All levels
Your Focus: Prompt Structure
Write the prompt so the first answer needs fewer fixes.
Prompt structure is how much of what you want you write down before you hit enter. To move up one level, take the changes you usually ask for after the first draft and put them in the prompt instead, then test it on two real accounts before you save it. This page shows what each answer looks like, how to tell which one is yours and a 30 day plan to move up one step.
In 30 seconds
- The question: "How do you usually write a prompt?" Four answers, scored 0 to 3.
- Your results tip: "Rebuild your most used prompt in five parts: goal, context, inputs, rules and format. Test it on two real accounts and save the version that wins."
- What moves you up is moving your fixes to the front: every change you ask for after a draft is a part of the prompt you didn't write.
- The plan: one step up in 30 days, about 30 minutes a week, then retake the assessment.
The four levels of prompt structure
Each answer word for word, what it looks like in a real week and what keeps people there.
Scroll sideways to see the whole table.
| Score | Your answer | What a week looks like | What usually keeps you here |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 of 3 | "One line, like “write a cold email to a CFO.”" | A one line ask, a generic answer, then you send it as is or write it yourself | The ask feels complete because you know the account. AI doesn't, so it fills gaps with averages |
| 1 of 3 | "A few sentences, then I keep asking for changes until it's close." | A short ask, then three or four rounds of "shorter," "less formal," "that's not what they said" | Your fixes live in the chat and disappear when it ends, so you make the same ones next time |
| 2 of 3 | "I include the goal and some context, and I reuse prompts that worked before." | You open with the goal and some background, and copy prompts from a doc | Inputs, rules and format are thin, and a reused prompt was only tried on the account you wrote it for |
| 3 of 3 | "I structure it with a goal, context, inputs, rules and an output format, and I keep tested templates for common tasks." | Common tasks start from a template. You fill in the inputs and edit lightly | Nothing yet. The risk is templates only you can run, or that nobody retests |
What changes between levels isn't clever wording. From 0 to 1, you start giving feedback, so the chat becomes the prompt. From 1 to 2, that feedback moves to the front: goal and context go in before you send, and good prompts get saved. From 2 to 3, the last three parts (inputs, rules and format) get written down, and a prompt earns the name "template" only after it works on more than one account.
Where you probably are
- Check your results screen. Every area shows a bar with your score, such as "1 of 3." That number is your level here.
- Use the tie rule. When scores tie, Prompt structure comes fourth of ten, after Fact checking, Data safety and Workspace setup. It's in your three if your answer here was at or below most of your others, and at least one of those three areas scored higher. Same answer everywhere? It isn't in your three, and at a 3 it never is.
- Match your profile. Each plan page describes this area at its level.
Scroll sideways to see the whole table.
| Your profile | Likely answer here | What your plan page says about it |
|---|---|---|
| Curious Starter (0 to 9) | 0 | "Start with safety and setup, not clever prompts." Structure comes after those |
| Occasional Experimenter (10 to 17) | 1 | "List the edits you make every time... Each one belongs in the rules or format part." |
| Capable Practitioner (18 to 24) | 2 | Next point: from "goal, some context, reused prompts" to "all five parts, plus tested templates" |
| AI Power Seller (25 to 30) | 3 | "Teaching teammates," with this area's advanced tip |
If Prompt structure is one of your three, trust the bar over the profile. It loses ties to three other areas, so when it shows up, your answer here usually was lower than your others.
Your move up one level
Aim for one step, not the top.
From 0 to 1: add two lines, then coach
Target answer: "A few sentences, then I keep asking for changes until it's close." Add who the output is for and what it should achieve. Then coach the first answer: what to keep, what to change and by how much. Prompting 101 covers the basics.
From 1 to 2: move your fixes to the front
Target answer: "I include the goal and some context, and I reuse prompts that worked before." List every change you asked for in your last long chat. Each is a line you could have written first. Start the next prompt with the goal (the outcome, not the task), add those lines and save what worked.
