How to Do Copywriting with ChatGPT

In today's fast-paced world, creating compelling and effective copy quickly can be a challenge. That's where AI-driven tools like ChatGPT come in, offering a powerful solution to enhance your copywriting process. This guide will show you how to tap into the potential of these tools, making your work not only faster but also more engaging and impactful. By using advanced strategies such as clear prompts and iterative feedback, you can achieve high-quality content that resonates with your audience and drives results. Whether you're new to AI or looking to refine your approach, this resource will help you boost your productivity and elevate your copywriting skills.

Prompt Specificity and Context: Tailor for Maximum Impact

Creating effective copy with ChatGPT starts with crafting prompts that are specific and context-rich. The more detail you provide, the more relevant and targeted the output will be. Here's how to enhance your prompts for maximum impact:

Examples to Guide Your Approach:

Role and Audience Definition: Specify the role the AI should assume and the audience it should target. For instance: "You are a SaaS marketing copywriter. Rewrite the following feature description to increase urgency for tech-savvy B2B founders: [insert text]." This prompt not only instructs the AI on the voice it should adopt but also clarifies who the resulting copy is for.
Tone and Objective Clarity: Clearly outline the tone and purpose of the copy. An example is: "Create three alternative headlines in a confident, authoritative tone for our legal consulting landing page targeting enterprise clients." Here, the AI understands the desired tone and the precise audience, leading to more tailored suggestions.
Specific Format Requests: When you need copy for a specific platform or format, state it explicitly. For example: "Write a 40-word Instagram caption for a new plant-based protein bar, emphasizing convenience for busy moms." This ensures the output is not only relevant but also fits the intended format.

Mistakes to Avoid:

Vague Prompts: Avoid generic instructions like "Write a product description." Such prompts can result in generic output that lacks engagement or specificity.

Advanced Techniques:

Layering Objectives: Integrate your campaign objectives or conversion goals into the prompt. For instance, if the goal is to drive sign-ups for a newsletter, include this in your prompt: "Craft a call-to-action for our email newsletter sign-up that appeals to environmentally conscious consumers."
Defining Brand Voice: Specify the brand voice to maintain consistency. For example, you might instruct: "Use a playful and witty tone to describe our eco-friendly travel services."

Key Points to Remember:

Concrete, Context-Rich Prompts: The more concrete and context-rich your prompt, the more aligned the AI's output will be with your needs.
Explicit Audience, Voice, and Goals: Clearly define your audience, brand voice, goals, and desired format right from the start to avoid generic results.

By tailoring your prompts with these strategies, you can harness ChatGPT's capabilities to generate highly relevant and effective copy that aligns with your brand's objectives and resonates with your target audience. This approach not only saves you time but also enhances the impact of your marketing efforts.

Role Assignment & Task Clarity: Channeling Expertise

When using ChatGPT for copywriting, assigning a clear role and defining the task with precision can significantly enhance the output. Think of it as setting the stage for a performance—when the AI knows its part and the context, it can deliver more effectively.

Key Points

Role Assignment Enhances Output: By specifying a role such as "expert copywriter" or "senior social media strategist," you guide the AI in adopting the appropriate tone, depth, and level of professionalism. This context helps tailor responses that align more closely with your expectations.
- Example: "As an experienced direct response copywriter, your task is to draft a persuasive email for our new course launch, focusing on overcoming reader objections."
Specify the Main Task and Constraints: Clearly outline the main task, including any constraints like word limits or style guides. This prevents ambiguity and ensures the AI's output is relevant and usable.
- Example: "You are a senior social media strategist. Create a LinkedIn post (max 70 words) promoting a free webinar to HR professionals."
Combine Role and Directive for Efficiency: Streamline your interaction by incorporating both the role and task in a single prompt. This approach minimizes back-and-forth and sets a clear direction right from the start.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Vague Instructions: Avoid leaving the AI guessing. If the task isn't clear, the AI may produce content that requires significant reworking.
Overloading with Information: While detail is important, too much can overwhelm the AI. Balance is key.

