THE ART OF AI PROMPTING
Mastering AI Through Effective Prompts
What Is Prompting?
Prompting means giving AI specific instructions to achieve the results you want. It could be asking a question or making a request, guiding AI to perform tasks or solve problems.
Why Does It Matter?
The output of AI depends on how clear and well-structured your prompt is. The better the prompt, the more accurate and useful the AI's response will be.
How Can It Help?
Learning to create strong prompts can save time, enhance creativity, and help automate tasks efficiently.
In this guide, you’ll learn: How to craft effective prompts for better AI results. Free tools to help you get started. Quick tips for improving your prompts with examples.
Quick Guide: AI Prompt Engineering
Your Prompt Should Include...
Who
Role: Who is the tool writing as?
Audience: Who is it writing for?
What
Task: What do you want the tool to do?
Voice: How do you want the output to sound?
Why
What is the goal of the task?
Where
What is the context of the task?
Best Practices
Use adjectives to help define your “role”.
More Details = Better Results Include specifics in the instructions for best output.
Explain the purpose of the task and what you’re trying to achieve.
Include necessary background or things you don’t want to include.
Modes
Examples of how you can use AI to assist you:
Research
Find research on [insert topic]
Idea Generator
Generate ideas on [X]
Proofreader
Proofread [this]
Structure
Use this structure when crafting your prompt:
Act
Examples:
Assistant
Help me with [insert task]
Mentor
Guide me on [insert topic]
Critic
Critique my argument [argument]
as a [ROLE] perform [TASK] in [FORMAT]
Role
Ghostwriter
Chief Financial Officer
Lawyer
Project Manager
Inventory
Best Selling Author
Journalist
Analyst
Marketer
Accountant
Powerpoint
How to Build a Chain Prompt
Using a chain of prompts helps to break down information for better results.
Insert First Prompt
Example: Give a summary of this document [Insert Document]
Modify the Tone
Change the tone of the output above and make it sound more [Insert Tone}
Bonus: Add in some samples of your writing and instruct to follow your tone.
Modify the Output
Use the summary above and write a 500 word piece that explains it to a fifth grader
Modify the format
Convert the answer above into text for a presentation with 1 slide for each key point.
Bonus: For each slide include the Title, Subtitle and 3 Bullet Points.
To improve your results...
1.Include Examples: Show AI what you want the response to look and sound like and what to include or not include.
a.Prompt: “Here are some samples of my writing for you to emulate my tone and style.”
2.Ask AI what questions or information is needed to create a comprehensive output.
a.Prompt: “Based on the information provided, what questions or additional information can I provide for the most comprehensive output?”
3.Prompt Stacking: Too many instructions at once can confuse AI.
a.Break up the prompt into separate parts as shared in the above example.
4.Explain Reasoning: Tell it to explain its reasoning step-by-step.
a.Prompt: “Explain in a step-by-step format the reasoning to your last output.”
5.Ask for Multiple Versions: This allows you to pick and choose to build better options.
a.Prompt: “Provide me two different versions in your response so I can select which one is more accurate.”
Prompt Examples
Data Analysis and Visualization: Analyze the following dataset: [data]. Provide a summary of key findings, identify significant trends, and suggest appropriate visualization techniques for presenting the results.
Business Communication: Compose a professional email to [stakeholder] regarding [specific business matter. Ensure clarity, conciseness, and an appropriate tone for the audience.
Strategic Planning: Develop a comprehensive SWOT analysis for [company/product]. Provide detailed points for each category and suggest potential strategies based on the analysis.
Financial Modeling: Outline the structure and key components of a 5-year financial model for a [type of business]. Include essential metrics and assumptions to consider.
Legal Document Preparation: Create an outline for a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) covering [specific area of business]. List key clauses and briefly explain their importance.
Project Management: Design a risk management plan for [project name]. Identify potential risks, assess their impact, and probability, and suggest mitigation strategies.
Operations Optimization: Create a process flow diagram for [specific business process]. Identify potential bottlenecks and suggest efficiency improvements.
SWOT Analysis: Analyze the current state of <industry> and its trends, challenges, and opportunities, including relevant data and statistics. Provide a list of key players and a short and long-term industry forecast, and explain any potential impact of current events or future developments.
Agenda Creation: I want to create an agenda for a meeting about<Meeting info> with my team. Can you give me some examples of what should be included?
Communication Assistance: I need to write an email to a client regarding a change in the project timeline. Can you give me some guidance on how to phrase it?
Presentation Development: I need to prepare a presentation for a <person> on <presentation topic>. Can you give me some guidance on what to include?
