lloyds Bank Academy
Using AI prompts
Learn how to get more out of AI, by the way you interact with it.
Introduction to 'Using AI prompts'
Using AI tools isn’t all about these tools knowing all the answers. It’s often about us knowing how to ask the right questions.
In this lesson, we’ll explore some common types of tools and how to use prompts with them, to find the answers and achieve the tasks that you want.
What you'll learn
- How you might work with different types of AI tools.
- What prompts are and how to write them.
- Ways to get better results from AI by changing how you interact with it.
How long it takes
7 minutes
Working with AI tools
Chapter 1
How long it takes
2 minutes
What tools are available?
Though there are many different AI tools available, we can group them into types, based on what they do. Some are multi-purpose while others are better at certain tasks. The actual tool you use might depend on what you want to use it for.
Tools can help you:
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Chatbots and AI assistants answer your questions and have a conversation with you.
You can use them for:
Learning
Research
Everyday questions
Voice-first assistants
Some AI assistants like Apple’s Siri, and Amazon’s Alexa are built to recognise your voice and respond with their own. You can access them through devices (like iPhones, iPads and Apple watches for Siri, and Amazon Echo devices for Alexa), apps or from smart TVs and car systems. Google Gemini can be used in this way too, for Android devices. These were all originally designed to help people control devices and perform simple tasks through voice commands. But you can ask them for information and chat with them too.
Conversational AI assistants
Apps and tools like ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot and Google Gemini let you either type or speak your question. Then you can have a text or voice conversation with them.
Chatbots
You may see these on websites or apps. They’re a type of AI assistant that is built for a specific purpose. Often, this is to provide customer service or support. So you might ask them questions like ‘Where’s my order?’, ‘Can I change my booking?’ or ‘How do I reset my password?’
All these tools understand human language and will try to respond in the same way. So, using them can be just like having a conversation with another person.
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These AI tools can do more than just answer your questions.
For example, you can ask them to:
Draft your CV or write a thank you note
Create a plan for getting fit or a family trip
Design invitations or create artwork
Tools that can do these and other design/creation tasks include ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot and Google Gemini. There are also specialist tools like Canva AI and Adobe Firefly for creating images, videos and audio. For Apple users, Apple Intelligence works with other Apple apps to draft and refine content.
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Some AI tools can help you with day-to-day tasks – either by suggesting ways to simplify them, helping you work out what to tackle first, or even doing them for you.
For example, you can ask them to:
Set reminders and manage your calendar
Summarise your emails and draft replies
Create shopping lists and meal plans
AI assistants and voice tools like ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, Alexa and Siri can help you with these types of tasks. They act like a personal assistant, helping you manage appointments, emails, shopping, meals and family activities through simple conversations.
Different AI tools have different strengths, but they do have one thing in common. All of them respond best to clear instructions.
Prompts and how to write them
Chapter 2
How long it takes
4 minutes
What is a prompt?
A prompt is what you give to AI, to tell it what you want it to do.
This could be:
A question
Like ‘What’s the difference between Wi-Fi and Bluetooth?’
An instruction
Such as ‘Write a birthday message for my friend’.
A task with context
For example, ‘I’m a vegetarian. Suggest a recipe’.
Idea
You don’t have to type a prompt. It can be quicker to speak.
Some AI tools – like voice assistants – are set up to respond to speech. For others, you can choose to use ‘voice-to-text’ options – look for a microphone symbol.
How to write a prompt
You don’t need to learn complicated techniques to write a good prompt. A few simple habits can make a big difference.
Each prompt you write will be different, but it’s good to bear certain things in mind.
Aim to include:
Let’s look at each of these in turn.
Give AI a role
AI can respond in many different ways. By giving it a role, you guide it towards the type of answer that will be most useful. The role tells AI what perspective, expertise, or style to adopt when answering your request.
It's a bit like choosing the right person to ask for advice in real life. If you ask a chef, a teacher, and a travel agent the same question, they'll each likely focus on different things. AI works in a similar way.
AI can respond in many different ways. By giving it a role, you guide it towards the type of answer that will be most useful.
The role tells AI what perspective, expertise, or style to adopt when answering your request.
It's a bit like choosing the right person to ask for advice in real life. If you ask a chef, a teacher, and a travel agent the same question, they'll each likely focus on different things. AI works in a similar way.
For example, you could ask AI to 'act as a...'
Travel consultant
Personal trainer
Gardening expert
Choose a role that matches the type of help you want, not just the topic. For example, ‘Act as a supportive personal trainer helping someone new to exercise’ or ‘Act as a tutor helping me fully understand this topic’.
Struggling to find the right ‘role’ word? Don’t worry – you can always phrase it differently. For instance, try giving AI an idea of the level of knowledge you have.
For example:
- ‘Explain solar panels to someone with no technical knowledge.’
- ‘Teach me the basics of chess as if I'm a complete beginner.’
- 'Explain this like I'm a 12-year-old.'
Provide context
AI can give better answers if it understands who the answer is for and what you’re trying to achieve.
