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How to use ChatGPT for your small business: a practical guide

Updated · OwnerPrompts

AI is no longer just for big companies. With a free ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini account, a small business can write posts, proposals, customer replies and plans in minutes. The problem is that most people give up after the first generic answers. This guide explains, without jargon, how to get answers that sound like your business.

Why AI gives generic answers

The AI doesn't know your business. When you type "write a post about my restaurant", it fills the gaps with clichés that could fit any restaurant on earth. The fix isn't a more expensive tool: it's giving context and clear instructions.

Step 1: create your Business Brief

The Business Brief is a short text you fill in once and paste at the start of every conversation. It tells the AI who you are, what you sell, to whom, your tone of voice and what you never say. From then on, every answer sounds like you.

Before we start, here is the context of my business. Use it in every answer in this conversation.

• Business name: [NAME]
• What we do: [PRODUCTS/SERVICES]
• Where: [CITY/COUNTRY/ONLINE]
• Ideal customer: [WHO THEY ARE AND WHAT THEY WANT]
• What makes us different: [DIFFERENTIATORS]
• Tone of voice: [E.G. WARM, SIMPLE, LIGHT HUMOUR]
• Words we never use: [WORDS]

Confirm you understand with a 3-line summary.

Tip: in ChatGPT you can save the brief under Settings → Personalization; in Claude, create a Project with the brief in its instructions.

Step 2: write requests with the CAFE Method

A strong prompt has four parts. We call it the CAFE Method:

  • Context — who you are and who the result is for (your Business Brief covers this).
  • Action — exactly what you want, with a clear verb: write, analyse, compare, summarise.
  • Format — length, tone, structure, number of versions.
  • Example — a line you like, or something you don't want.

Before: "Write a post about my restaurant."
After: "I run a neighbourhood diner in Leeds, homemade dishes around £12, mostly local office workers at lunch. Write an Instagram post announcing Thursday's beef pie. Max 60 words, homely tone with light humour, end by inviting people to book on WhatsApp. I like short lines such as: 'No diet today. Just pie.'"

Step 3: refine the answer (the first one is just a draft)

The best results come in the second or third answer. These five follow-ups fix almost everything:

  • "Ask me 3 questions before you answer."
  • "Give me 3 different versions."
  • "Shorter and more direct."
  • "Write it like you're talking to a friend."
  • "What would make this answer excellent?"

7 rules for using AI safely in your business

  1. Check facts, figures and dates before publishing.
  2. Never paste passwords, bank details or customers' personal data.
  3. Never invent testimonials or reviews.
  4. Always read before you publish — it's your name on it.
  5. Edit to keep your own voice.
  6. For legal, tax or health topics, confirm with a professional.
  7. Save the prompts that give great results.

Where to start this week

Start with the area where you lose the most time. If it's social media, generate a month of post ideas. If it's answering customers, create ready-made replies to frequent questions. If it's proposals, ask the AI for a template with your services. At 20 minutes a day, within a week you'll have your marketing planned, your Google profile optimised and ready-made customer replies.

Prompts by area (free examples)