Advanced Techniques

For more nuanced outputs, incorporate specific tones or styles into your prompts. For instance, if you need a friendly yet professional tone, include this in your directive. Also, consider specifying the audience type, as this can influence how the message is crafted.

By focusing on role assignment and task clarity, you can channel the expertise of AI tools like ChatGPT to produce high-quality copywriting that meets your project's needs efficiently and effectively.

Prompt Chaining & Iterative Refinement: Stepwise Content Perfection

In the world of copywriting with ChatGPT, prompt chaining and iterative refinement are your allies for crafting high-quality content. This structured approach allows you to break down the content creation process into manageable steps, ensuring each piece is polished to perfection before it reaches its audience.

Actionable Steps for Effective Prompt Chaining

1. Drafting:

Begin with a clear initial prompt to generate a foundation for your content. For instance:
- Step 1—Draft: Generate a 50-word product description for [product], targeting mid-market CFOs.
This step sets the stage for what you aim to create, laying down a rough but essential framework.

2.Jack Prouse, a Copywriting expert at Screaming Frog, shared this prompt engineering approach on screamingfrog.co.uk last year with some killer prompt examples Refinement:

Follow up with prompts that focus on improving specific elements:
- Step 2—Refine: Edit for clarity, using concise sentences and removing jargon.
This stage helps in smoothing out rough edges and enhancing readability, making the content more approachable.

3. Style Adjustment:

Modify the tone and style to ensure consistency with your brand’s voice:
- Step 3—Style: Adjust copy to match the energetic, friendly tone of our brand style guide.
This ensures the content resonates with your audience while staying true to your brand identity.

4. SEO Optimization:

Incorporate SEO elements to improve discoverability:
- Step 4—Optimize SEO: Suggest two NLP keywords to add for discoverability.
By strategically adding keywords, you enhance the content's visibility without compromising its quality.

5. Conversion Optimization:

Focus on improving elements that drive action:
- Example: First, write an outline for a blog post about AI security for small business owners. Next, expand each section to include a practical tip. Then, review the post and add a clear call-to-action at the end.
This ensures that your content not only informs but also persuades.

Common Pitfalls to Avoid

Avoid One-Step Prompts: Relying on a single-step prompt often results in bland or off-target copy. Instead, use a sequence of prompts to refine and perfect your content.
Don’t Skip Feedback Requests: Ignoring feedback opportunities leads to missed refinement areas. Always request specific feedback on aspects like CTA placement or readability to ensure thoroughness.

Key Techniques for Success

Sequential Process: Break content creation into clear stages—drafting, editing, tone/style revision, SEO, and conversion optimization.
Targeted Follow-up Prompts: Use subsequent prompts for enhancements in clarity, CTA strength, SEO integration, or brand voice alignment.Look, Intellectual Lead Editorial Team, a Digital marketing and AI content specialists, shared this prompt engineering approach on intellectualead.com last year with some killer prompt examples.
Actionable Feedback Collection: At each stage, gather feedback that is practical. Ask to identify weak CTAs or passive sentence structures to refine effectively.

By employing prompt chaining and iterative refinement, you can transform your approach to copywriting with ChatGPT, ensuring your content is not only well-crafted but also strategically aligned with your goals.

SEO and Conversion Optimization: Prompts for Performance

Incorporating AI into your copywriting process can significantly boost your SEO and conversion rates when done thoughtfully. Here are actionable strategies that harness the power of ChatGPT to optimize your content for better performance.

Examples of Effective Prompts

SEO Enhancement:
- Prompt: "Review this meta description draft for SEO—recommend up to three relevant keywords and rephrase to include them naturally."
- This helps ensure your content is not only engaging but also primed for search engines, enhancing visibility.
Active Voice Refinement:
- Prompt: "Highlight any passive constructions in the following section and rewrite them in active voice."
- Using active voice makes your copy more compelling and direct, thus potentially improving reader engagement and conversion rates.
Call-to-Action Placement:
- Prompt: "Suggest the optimal place to insert the call-to-action 'Start Free Trial' in this email body: [insert text]."
- Properly placed CTAs can significantly increase the chance of user interaction, leading to higher conversion.
Ad Copy Creation:
- Prompt: "Here are two successful Facebook ad headlines from past campaigns. Based on their tone and structure, write a third headline for our upcoming app release."
- By mirroring successful examples, you maintain consistency and leverage proven strategies.

