What is a prompt?

A prompt is the set of instructions you give an AI to tell it how to behave, what it should do, and what it should avoid doing.

 

It’s essentially the brain of your chatbot — the rulebook that shapes every response.

A prompt can include:

• The chatbot’s role (e.g., “You are a council customer service assistant.”)
• The tone and style (friendly, professional, plain English)
• What knowledge it should rely on (policies, FAQs, data sources)
• Clear do/don’t rules
• How to handle uncertainty
• Escalation or redirection rules
• Safety requirements

A well-written prompt should not static but it should be adpated and changed to suit the what the users are asking and how you want it to respond. This ensures the chatbot stays consistent, on-brand, accurate, and predictable.

 

A poor prompt leaves too much to chance—leading to hallucinations, inconsistent tone, or incorrect advice.