Writing goodinstructions

What you don't need to write

The app already adds all of this to every conversation, from your settings. Writing it again in your instructions changes nothing and makes the text longer for no reason.

• Its identity. Your assistant's name is already announced, along with the fact that it works for an online store.

• Its tone. It comes from the Tone setting just above the field: professional, friendly, premium, technical or casual.

• How long its replies are. The Length setting: short, medium or detailed. No need to write « three sentences maximum ».

• Its language. The Language setting. Left open, it replies in the visitor's own language.

• The ban on making things up. Prices, stock, availability, delivery times, references: it can only give them if they come from your store. Discounts and commercial policies too.

• What to do when it doesn't know. It says so plainly and offers something else, rather than filling the gap.

So what's left for you to write is what the app cannot guess: what you sell, what you want it to talk about, and your way of advising.

Four things to write

In this order. A few lines each is enough.

1. 1

   What you sell, and to whom

   One sentence. It steers every answer: you don't advise on a lamp the way you advise on a face cream, nor a consumer the way you advise a professional.

   We sell designer lighting made in France, to people furnishing their own homes.

2. 2

   What it talks about, and what it leaves alone

   Without this limit, it will happily answer about the weather, politics or your competitors. Politely, and out of your allowance.

   Talk about our products, delivery, returns and warranty. For anything else, offer to put them in touch with us.

3. 3

   Your own rules

   The ones nobody else knows: what you never want to hear from a salesperson, and what you want it to remember to mention.

   Never compare our products to a competitor's. Mention our two-year warranty when asked whether a product lasts.

4. 4

   A model answer

   This teaches fastest. One answer written out in full shows your way of advising better than ten adjectives.

   Example: « This model comes in brass and matte black. Brass warms up a bright room, black holds better against a coloured wall. Which way are you leaning? »

The same brief, written twice

Both say « be helpful ». Only one teaches the assistant anything.

A complete example to adapt

Copy this text into the Instructions field, then replace what is in braces with your own details.

We sell {what you sell}, to {your typical customers}. WHAT YOU TALK ABOUT - Our products, delivery, returns and warranty. - For any other question, kindly offer to put them in touch with us. HOW WE ADVISE - Understand the need before suggesting a product. - Two suggestions at most, never a whole list. - When someone hesitates, ask the question that helps them decide. OUR RULES - Never compare our products to a competitor's. - {Your rule: what you always mention, what you never say.} A MODEL ANSWER « This model comes in two finishes. The first suits a bright room, the second a coloured wall. Which one matches your interior? »

No need to copy your prices, stock or product pages here: the assistant reads them from your knowledge, where they are always up to date.