Mistakes to Avoid

Avoid overloading your prompts with too many instructions. This can confuse the AI and lead to less focused output.
Beware of keyword stuffing. Keywords should enhance readability and SEO, not detract from the user experience.

Advanced Techniques

Few-shot Prompting:

Provide ChatGPT with multiple examples that capture your desired tone and style before requesting a new variant. This technique helps maintain consistency across different pieces of content, such as headlines or ads.

Output Priming:

By ending your prompt with the beginning of the desired output (e.g., "Are you struggling with…"), you can guide the AI toward using specific phrasings or structures that align with your objectives.

Key Points for Effective Use

Integrate SEO Keywords Naturally: Prompt ChatGPT to weave specific SEO/NLP keywords seamlessly into the copy, ensuring it's both effective for search engines and appealing to readers.
Actionable Analysis Requests: Use prompts to identify passive voice, estimate reading time, or suggest CTA placement. These insights can help refine and optimize your content for conversion.
Style Consistency with Few-shot Prompting: Maintain a cohesive style across all your content by using few-shot prompting to instruct the AI on the tone and structure you want to achieve.

By leveraging these strategies, you can not only enhance the SEO and conversion potential of your content but also streamline your copywriting process with the help of AI.

Industry-Specific Prompting Challenges and Solutions

When using AI tools like ChatGPT for copywriting, different industries present unique challenges that require tailored approaches. Here’s how to navigate some common issues and achieve effective results.

Maintaining Consistent Brand Voice

Key Point: To maintain a consistent brand voice across numerous campaigns, it’s crucial to include style and tone examples in your prompts. Reiterate the brand's role and values, and include an explicit brand tone directive at every stage of the writing process.

Example: If you’re crafting content for a luxury fashion brand, begin by supplying ChatGPT with previous examples of the brand’s writing style. Reinforce this by specifying adjectives and tones like "elegant" or "sophisticated" in your prompt.

Mistake to Avoid: Don’t assume that a one-size-fits-all prompt will work across different campaigns. Customize your prompt with brand-specific language cues every time.

Balancing SEO Integration with Natural, Readable Copy

Key Point: It’s important to balance SEO needs with creating engaging and readable content. First, separate the process of keyword suggestion and integration. Once ChatGPT generates content, review the output for natural flow before finalizing.

Example: Request a list of keywords from ChatGPT, then craft a prompt that asks for content using these keywords in a natural way. After generating the text, read through to ensure it doesn’t feel forced or awkward.

Advanced Technique: Use ChatGPT to simulate a conversation with a reader in your target audience. This can help ensure the SEO-integrated content is engaging and relatable.

Mistake to Avoid: Avoid overloading your prompts with too many keywords, which can lead to stilted and unnatural text. Instead, prioritize key terms and work them in subtly.

Ensuring Compliance or Sensitive Messaging

Key Point: For industries with strict compliance requirements, include relevant regulatory or industry guidelines as context in your prompt. Implement a chain of review steps to ensure the content meets compliance standards.

Example: In healthcare copywriting, incorporate phrases like “adheres to HIPAA guidelines” or specify content needs to avoid medical advice. This directs ChatGPT to generate compliant messaging.

Advanced Technique: Set up a multi-step process where ChatGPT drafts the initial copy, followed by a checklist-based review for compliance by a human expert.

Mistake to Avoid: Don't skip the compliance check after generating copy. Even if AI assists in drafting, a human review is essential to ensure all guidelines are met.

