> ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.tryprofound.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # Retail and e-commerce > How to build a prompt set for a retail or e-commerce brand, with best practices and examples Shoppers buy around sales events, holidays, and school calendars, so the prompt set needs prompts for each product category and for each peak season, including gift guide and "best X under \$Y" questions. Put shipping, returns, and ingredient claims under [FactCheck](https://docs.tryprofound.com/answer-engine-insights/factcheck/about.md) so you can see where AI answers get them wrong. ## Create your prompt set ### Topics to cover Replace `[brand]` and `[product]` in the example prompts with your own values. | Topic | Example prompt | | - | - | | Black Friday and Cyber Monday | Best deals on `[product]` this weekend under \$100 | | Prime Day-style sales events | What's actually on sale at `[brand]` this week? | | Holiday gifting | Gift ideas for someone who loves skincare, under \$50 | | Product launches | How does the new `[brand]` serum compare to the old one? | | Valentine's Day | Last-minute Valentine's gifts that ship in two days | | Limited-stock drops | Where can I still buy the `[brand]` holiday set? | | Back to school | Best backpacks for a college freshman on a budget | | Private label vs third-party | Is `[brand]`'s own moisturizer as good as the name brands? | > [!TIP] > > **Make prompts more specific.** Instead of *"What are the best moisturizers for sensitive skin?"*, try *"I'm in my 30s with rosacea and my moisturizer stings. What are the best moisturizers for sensitive skin under \$40 and fragrance-free?"* ### Best practices * **Leave your brand name out of [discovery prompts](https://docs.tryprofound.com/getting-started/glossary.md#discovery-prompt).** Putting your name in the question inflates your [Visibility Score](https://docs.tryprofound.com/getting-started/glossary.md#visibility-score). Use it only in [validation](https://docs.tryprofound.com/getting-started/glossary.md#validation-prompt) and [FactCheck](https://docs.tryprofound.com/answer-engine-insights/factcheck/about.md) prompts. * **One prompt = one topic.** Topics shouldn't overlap. Put funnel stage, campaign, and season in tags instead. * **Ask it like a person would.** Write the full question someone would type or say. * **Track only prompts that matter to the business.** Thousands of small variations of the same question make trends harder to read. * **Keep coverage and depth apart.** [Coverage topics](https://docs.tryprofound.com/getting-started/glossary.md#coverage-topic) include broad prompts for each business line. Add two to five [depth topics](https://docs.tryprofound.com/getting-started/glossary.md#depth-topic) for your priorities, and keep new prompts out of the coverage topics. * **Retire seasonal prompts.** Disable seasonal and news-driven prompts once they go stale. If you reword a prompt, you're measuring something new, so don't compare trends across the change. ## Refine your prompt set The first prompt set you build gives you a baseline. Here's how you can expand it: 1. Tag every prompt with a category and a funnel stage. 2. Add "best X under \$Y" and gift guide prompts before each peak season. 3. Add [FactCheck](https://docs.tryprofound.com/answer-engine-insights/factcheck/about.md) prompts for shipping, returns, and ingredient claims. ### Ask AI Marketer Use [AI Marketer (Aim)](https://docs.tryprofound.com/aim/about.md) to make your prompts better. Paste one of these questions to an Aim chat to see which prompts to add, cut, or tag. Swap the `[values in brackets]` for your own. | Ask | What you get | | - | - | | Which of my prompts cover gifting and sales events, and which peak moments have nothing? | Seasonal gaps before the rush | | Show my visibility by topic and funnel stage. Where am I weakest? | Which categories need more prompts | | What are shoppers asking AI about `[category]` that none of my prompts cover? | New questions to track | | Which shipping, returns, or ingredient claims about us are wrong in AI answers, and who is the source? | FactCheck prompts worth adding | | Draft 10 Black Friday prompts, tagged by category and funnel stage, and skip anything I already track. | A tagged starter set | ### Add tags to your prompts [Tags](https://docs.tryprofound.com/getting-started/glossary.md#tag) can span topics, and one prompt can have several. Use these tag examples and rename them to match how you work. | Tag group | Examples | | - | - | | Funnel stage | Informational TOFU, Commercial TOFU, Informational BOFU, Commercial BOFU | | Category | Skincare, Fragrance, Private label, Third-party brands | | Campaign | Product launch, Limited-stock drop, Sales event | | Season | BFCM, Holiday gifting, Valentine's Day, Back to school, Summer sale | | FactCheck | Shipping, Returns, Ingredients | > [!TIP] > > **IF YOU'RE STUCK** > > 1. **Pick the five topics that matter most to the business.** > 2. **Write one prompt per funnel stage.** Four stages (Informational and Commercial, each for top and bottom of funnel) give you four base prompts per topic. > 3. **Add about 10 variations.** Change the [persona](https://docs.tryprofound.com/answer-engine-insights/personas.md), use case, company size, or wording. ### Advanced tips * **Use words like "brands" or "stores" in your prompts.** For example, *"What should I look for in a running shoe?"* returns a checklist of features, and *"Which brands make the best running shoes for flat feet?"* returns a list of brands, which is the answer you can measure your brand against. * **Give every comparison a use case.** A *"`[brand]` vs `[competitor]`"* prompt alone returns an "it depends" answer. Add who is asking and why: *"`[brand]` vs `[competitor]` for a 50-person team that already uses Salesforce"* gives the AI enough context to pick one. * **Spell out any unclear term the first time.** An acronym or internal product name can derail the answer. Write *"generative engine optimization tools"* rather than *"GEO tools"*, and name the product category rather than using a code word only your team uses for it. * **Say what you want without pushing toward your own brand.** The question *"Which project management tools, like `[brand]`, are best for marketing teams?"* nudges the AI toward your brand and tells you nothing about whether it would have named you on its own. * **Test your prompts.** Run each prompt once in an [answer engine](https://docs.tryprofound.com/getting-started/glossary.md#answer-engine) and read what it returns. A [discovery prompt](https://docs.tryprofound.com/getting-started/glossary.md#discovery-prompt) should list brands, a [comparison](https://docs.tryprofound.com/getting-started/glossary.md#competitor-prompt) should pick one, and a [validation](https://docs.tryprofound.com/getting-started/glossary.md#validation-prompt) should say yes or no. Learn more about different types of prompts in [Profound's AEO guide](https://www.tryprofound.com/aeo-guide/chapter-3#six-types-of-prompts). * **Tag every prompt you add**. Learn more in [Categorize Your Prompts With Tags](https://docs.tryprofound.com/answer-engine-insights/how-tos/create-topics-and-prompts.md#categorize-your-prompts-with-tags). ## Next steps * Read the [Promptologie](https://www.tryprofound.com/aeo-guide/chapter-3) chapter in Profound's AEO guide. * Learn how to [create, manage, and tag prompts](https://docs.tryprofound.com/answer-engine-insights/prompt-designer.md) in Profound. * Review the guide on [how to create effective prompts](https://docs.tryprofound.com/answer-engine-insights/how-tos/create-effective-prompts.md) using Prompt Volumes and intent data.