5 More AI Prompts I Can't Stop Using
A few weeks ago I shared my five most-used AI prompts for things like image generation, video scripts, and learning new topics. The response I got surprised me — a lot of people asked what else I use on a daily basis. So here's part two.
These five are completely different subjects from the first post. We're talking about ad copy, translation, YouTube thumbnail ideas, email subject lines, and a brainstorming technique I stumbled onto by accident that now saves me hours every week. Same format — exact prompt, what I get back, and why it actually works.
"The prompt is the skill. The AI is just the tool. Once I understood that, everything got better."
5 More Prompts That Changed How I Work
The Ad Copy Prompt That Actually Converts
📢 Advertising & MarketingWriting ad copy is one of those things that sounds easy until you actually try it. I used to spend an hour writing a Facebook or Instagram ad and it would either sound too salesy, too bland, or nothing like the brand. I tried asking AI to "write me an ad" and got exactly what you'd expect — generic filler. Then I found a structure that's based on how good copywriters actually think, and the results were immediately different.
Write 3 versions of a short ad for [PRODUCT OR SERVICE]. Target audience: [DESCRIBE THEM IN ONE SENTENCE] Platform: [Facebook / Instagram / Google / TikTok] Goal: [Get clicks / get signups / make a sale / build awareness] For each version use a different psychological angle: - Version 1: Lead with the PAIN — what problem does this solve and how bad is that problem - Version 2: Lead with the DREAM — what life looks like after using this - Version 3: Lead with SOCIAL PROOF — someone else's result or a number that builds trust Each ad must be under 80 words. No exclamation marks. No "limited time offer." Sound like a person, not a brand.
Three genuinely different ads that each pull on a different emotion. The pain version usually performs best in my experience — but having all three lets me A/B test without having to write everything from scratch. I've used this for products, services, and even event promotions.
Giving the AI three specific psychological angles forces it out of the generic "Buy now! Get yours today!" mode. The "sound like a person, not a brand" instruction alone removes about 80% of the corporate filler that makes most AI ads instantly forgettable.
The Translation Prompt That Keeps Your Voice
🌍 Translation & LocalizationI write in English but I sometimes need content in Arabic or French for different audiences. Basic translation tools give you technically correct text that sounds completely unnatural — like it was translated by a dictionary, not a person. This prompt changed that. It doesn't just translate — it localizes, which means it adapts the tone and phrasing to sound natural to a native speaker of that language.
Translate the following text from [SOURCE LANGUAGE] to [TARGET LANGUAGE]. Important instructions: - Do NOT translate word for word — rewrite it so it sounds natural to a native speaker - Keep the same tone as the original: [casual / formal / friendly / professional] - If there are idioms or expressions that don't exist in [TARGET LANGUAGE], replace them with an equivalent local expression that carries the same meaning - After the translation, give me a short note on any cultural adaptation you made and why Text to translate: [PASTE YOUR TEXT]
A translation that actually reads like it was written in that language from the start — not a converted version of English. The cultural adaptation note at the end is genuinely useful: it tells me what changed and why, so I can approve or adjust it before publishing.
Asking for a note on cultural adaptations does two things: it makes the AI more careful about those decisions, and it keeps you in control. You're not just accepting a black box translation — you can see exactly what judgment calls were made.
The YouTube Thumbnail Idea Generator
🖼️ Thumbnails & VisualsThumbnails are the reason people click — or don't. I've had videos with great content that barely got views because the thumbnail was bad, and mediocre videos that got thousands of clicks because the thumbnail was irresistible. The problem is coming up with thumbnail concepts is a creative skill that I'm not naturally good at. This prompt helps me generate visual ideas I can actually take to a designer or create myself in Canva.
My YouTube video is about: [DESCRIBE YOUR VIDEO IN 1-2 SENTENCES] Video title: [YOUR TITLE] Target audience: [WHO WATCHES YOUR CHANNEL] Give me 5 thumbnail concepts. For each one describe: 1. The main visual (what is the dominant image or scene) 2. The facial expression or emotion shown (if a person is in it) 3. The text overlay — maximum 4 words, big and readable 4. The color scheme — 2 or 3 colors max 5. Why this thumbnail would make someone stop scrolling Base each concept on a different proven thumbnail style: curiosity gap, shock/surprise, before & after, pointing at something, and minimalist text-only.