From 2 to 3: finish the five parts and test
Target answer: "I structure it with a goal, context, inputs, rules and an output format, and I keep tested templates for common tasks." Paste the material with "use only these facts" (inputs), write your limits (rules) and say what the answer should look like (format). Run it on two real accounts, then save the winner as a prompt template.
Already at 3: make it work without you
Your advanced tip: "Turn your best three prompts into templates a teammate could use, with a note on the inputs each one needs." Your results screen never shows it, since three areas win ties ahead of this one. I Want to Be the AI Person on My Team turns it into a sharing plan.
Example: Rowan Pike, closing rep at Ramplight (fictional rep and company from the course labs)
Rowan answered 1 here. After every discovery call, Rowan asked AI for "a recap of today's call," then typed the same follow ups: "shorter," "add next steps with owners," "only what was actually said." In week 1, Rowan copied those follow ups from three old chats and sorted them into rules, format and inputs. The next recap prompt started with all of them. Your follow ups will differ. Start from yours.
Your 30 day plan
Your results screen gives this area one tip. This page turns it into a month, so your top prompts become tested templates.
Find what your prompt is missing
Your follow ups tell you which part to add. Sort the ones you typed this week.
Scroll sideways to see the whole table.
| What you keep typing after the first draft | The part it belongs in |
|---|---|
| "That's not the point. I want them to book a call." | Goal: name the outcome, not the task |
| "No, they're a logistics company." "I'm a prospecting rep, not a closing rep." | Context: or better, your seller context file |
| "That's not what happened on the call." "Where did that number come from?" | Inputs: paste the material and add "use only these facts" |
| "Shorter." "Less formal." "Don't mention pricing." | Rules: length, tone and limits |
| "Use bullets." "Give me two versions." "Put it in a table." | Format: what the answer should look like |
Also count the rounds of fixes a draft needs before you'd use it. That number should fall as your prompt fills in.
Scroll sideways to see the whole table.
| Week | Focus | What to do | Done when | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rebuild and compare | Pick your most used prompt. Sort last week's follow ups with the table above, then rewrite it in five parts. Run old and new on the same account and compare | You know which part made the difference | About 30 minutes |
| 2 | Test on two accounts | Run the new version on two real accounts. Score each output 1 to 5 for accuracy, specificity and "usable with no edits." Fix the weakest part once, then save it with {placeholders} |
One template that held up on two accounts | About 30 minutes |
| 3 | Second template | Repeat for your second most used task. Unsure what context it needs? Let AI ask you first. Count the rounds of fixes per draft | Two tested templates and a fix count | About 30 minutes |
| 4 | Time, save and retake | Time one task with your template and compare it with how long it used to take. Store both templates where you'll find them fast, then retake the assessment | Before and after times, written down | About 30 minutes |
Prompts for prompt structure
Run these in your company approved AI tool. Each matches a step up or a week of the plan.
Prompt
From 0 to 1: find the missing parts
Here's a prompt I use often for {task}: {paste your prompt}.
Label each sentence as goal, context, inputs, rules or format. Then tell me which of the five parts are missing or vague. For each one, write the single question I'd need to answer to fill it in, using my task as the example. Don't rewrite the prompt. I'll do that myself.Prompt
From 1 to 2: turn a long chat into one prompt
Below is a chat where I asked you for {task} and then asked for changes several times.
1. List every change I asked for after your first answer, in my words.
2. Name the part of a prompt each change belonged in: goal, context, inputs, rules or format.
3. Write one opening prompt that includes all of them, so the first answer would have needed none of those changes. Keep my wording where you can, and put {placeholders} where the details change each time.
<chat>
{paste the chat}
</chat>Prompt
Week 1: old versus new
Below are two prompts for the same task, {task}, and the output each one gave for the same account. Prompt A is my old version. Prompt B has five labeled parts.
1. Tell me what Output B does better and what it does worse.
2. For each difference, name the part of Prompt B that caused it.
3. If Output A did anything better, tell me which line to carry over into Prompt B.
4. List any fact in either output that isn't in the inputs I gave.
<prompt_a>{paste}</prompt_a>
<output_a>{paste}</output_a>
<prompt_b>{paste}</prompt_b>
<output_b>{paste}</output_b>Prompt
From 2 to 3: fill in inputs, rules and format
My prompt below has a goal and some context. Help me add the other three parts.