Professional Development Prompt
AI can assist in summarizing your achievements to keep your resume and LinkedIn profile up to date. Here are some prompts to use:
Create bullet points for my most recent [insert job title] role that showcases my achievements and impact.
For example: Developed and executed [specific strategy/project] that resulted in [measurable outcome, e.g., increased revenue, reduced costs, improved efficiency].
Led a team of [number] professionals to successfully deliver [specific initiative or project], achieving [impact, e.g., exceeding KPIs, improving customer satisfaction].
Spearheaded the implementation of [technology/process] that improved [specific area, e.g., productivity, operational efficiency] by [percentage or metric].
Generate a summary that emphasizes my unique selling points and sets me apart from other candidates.
Create a summary that conveys my passion for [insert industry/field] and my career aspirations.
Gift Card Fraud Interviews
"Generate a realistic investigative conversation between an investigator and an employee suspected of activating gift cards without payment, focusing on strategic questioning about methods, collaborators, and card disposition."
"Describe detailed examples of suspicious behaviors, speech patterns, and reactions typically displayed by retail employees engaged in gift card-related fraud when questioned."
"Provide targeted interview questions and dialogue examples designed for confronting an employee with POS records or electronic evidence linking them to systematic fraudulent gift card transactions."
"Create a detailed interview plan and sample dialogue for questioning a retail associate suspected of colluding with external parties to commit fraudulent gift card activation and resale schemes."
"Provide five impactful rationalization statements tailored to reduce a suspect’s psychological barriers and encourage truthful admissions specifically related to gift card fraud in a retail environment."
CCTV Design Optimization
“Design a layered physical security system for a retailer’s corporate campus, including CCTV, access control, and perimeter defenses.”
“Create a CCTV layout plan for a 20,000 sq ft data center, considering blind spots, lighting, and redundancy.”
“What are best practices for designing CCTV coverage in areas with mixed lighting conditions?”
“Generate a checklist for designing and auditing a compliant CCTV system in a regulated retail environment.”
“Simulate a threat model for a multi-site retailer and identify key physical security vulnerabilities across data centers, branches, and executive offices.”
Strategic Planning & Threat Modeling
“Generate a physical risk matrix for a large retailer HQ with 500+ employees, considering natural disasters, insider threats, and external attackers.”
“What are the top 10 physical security risks for retailers in 2025, and how can infrastructure be adapted to mitigate them?”
Prompt Examples
"Simulate an interrogation of a cashier suspected of placing skimming devices on payment terminals, focusing on questions designed to expose accomplices, device placement, methods used, and retrieval procedures."
"Describe specific verbal responses and body-language cues an employee might exhibit when questioned about unauthorized use of customer credit card information to make fraudulent purchases online."
Credit Card Fraud Investigations
"Create an example dialogue where an investigator confronts a retail associate with digital evidence linking them to repeated fraudulent credit card transactions—highlight the suspect’s typical defensive tactics and rationalizations."
"Develop a structured interrogation plan, including at least 7 targeted questions, aimed at determining if a store employee copied credit card information from customers to use or sell.“
"Provide a realistic exchange to secure an admission from an employee accused of capturing credit card numbers through unauthorized photography or device tampering at a POS station."
Employee Fraud & Embezzlement Interviews
"Simulate a detailed interview with an assistant manager suspected of systematically shorting cash drawer totals, including their likely denial strategy and how investigators might ethically leverage evidence for admission."
"Provide specific questions and investigator responses when confronting a retail associate about a 'ghost refund' scheme, designed to uncover details of the fraud, frequency, participants, and financial impacts."
"Generate a realistic investigative conversation with an employee suspected of manipulating physical inventory counts to conceal theft or losses, including detailed rationalizations investigators can offer."
"Explain common deceptive behaviors (physical, verbal, emotional) exhibited by retail management personnel during interviews involving misappropriation of company funds."
"Illustrate a step-by-step interrogation dialogue employing the Reid method to confront a supervisor responsible for ongoing financial fraud through falsifying payroll records."
Organized Retail Crime (ORC)
Interviews
"Simulate a strategic interview between a loss prevention investigator and a store employee suspected of collusion with an organized retail crime ring, highlighting tactics to uncover network details, methods, and roles."
"List at least 10 advanced questions designed to extract critical intelligence from a suspect about ORC groups operating in your retail stores, including their structure, targeting practices, and fencing methods."
"Create a detailed interrogation dialogue where a known ORC booster initially denies involvement but eventually admits participation and provides actionable intelligence about fencing locations and accomplices."
