When I first started using AI, I thought the key was just asking a question. But what I learned over time is that the real power of AI comes when you ask better questions — and that’s where prompts come in.
Coming from a consulting background, I’ve spent years getting into the details: asking focused questions, defining problems, and writing briefs. That habit became the foundation for how I now use AI in daily retail and digital commerce work.
Whether you’re working alone or managing a team, prompt writing isn’t about clever language — it’s about clarity, context, and structure.
A few examples of using prompts across the retail workflow
Marketing & eCommerce
“Act as a product copywriter. Write a short description for a cake mix targeted at home bakers in Singapore. Keep it friendly, warm, and SEO-friendly.”
Supply Chain
“You’re a warehouse analyst. List SKUs with more than 20% drop in stock turn rate in the last 3 months. Output as a table.”
Customer Service
“Draft an empathetic reply to a loyal customer who experienced a late delivery. Include a goodwill voucher.”
Sales Planning
“Compare top 10 SKUs by region. Highlight anything with >10% drop vs last month and recommend stock action.”
Each of these started with a basic need — and turned into useful outputs because the prompt had structure, intent, and context.
What I’ve learned
- Add context — who’s asking and why
- Define the output format — table, bullets, email, paragraph
- Be clear on tone & audience — regional, brand-aligned
- Start simple, then iterate and improve
Want to explore prompt writing?
A few useful, free public resources: Learn Prompting (learnprompting.org), and YouTube channels including Matt Wolfe, AI Explained, and The AI Advantage.
In the next post, I’ll share how I applied this prompt mindset to manage a full RFP process for selecting an eCommerce platform — and how AI helped me stay organized, objective, and efficient.
Let’s keep learning — one step at a time.