How AI Tools Can Help a Small Business Thrive: How to Use ChatGPT and AI Tools for Effective Business Marketing Content
by Kurt Forster | January 2, 2025
In today’s fast-paced digital world, businesses are constantly looking for ways to create engaging, high-quality content for email marketing, advertisements, and social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Artificial intelligence (AI) tools, such as ChatGPT, have emerged as powerful allies in helping marketers generate ideas, streamline content creation, and refine messages to meet specific business goals. But to truly harness the potential of AI for marketing, it’s essential to understand how to use additional prompting techniques to get the best results.
Why Use ChatGPT and AI for Marketing Content?
AI-powered tools like ChatGPT are designed to assist with content creation in a way that’s quick, efficient, and customizable. Here’s how ChatGPT and similar tools can transform your marketing strategy:
- Save Time and Boost Productivity: ChatGPT can help you quickly draft text for emails, ads, and posts—whether you’re writing a catchy subject line for an email or creating an engaging ad for Instagram. This reduces the time spent on content creation, allowing you to focus on other aspects of your marketing plan.
- Generate Creative Ideas: Stuck on what to post next? AI tools can suggest multiple content ideas, headlines, and topics based on your input, helping you keep your marketing fresh and dynamic.
- Tailor Content to Your Audience: By using specific prompts, AI tools can tailor content to different segments of your audience. Whether you’re targeting a new demographic on Facebook or crafting an informative LinkedIn post, AI can help adjust the tone and style to resonate with your audience.
How to Use Additional Prompting to Refine Your Marketing Content
While AI can create content quickly, the key to getting the best results lies in how you prompt it. By using additional details and specific instructions, you can refine the output to match your brand voice and business objectives. Here are some strategies to enhance your results:
- Clarify Your Goal: Before you start prompting, define the purpose of the content. Are you promoting a new product? Running a special offer? Encouraging brand engagement? The clearer you are about your goal, the more relevant and effective the generated content will be.
Example Prompt for Email Marketing: “Write a compelling email subject line for a 20% off sale on eco-friendly products aimed at environmentally conscious consumers.”
Additional Prompt to Refine: “Make the subject line friendly, short, and emphasize sustainability.”
- Provide Specific Details About Your Audience: To make your content resonate, AI needs to know who you’re targeting. Be sure to include information about your audience’s age, interests, profession, or industry.
Example Prompt for social media (Instagram/Facebook): “Create an Instagram post for a new luxury skincare brand targeting professional women aged 25-40.”
Additional Prompt to Refine: “Use a tone that’s elegant yet approachable. Highlight the anti-aging benefits and luxurious feel of the product.”
- Set the Right Tone and Style: AI tools like ChatGPT can write in a variety of tones—whether formal, casual, humorous, or authoritative. Specify the tone you want to ensure that the message fits your brand’s personality.
Example Prompt for LinkedIn Post: “Write a professional LinkedIn post announcing the launch of a new software tool for project managers.”
Additional Prompt to Refine: “Make the post informative and focused on how the tool saves time and improves productivity. Use a friendly yet professional tone.”
- Use Short, Actionable Prompts for Ad Copy: When generating content for advertisements, shorter, more direct prompts work best. You can also specify the platform to ensure the tone aligns with the platform’s best practices.
Example Prompt for Ad Copy (Facebook/Instagram): “Write a Facebook ad for a new fitness app designed for busy professionals who want to stay in shape.”
Additional Prompt to Refine: “Keep it concise and emphasize time-saving features. Include a call-to-action encouraging users to download the app today.”
- Test Variations for A/B Testing: AI can quickly generate multiple versions of the same content, which is perfect for A/B testing. Use different prompts to create variations and test what works best for your audience.
Example Prompt for Email A/B Test: “Write two email subject lines for a Black Friday sale on outdoor gear.”
Additional Prompt to Refine: “Make one subject line highlight the discount, and the other focus on exclusive deals for loyal customers.”
- Incorporate SEO and Keywords: For content that’s going to appear on websites, blogs, or social media, SEO optimization is crucial. AI can help include relevant keywords and phrases that improve searchability.
Example Prompt for Blog Post: “Write a blog post on ’10 Tips for Better Time Management’ using the keywords ‘productivity,’ ‘time management tips,’ and ‘work-life balance.'”
Additional Prompt to Refine: “Write in a friendly, conversational tone and ensure that each tip is actionable and easy to follow.”
- Iterate and Ask for Adjustments: Once you’ve received content from AI, feel free to refine it further by providing feedback. Ask for changes to improve clarity, reduce wordiness, or adjust the tone.
Example Feedback for Refinement: “The message is good, but can you make it sound more upbeat and positive? Also, simplify the language a bit.”
ChatGPT and other AI tools can transform the way businesses create marketing content, allowing for faster, more personalized communication with customers. However, the real power comes from understanding how to guide these tools with clear, detailed prompts. By specifying your goals, audience, tone, and style, you can ensure that your content is not only high-quality but also aligned with your marketing objectives.
The key takeaway is that AI tools are not meant to replace human creativity but to enhance and accelerate it. With the right prompts, AI can help you draft compelling content for email campaigns, ads, and social media posts—saving you time while ensuring your message hits the mark.
Kurt Forster
Consultants, Forster, PinellasFlorida SBDC at Pinellas County Economic Development
Specialty: Marketing and Strategic Planning, Business Planning, Financial Management, Capital Access
Kurt Forster has 30 years of experience in business and holds a master’s degree in communication from the University of South Florida. His strengths include assisting small and medium businesses with marketing tips and plans, business plans, strategic plans, financial plans, and borrowing money. His background not only includes experience as a marketing director, college educator, and economic development professional but also as the owner of several successful market research companies.