"Explain how an investigator can effectively interview a suspect who has been using advanced counter-surveillance methods (e.g., avoiding CCTV, utilizing decoys) to evade detection during organized retail crime operations."
"Generate five powerful rationalization statements tailored specifically to break psychological resistance and encourage truthful admissions from retail employees connected to organized retail theft networks."
Cargo Theft
Interviews
"Simulate an interview with a warehouse employee suspected of collaborating with an external group to facilitate cargo theft focus specifically on uncovering operational methods, communication channels, and internal accomplices."
"Develop targeted interview questions to uncover if a contracted truck driver intentionally diverted or misappropriated cargo shipments include questions about discrepancies in GPS data and unexplained stops."
"Explain the verbal cues, nervous reactions, and physical indicators that may be displayed by a logistics manager or associate involved in cargo theft schemes during an interview or interrogation."
"Create a realistic dialogue in which an investigator confronts a distribution center employee with security footage implicating them in cargo theft. Highlight effective rationalization techniques to secure an admission."
"List advanced interrogation questions designed to expose broader cargo theft networks, including the involvement of external fences, transportation personnel, and insider facilitators."
Prompt Examples
Design & Infrastructure Planning
Audit, Compliance & Policy Documentation
“Design a multi-layered physical access control system for a secure server room with dual authentication, mantrap, and surveillance.”
“How would you optimize the physical security layout of a high-rise retail office building from lobby to executive floor?”
AI & Tech Integration
“Write an internal audit checklist for physical security controls at a retail store, aligned with FFIEC or ISO/IEC 27001 standards.”
“Summarize the physical security requirements for PCI DSS compliance in layman's terms.”
“Draft a standard operating procedure for incident escalation in case of physical breach after hours.”
Incident
Response & Scenario Simulation
“How can I use AI-powered video analytics to detect tailgating, loitering, or object abandonment in a retail building?”
“Design a framework for integrating AI-based anomaly detection with physical access logs and surveillance footage.”
“What are some privacy-conscious ways to implement facial recognition or LPR in a retail setting?”
Training & Team Development
“Generate tabletop exercise scenarios for a physical breach at a retail store include response team roles and communication protocols.”
“Create a playbook for physical threats to executives, including office, home, and travel security measures.”
“Simulate a coordinated protest scenario outside a retail HQ how should security and infrastructure teams respond?”
“Create a 60-minute physical security awareness training outline for non-security employees at a retail store.”
“Generate interview questions for hiring a physical security systems engineer with retail industry experience.”
“What are the most important KPIs for measuring the effectiveness of a corporate physical security program?”
Refund Fraud Interviews
"Simulate a detailed interrogation scenario with a cashier suspected of creating fraudulent refunds ('ghost refunds') without customer returns, including typical initial denials and eventual admissions of motive and method."
"Provide specific examples of verbal responses and non-verbal behaviors exhibited by a retail associate involved in refund fraud during investigative questioning."
"Outline 10 targeted investigative questions for uncovering complex refund fraud schemes involving multiple store associates working collaboratively to defraud the company."
"Create a structured dialogue showcasing how to ethically confront and interview a supervisor who approved suspicious refunds knowingly linked to fraudulent transactions."
"Demonstrate the empathetic, non-confrontational approach during an investigative interview aimed at obtaining a confession about refund fraud from a long-term trusted employee."
Procurement & Tech
Comparison
“Create a scorecard template to compare physical security vendors based on reliability, compliance, scalability, and integration.”
“Compare the cost-benefit and operational trade-offs of cloudbased vs. on-prem CCTV systems for a retailer.”
“What physical security technologies are best suited for executive
AI Tools
IDEATION
COPYWRITING
DESIGN
VIDEO IMAGES
PROOF READING
AVATAR
CHATBOT
PRESENTATIONS
PRODUCTIVITY
DAILY LIFE TOOLS
TOMMEEHAN,CFI
Tom Meehan, CFI is a globally recognized thought leader, speaker, author, and podcast host with deep expertise in Loss Prevention, Retail Technology, Cybersecurity, IoT, AI, Risk Management, and FinTech.
As the CEO of CONTROLTEK, a global leader in Tamper-Evident Packaging, EAS, and RFID technology, Tom is driving innovation and delivering cutting-edge solutions that protect assets and enhance operational efficiency across industries.
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THE ART OF AI PROMPTING
How to Create Effective Prompts and Use AI Tools to Enhance Your Workflow
This is your practical, step-by-step guide to help you create effective prompts and use AI tools to enhance your workflow, turn vague ideas into precise instructions that generate impactful output.
Packed with real-world examples, prompt templates, and pro tips, this guide will help you communicate with AI tools like a pro.