5 specific, detailed thumbnail concepts I can visualize immediately. I pick the one that feels right, take it to Canva or send the description to a designer, and the thumbnail is done in 20 minutes instead of a 2-hour creative struggle. My click-through rate went up noticeably after I started doing this.
Naming the five proven thumbnail styles forces variety — without that instruction you'd get five versions of the same concept. And asking for "why this would make someone stop scrolling" makes the AI justify each choice, which filters out weak ideas before they even reach you.
The Email Subject Line That Gets Opened
📧 Email MarketingThe average person gets over 100 emails a day. Your subject line has about half a second to compete with all of them. I've sent email campaigns where changing just the subject line doubled the open rate — the body of the email was identical. I now use this prompt every single time I send an email campaign, newsletter, or even an important one-off email that needs to actually get read.
Write 10 email subject lines for an email about [DESCRIBE THE EMAIL'S PURPOSE AND CONTENT IN 2 SENTENCES]. The audience is: [WHO THEY ARE] The desired action after opening: [WHAT YOU WANT THEM TO DO] Write two subject lines for each of these 5 styles: - Curiosity: makes them wonder what's inside without being clickbait - Personal: sounds like it came from a real person, not a mailing list - Urgency: creates a real reason to open now (not fake countdown timers) - Benefit: leads with exactly what they gain from opening - Surprising: an unexpected angle or unexpected fact that makes them stop Keep every subject line under 50 characters. No emojis. No ALL CAPS.
10 subject lines across genuinely different strategies. I usually test two of them against each other if my platform allows A/B testing. Even when I can't test, having 10 options means I'm picking the best one rather than just going with whatever I first thought of.
The "under 50 characters" limit keeps every subject line mobile-friendly — over 60 characters and it gets cut off on most phones. And asking for two subject lines per style instead of one is intentional: the second one is almost always better than the first because the AI has already used up the obvious answer.
The Role-Play Brainstorm Prompt
🧩 Problem Solving & StrategyThis is the most unusual prompt on the list and the one I'm most excited to share because I genuinely stumbled on it by accident. I was stuck on a business decision and I asked AI to "think about this like a startup investor would" — and the answer I got was so different from what I expected that I started using the same technique for everything. Assigning the AI a specific expert role completely changes the quality of the thinking it produces.
I want you to look at my situation from 3 different expert perspectives and give me their honest take. My situation: [DESCRIBE YOUR PROBLEM, DECISION, OR IDEA IN A FEW SENTENCES] Expert 1 — A skeptical investor: What are the biggest risks, weaknesses, and reasons this could fail? Be harsh. Expert 2 — A creative director: What is the most interesting, unexpected, or bold version of this idea? Push it further than I would. Expert 3 — A customer or end user: What do I actually want from this? What would make me choose this over everything else? What would make me ignore it? After all three perspectives, give me your own one-paragraph synthesis: what should I actually do based on all three views?
Three completely different takes on the same problem — one that pokes holes in it, one that pushes it further, and one that centers the actual person it's for. The synthesis at the end usually surprises me. I've used this for product ideas, content strategies, pricing decisions, and even personal decisions. It's the closest thing I've found to having a real advisory board available at 2am.
When you ask AI for advice with no context, it gives you the safest, most average answer. When you assign it a specific expert role with a specific attitude, it has to commit to that perspective — which produces much sharper, more useful thinking. Three perspectives at once means you're not just getting one angle on your problem.
What These 10 Prompts Have in Common
Looking back at the first five prompts and these five together, I notice they all share one thing: they give the AI a constraint. A time limit. A word count. A specific role. A style to follow. A thing it cannot do. That constraint is what separates a useful prompt from a generic one.
When you give AI no limits, it gives you the most average possible answer. When you give it a box to work inside, it gets creative within that box — and that creativity is what actually helps you. Every prompt I've shared works because of what I restricted, not just what I asked for.
Quick Reference — All 5 Prompts
Which of these surprised you the most? The role-play brainstorm one always gets the biggest reaction when I share it — people don't expect how different the output is. Try it on something you're stuck on right now and let me know what happened in the comments.
aiandtechnoblog
I write about AI tools, productivity, and practical tips from real daily use. No sponsored content, no affiliate deals — just what actually works after months of testing.