Inputs: ask me what material I usually have for this task and where it comes from, such as my call notes, the CRM record or the account's website.
Rules: list the 5 changes you'd most likely expect me to ask for after a first draft, and turn each into a rule I can keep or delete.
Format: suggest two output formats that fit where this goes ({for example, a CRM note or a first email}) and let me pick.
Then show the full prompt with all five parts labeled and {placeholders} for the account details.
<my_prompt>
{paste your prompt}
</my_prompt>Prompt
At 3: write the inputs note
Here are my three most used templates. For each one, write an inputs note a teammate could follow:
1. Each {placeholder}, what good input looks like and where to find it.
2. What happens to the output if that input is missing or thin.
3. The one input that matters most in that template.
Keep each note under 80 words. Don't change the templates.
<templates>
{paste your templates}
</templates>Try it now
Your first 15 minutes
- Open your company approved AI tool. Not sure which it is? Ask your manager, and keep to public information until you know.
- Find the prompt you typed most this week, and pick a real task it's for.
- Paste the task, then add this starter prompt: "Before you write anything, ask me up to 5 questions about what you need to know to do this well." Answer every question.
- Sort your answers into goal, context, inputs, rules and format. That's version 2 of your prompt. Save it.
Your prompt structure checklist
0 of 9 done
Ticks are saved in this browser only.
Key idea
Every change you ask for after the first draft is a part of the prompt you didn't write. Write it first, test it twice, then save it.
Related focus areas
Each will get its own page; until then, the guide next to it covers the same ground.
- Workspace setup: if your context line keeps growing, move it into a saved file. Guide: How to Build a Seller Context File.
- Outreach writing: your most used prompt is often a first email. Structure gives a better draft; outreach adds the angle and your voice. Guide: How to Write Cold Emails with AI.
- Automation: a tested template is the first rung. Once it runs the same way every time, it can become a routine that reports to you. Guide: AI Sales Automation.
Using AI on these prompts only now and then? Your Focus: Everyday Use helps you run them every time the task comes up.
Retake the assessment
Retake it at day 30. Answer from the prompts you actually typed this month, not your plan: if your saved prompt was only ever tried on one account, that's still a 2. One step up here adds one point to your total.
Free assessment
What's next
Everything on this page is free, and so is the guide from your results: AI Prompts for Sales, 15 tested prompts built in five parts. Basics first? Read Prompting 101, then the pillar, AI for Sales: A Practical Guide. For all ten areas, Session 3 of the AI for Sales Certification covers the five parts, seven techniques and the iteration habit, and ends with three tested templates for your top tasks. Lead a team? See team options.
Frequently asked questions
Why is Prompt structure a focus area when my prompts already work?
Because your answer here was lower than at least one other area. Prompt structure loses ties to Fact checking, Data safety and Workspace setup, so it makes your three only when one of them scored higher. Prompts that work after five rounds of changes still count as a 1.
Is asking for changes until it's close a bad habit?
No, it's the right instinct. Feedback is half of good prompting. The miss is letting those fixes disappear with the chat instead of moving them into the prompt.
Why test a prompt on two accounts before saving it?
Because a prompt written around one account often leans on details only that account had. A second account shows which lines are real rules and which were accidents.
Why didn't my results show the advanced tip for Prompt structure?
Because at a 3 it can't make your three. Fact checking, Data safety and Workspace setup always rank ahead of it on a tie. The advanced tip is on this page and on the AI Power Seller plan page instead.
Should I tell AI to act as someone, like a skeptical CFO?
Sometimes. The course treats a role as an optional sixth part. It helps most when AI critiques a draft or plays a buyer in a roleplay.
Not sure which reading order fits you? Find your path.
AI for Sales Certification
Rebuild one prompt today
10 self paced sessions, an optional weekly live class and a graded capstone, all practiced on your own accounts. Membership is $50 a month. Add the $250 certification when you're ready.
Not sure where to start? Take the 2 minute assessment