By addressing these industry-specific challenges with thoughtful prompting strategies, you can harness the power of ChatGPT to produce high-quality, effective copy tailored to your industry’s unique needs.

Expert Recommendations for Prompt Structure

When using ChatGPT for copywriting, structuring your prompts effectively can make all the difference in generating high-quality content. Here’s how to get the best results:

Key Points

Start with Clear Role and Task Definition: Define what role ChatGPT should assume (like "expert copywriter" or "marketing strategist") and specify the task at hand. Next, incorporate details about your target audience and campaign goals. For example, you might instruct: "As a seasoned copywriter, create an engaging email campaign targeting young professionals to promote our new productivity app."
Sequence Step-Specific Prompts: Break down the writing process into clear steps to guide ChatGPT effectively. Start with a draft prompt, then move to editing for clarity.- OpenAI Help Center, a Official OpenAI documentation team, shared this prompt engineering approach on help.openai.com with some killer prompt examples - Follow with adapting for brand voice, optimizing for SEO, and finally crafting a compelling call-to-action (CTA). This sequence ensures a thorough and structured approach to content creation.
Use Delimiters for Complex Requests: When dealing with multifaceted tasks, use delimiters or format markers like '###Instructions###' to clearly separate different sections of your request. This helps in organizing thoughts and directing ChatGPT to focus on specific components of the task.
Iterate and Review Outputs: Even well-structured prompts benefit from iteration. Review the outputs, adjust your prompts for better results, and don't hesitate to fine-tune until the content meets your expectations. This iterative process enhances both the quality and relevance of the generated copy.

Examples

Basic Prompt: "Write a blog post about the benefits of remote work."
Enhanced Prompt: "###Role### As a professional copywriter, ###Task### create a blog post highlighting the top three benefits of remote work for tech startups. ###Audience### Aim the content at potential remote job seekers."

Mistakes to Avoid

Vague Instructions: Avoid prompts that are too general or lack direction. This often leads to generic and unfocused content.
Overloading: Don’t cram too many objectives into one prompt. This can confuse the AI and dilute the effectiveness of the response.
Skipping the Iteration: Failing to review and refine the AI's output can result in missed opportunities for improvement and alignment with your brand's voice.

Advanced Techniques

Multi-Prompt Strategy: Employ a series of prompts to progressively refine your copy. Start with drafting, then re-prompt for enhancements in style, tone, and SEO considerations.
Incorporate Feedback Loops: Use feedback from stakeholders or A/B testing results to tweak your prompts for better alignment with audience expectations.
Contextual Cues: Provide context beyond the immediate task to enable ChatGPT to generate more nuanced and contextually appropriate responses.

By following these expert recommendations, you can harness the full potential of ChatGPT in your copywriting efforts, ensuring the content not only meets but exceeds your expectations.

Practical Applications & Real-World Prompt-Chaining Workflows

When it comes to copywriting with ChatGPT, creating a structured workflow through prompt chaining can significantly enhance productivity and quality. Here's how you can effectively implement these techniques in your process:

Examples:

Accelerate Content Production: One of the most effective workflows you can adopt is a five-step prompt chain. Start with drafting your content, then move through stages of editing, tone review, SEO optimization, and finally, channel adaptation. This approach can streamline the creation of landing pages, reducing the time from days to mere hours. For instance, after drafting your content, use prompts to have ChatGPT suggest edits and refine the tone to fit your brand’s voice. Follow this with SEO-focused prompts to ensure your copy is search-engine friendly, and then adapt it for various channels such as email or social media.
Boost Conversion: Another powerful application is in refining call-to-action (CTA) placement and readability. Use iterative prompt chains to experiment with different CTA positions and language. By asking ChatGPT to suggest improvements and then testing these changes, you can achieve measurable increases in email click-through rates.

Mistakes to Avoid:

Skipping Stages: Each stage in the prompt chain serves a distinct purpose. Skipping steps, like tone review or SEO optimization, can lead to content that doesn't align with your brand or fails to reach its audience effectively.
Overloading Prompts: While it's tempting to ask too much in a single prompt, this can lead to unfocused or inaccurate responses. Keep prompts concise and targeted to maintain clarity.