Think ‘where’, ‘when’, ‘who’ plus any other information that might be useful.
For example:
'A holiday in Europe for a family with two pre-school age children.'
'I have 30 minutes available for exercise each day.'
'I'm completely new to gardening and want to encourage butterflies into my garden.'
Giving examples can help, too. Show AI what you like, to improve its results.
For example,
- Instead of: 'Help me write a birthday message.’
- Try: 'Help me write a warm birthday message similar to: "Hope you have a wonderful day filled with fun and laughter".’
Set a clear task
This is the ‘what’ that you want AI to do. Be clear and specific when you’re setting the task.
Imagine you’re asking a person to do something – maybe something they haven’t done before. AI’s like that person. The clearer and more specific you are, the more likely it is to give you a useful answer.
This is the ‘what’ that you want AI to do. Be clear and specific when you’re setting the task.
Imagine you’re asking a person to do something – maybe something they haven’t done before. AI’s like that person.
The clearer and more specific you are, the more likely it is to give you a useful answer.
For example,
- Instead of: ‘Tell me about exercise.’
- Try: ‘Give me five simple ways to exercise at home without equipment.’
The second prompt gives the AI a clearer task, so you're more likely to get the answer you want.
Remember
The more context you provide, the better the response.
Let AI know the format you want
If it’s suggestions or ideas, you might want a simple list, or a table or chart that makes it easy to compare options.
For some tasks, the format can be part of the ‘what’ – like ‘design a birthday card’ or ‘write a letter of complaint’.
Again, be as clear and specific as you can.
If it’s suggestions or ideas, you might want a simple list, or a table or chart that makes it easy to compare options. For some tasks, the format can be part of the ‘what’ – like ‘design a birthday card’ or ‘write a letter of complaint’.
Again, be as clear and specific as you can.
For example:
'Give me a bullet-point list.'
'Explain it in simple language.'
'Summarise it in three sentences.'
'Create a step-by-step guide.'
'Compare the options in a simple table.'
'Create a short checklist.'
List any constraints
Constraints help AI focus on what matters most and avoid things you don’t want.
Don’t just tell it what you want. Tell it what you don’t want.
Constraints help AI focus on what matters most and avoid things you don’t want.
Don’t just tell it what you want. Tell it what you don’t want.
For example:
'Exclude anywhere that's more than an hour's drive from the airport.'
'Don't show me outdoor activities or anything that needs equipment.'
'My budget is under £50.'
Putting these all together
Here’s an example of a prompt that includes a role, context, task, format and constraints:
‘Act as a holiday consultant to help me plan my next family trip. We're looking to choose a location for a family of 3 this September. We have £1000 to spend. Please help me create a list of 5-10 possible locations with pros and cons. We don’t want to drive, so include all public transport options, plus distance from the nearest port or airport. Don't include anywhere that's over 25 degrees at that time of year.’
Remember
Don’t feel you have to include every item we’ve mentioned here, in every single prompt you write. Some of your prompts will be short, others more detailed. The main thing is that they’re as clear and specific as possible.
There’s no such thing as ‘the perfect prompt’. Just like when you’re asking a human, you can always add more detail and refine your request.
Getting the most out of AI
Chapter 3
How long it takes
1 minute
Useful Ways to Guide AI
Break big tasks into smaller ones
If you're working on something complex, tackle it step by step.
Say you’re planning a summer holiday. There are many different aspects of this task that you might want AI to help with. You could explain all of this in one very long prompt. Or you could try several smaller ones, to make it easier to manage.
So you might start with:
‘Suggest three family-friendly destinations in Spain.’
Then:
‘Compare the weather and costs.’
Then:
‘Help me create a five-day itinerary.'
This may give you better results than asking for everything all at once.
Plus, you can adjust what you need at each stage. For instance, if you’re not keen on any of the destinations it suggests, you might want to ask for more, or follow up with prompts like ‘show destinations that are less than 30 minutes from an airport’.
Remember
Ask follow-up questions to build on the response.
Refine and improve the conversation
Think of AI as something you can coach towards a better answer. That means starting with a request, then adding instructions to guide it towards what you want.
For example, you might want to add:
- ‘Make it shorter.’
- ‘Give me more examples.’
- ‘Explain that more simply.’
- ‘Add practical tips.’
- ‘Rewrite in a friendly tone.’
Remember
You don't need to get the perfect prompt first time.
Three things to remember
- Choose the right AI tool for the task.
- Give clear instructions and context, then refine these to improve results.
- Not sure the answer you get is right? Check with other sources.
Find out more about how and when to check the answers AI gives you, in our 'Checking AI' lesson.
Want to learn more?
Artificial Intelligence
Lloyds Bank Academy is committed to providing information in a way that is accessible and useful for our users. This information, however, is not in any way intended to amount to authority or advice on which reliance should be placed. You should seek professional advice as appropriate and required. Any sites, products or services named in this module are just examples of what's available. Lloyds Bank does not endorse the services they provide. The information in this module was last updated on 10th August 2026.