In recent years applications that use artificial intelligence (AI) have gained prominence and become more accessible for everyday use. Large language models and chatbots have allowed for people and businesses to quickly access information, formulate ideas and perform a myriad of other useful tasks. At FoodStream we wanted to offer a useful step-by-step guide for organizations and individuals in our community to utilize AI powered tools to help in their outreach and overall productivity.
Here’s How to Get Started:
- Go to https://chat.openai.com (or any other AI tool you prefer).
- Click “New Chat” in the top left.
- Copy and paste a Master Prompt as outlined below as your first message.
Master Prompt:
A master prompt is a detailed set of instructions you give an AI at the start of a conversation. It sets the scene for your project, acts as a blueprint and transforms the AI from a general tool into a personalized, expert assistant tailored specifically to your needs. For a test case, we will use the scenario of a person looking for ways they can receive fresh produce donations for an upcoming event. Remember, you can always customize the prompts to suit your organization’s specific project or goals. In this case we will start by entering the following prompt:
- I’m hosting a community food drive on December 15th to support about 700 students, families, and community members experiencing food insecurity.
- My number-one goal is to secure fresh produce, but I would be extremely grateful for any kind of food donation that could help support the event.
- I need your help identifying the best organizations, companies, supermarkets, distributors, or well-known brands to reach out to, and I need help writing outreach emails that are personalized and effective. Please give me step-by-step guidance. If I ever seem confused, walk me through each step slowly and clearly.
Secondary Prompts
Once you have entered the master prompt you can start to use additional prompts to help you get detailed information, suggestions and next steps on your specific goal. Here are some potential prompts from our example case:
Prompt 1: Find the Top 5 Best Options for Produce Donations
Copy/paste the following after the Master Prompt:
“Based on everything in the master prompt, give me the top 5 organizations in NYC or the tri-state area that are most likely to donate fresh produce on short notice. For each one, explain why they are a strong fit and provide the correct contact approach”.
Prompt 2: Write a Personalized Email Requesting Produce
Copy/paste:
“Please write a personalized outreach email for the top produce donor on the list. Keep the tone [insert your tone]. Include the key details of my event, the date, the number of families, and the fact that any amount of produce would be greatly appreciated. Include a line offering the option for their media team to film or capture content if they’d like.”
Prompt 3: Identify Local NYC Businesses Known to Donate Food
Copy/paste:
“Identify local NYC businesses that have donated food in the past or are likely to support a community food drive. Include supermarkets, bodegas, independent grocers, and community-centered food organizations. Provide contact info or instructions on how to find it.”
Prompt 4: Write Personalized Emails to Those Local Businesses
Copy/paste:
“Using the list you just gave me, write a simple, warm outreach email I can send to each business. Make it feel community-centered and direct. Include an optional media-team line.”
Prompt 5: Identify 20 Well-Known Brands With Active Donation Programs
Copy/paste:
“Give me a list of 20 major national or NY-based food brands, consumer brands, or well-funded companies that have a history of donating food or supporting community events. Include contact suggestions and what angle I should use when reaching out.”
Prompt 6: Write the Outreach Emails to Those Brands
Copy/paste:
“Please write a strong outreach email I can send to these major brands. Include (fill-in-the-blank) areas so I can personalize it. Keep the tone warm, clear, and authentic.”
Prompt 7: How to Find the Right Contact Person
Copy/paste:
“Tell me how to identify the right person at each company to email (CSR lead, community partnerships, marketing, etc.). Give me step-by-step directions for using LinkedIn to find the right contact, and instructions for using tools like Hunter.io to find their email address.”
Prompt 8: Write Follow-Up Emails
Copy/paste:
“Write a friendly but effective follow-up email I can send 48 hours after the first email. Keep it short and encouraging.”
Prompt 9: Ask the AI to Improve Any Email You’ve Written
Copy/paste:
“Here is the email I’m planning to send. Please improve the clarity, tone, and effectiveness while keeping my style and voice.”
Tips for Maximizing AI tools:
- AI programs can help you create a simple tracking system to organize your interaction or next steps.
- You can request clarification or more detail if something is unclear or not what you are looking for.
- Use specific examples for how you would like answers provided (the tone, style, audience, etc.). The more context you input into the system the more refined the answers will be.
- Build off previous prompts or reuse prompts that were previously useful to direct the AI toward a specific objective you’re looking for.
- Ask for suggestions and build prompts from there if you are unsure which prompts to use or what to ask for.
Things to Consider:
When using AI tools it’s important to remember to avoid sharing any sensitive information that you do not want publicly available. It’s also important to always check if the information provided is correct. Always use your personal discretion when considering any suggestions provided by the AI system.
AI tools are a useful addition to any organization’s arsenal. They can be a great way to save your organization time, find useful information and to design and execute strategies for new or existing projects.
For assistance with your organization’s project, contact us at support@foodstreamnetwork.com We’re happy to help!
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