Advanced Techniques:

Use Feedback-Optimization Loops: Start with a first draft and then engage in a feedback loop with the AI. Ask ChatGPT to critique its own output and provide suggestions for improvement. This mimics a traditional editorial process and can greatly enhance the content's quality. For example, prompt the AI to identify weaknesses in the argument structure or suggest ways to enhance engagement.

Key Points:

Adopt Five-Step Prompt Chains: By structuring your workflow into distinct phases—drafting, editing, tone review, SEO optimization, and channel adaptation—you can vastly accelerate the content production process.
Iteratively Refine for Higher Conversion Rates: Focus on refining CTA placement and readability to boost engagement metrics. This iterative approach allows you to optimize content based on real-world performance.
Feedback-Optimization Loops: Engage in a continuous improvement cycle where the AI critiques and refines its output, ensuring the content meets high standards and aligns with your goals.

By integrating these practical applications into your copywriting efforts with ChatGPT, you'll not only enhance efficiency but also ensure your content is impactful and aligned with your strategic objectives.

Common Prompting Mistakes to Avoid

When using ChatGPT for copywriting, it's important to be aware of some common prompting mistakes that can lead to unsatisfactory results.By the way, Copyhackers Team, a Specialists in conversion copywriting and AI writing automation, shared this prompt engineering approach on copyhackers.com with some killer prompt examples. By recognizing these pitfalls and implementing a few advanced techniques, you can significantly improve the quality of your outputs. Here’s what to watch out for:

Examples of Mistakes to Avoid

Vague, Under-specified Prompts: One of the most frequent errors is using prompts that are too general. This often results in off-brand or unusable output. For instance, if you simply prompt with "Write an email," you might end up with a generic message that doesn't align with your brand voice. Instead, be specific about the tone, purpose, and target audience.
Skipping Refinement Steps: Expecting polished copy from a single prompt can be unrealistic. It's crucial to treat your initial output as a draft. Refine it through iterative prompts, asking ChatGPT to improve readability, adjust tone, or add specific elements like calls to action.
Not Prompting for Feedback or Analysis: Many users fail to utilize ChatGPT’s ability to evaluate content. Ask for feedback on readability, the strength of your call to action, or any passive voice issues. This helps ensure your copy is both engaging and effective.
Ignoring Industry or Compliance Context: When working in regulated sectors, it's essential to provide industry-specific guidelines to ensure compliance. If you're writing for healthcare, for example, mention relevant regulations, so your content remains within legal boundaries.
Inconsistent Prompts Without a Log or Template Library: Without maintaining a prompt log or a template library, you risk inconsistency in your outputs. Documenting successful prompts helps you replicate past successes and provides a foundation to build upon for future tasks.

Advanced Techniques

To elevate your copywriting with ChatGPT, consider these advanced techniques:

Iterative Prompting: Begin with a broad prompt and gradually narrow down by requesting refinements. This approach allows you to guide the AI's creativity while honing in on the desired output.
Feedback Integration: Use AI’s feedback to your advantage. For example, ask ChatGPT to highlight areas for improvement or suggest alternative phrasings to enhance clarity and impact.
Custom Style Guidelines: Set up a list of brand-specific style guidelines that ChatGPT can follow. This could include preferred word choices, tone, and formatting preferences.

By avoiding these common mistakes and incorporating advanced techniques, you can make the most of ChatGPT's capabilities, ensuring your copywriting is both effective and aligned with your objectives.

Ready-to-Use Prompt-Chain Template for how to do copywriting with chatgpt

The following prompt-chain template is designed to guide you through the process of creating effective copywriting using ChatGPT. This template consists of a series of interconnected prompts that help you extract creative insights and refine your copywriting with precision. By following these steps, you can customize the template to align with specific needs and achieve compelling results.

Introduction:

This prompt-chain accomplishes the task of generating high-quality copywriting with ChatGPT by breaking down the process into manageable steps. Each step focuses on different aspects of copywriting, such as understanding the audience, crafting the message, and refining the language. You can customize this template by adjusting the prompts to fit the specific context or goals of your project. Expected results include clear, persuasive, and engaging copy tailored to your target audience. Considerations include ensuring the ethical use of AI-generated content and aligning it with your brand voice.

Prompt-Chain Template:

## Step 1: Setting the Context
# System Prompt: Establish the foundation for the copywriting task.
system_prompt = """
You are a skilled copywriter tasked with creating engaging and persuasive content. Your goal is to capture the audience's attention, convey key messages, and encourage specific actions. Follow the prompts to develop each section of the copy.
"""
# Explanation: This system prompt sets the stage for the task, defining the role of the AI and the objectives of the copywriting process.

## Step 2: Understanding the Audience
# User Prompt: Identify the target audience and their preferences.
user_prompt_1 = """
Who is the intended audience for this copy? Describe their demographics, interests, and any specific needs they might have.
"""
# Example Output: "The target audience consists of young professionals aged 25-35 who are interested in technology and value innovative solutions."

# Explanation: Understanding your audience is crucial for tailoring the message. This prompt helps gather insights into the audience's profile.

## Step 3: Crafting the Core Message
# User Prompt: Develop the main message or value proposition.
user_prompt_2 = """
What is the core message or value proposition that should be communicated to the audience? Summarize it in one or two sentences.
"""
# Example Output: "Our product offers cutting-edge features that enhance productivity and streamline daily tasks, making it an essential tool for tech-savvy professionals."

# Explanation: This prompt helps distill the primary message that needs to resonate with the audience, ensuring clarity and focus.

## Step 4: Creating Engaging Content
# User Prompt: Generate the initial draft of the copy based on the insights gathered.
user_prompt_3 = """
Using the audience insights and core message, draft a compelling introductory paragraph that captures attention and sets the stage for the rest of the content.
"""
# Example Output: "In a world where efficiency and innovation are key, our product stands out as the ultimate solution for young professionals looking to boost their productivity. With its state-of-the-art features, it's designed to meet the demands of today's fast-paced lifestyle."

# Explanation: This prompt guides the AI in creating a draft that incorporates the understanding of the audience and the core message.

## Step 5: Refining the Copy
# User Prompt: Enhance the draft for clarity, tone, and engagement.
user_prompt_4 = """
Review the initial draft for clarity and tone. Make improvements to ensure it is engaging and aligned with the brand's voice.
"""
# Example Output: "Elevate your productivity with our innovative tool designed for the tech-savvy professional. Experience unparalleled efficiency and transform your daily routine with features that adapt to your fast-paced world."

# Explanation: This final prompt focuses on polishing the copy, ensuring it is clear, engaging, and consistent with the desired brand tone.

Conclusion:

This prompt-chain template guides you through the process of creating effective copywriting using ChatGPT by focusing on understanding the audience, crafting a clear message, generating engaging content, and refining the language. Customize the prompts to suit your specific project requirements or audience characteristics. Expected performance includes generating compelling copy that resonates with your audience. Limitations include the need for human oversight to ensure the content aligns with ethical guidelines and brand standards.

In conclusion, effectively leveraging ChatGPT for copywriting requires a thoughtful approach centered on structured and iterative prompt-chaining workflows. By clearly defining roles, providing context, and actively seeking feedback, you can consistently produce engaging and conversion-optimized copy. This method not only accelerates the production process but ensures the results are finely tuned to meet the specific needs of your audience, campaign, and industry. Embracing such practical, step-by-step prompting techniques makes prompt engineering an indispensable skill for digital marketers and writers alike. As you venture into using AI tools like ChatGPT, take the time to develop your prompt engineering abilities. Doing so will empower you to create impactful content that resonates with your target audience and achieves your marketing goals. So, dive in, experiment, and watch your copywriting efforts thrive with the support of AI.