How to write effective prompts (Dos & don'ts)

In Kameleoon's prompt-based experimentation (PBX), our AI is a powerful collaborator ready to transform your A/B tests and personalizations. The secret to unlocking its full potential lies in how effectively you prompt. This guide will help you craft prompts that go beyond basic instructions, allowing you to:

• Accelerate innovation: Rapidly build and test complex UI variations.
• Achieve pixel-perfect accuracy: Bring your exact visual and functional visions to life.
• Streamline your workflow: Drastically reduce manual adjustments and development cycles.
• Eliminate guesswork: Get consistent, predictable results that drive your experiments forward.

You don't need to be an AI guru or coding expert. With the right techniques, you can turn your ideas into impactful, high-performing experiences.

Let's dive into how to write clear, specific, and effective instructions for the AI in your prompt-based experiments.

Core principles for effective prompting

To guide Kameleoon's AI effectively, keep these fundamental principles in mind:

• Be specific: Always describe the change, identify the target element, and outline the desired style or functionality.
• Start small and iterate: If you're unsure, begin with a simple request and gradually build complexity. AI models learn from feedback; sometimes, the simplest starting points lead to the best results.
• Provide context: The more relevant context you provide about why you want to test a particular idea or what you aim to achieve, the better the AI can tailor its output to meet your objectives.

DO — What you should do

These guidelines will help you craft prompts that lead to precise, high-quality AI-generated variations.

1. Be highly specific with your request:
   • Clearly describe what you want to change or add: Instead of "change the button", say "change the 'Add to Cart' button's color to dark blue". For additions, specify "add a delivery truck icon next to the free shipping text".
   • Specify where the change should occur: Indicate the exact location. For example, "in the main banner", "below the headline", or "next to the call-to-action button".

tip

Use our Draw a sketch feature to visually circle the element or area you want to update.

2. Structure your prompts for clarity:
   • Organize your prompts into distinct parts to give the AI a clear, actionable instruction set. Think about defining the what, where, and how for optimal results.
     • Define the Core Action: State exactly what transformation you want to achieve (for example, "Change the headline", "Add a new section", "Modify button styling").
     • Identify the Target Element: Clearly point out the specific part of the UI you're addressing (for example, "the main hero banner", "the 'Sign Up' button in the footer", "the product image gallery").
     • Detail the Desired Outcome: Describe the visual or functional result you expect, including properties like color, size, font, position, or content.
       • Example:
       • Core action: Change the color.
       • Target element: The "Add to Cart" button.
       • Desired outcome: Make it a vibrant orange (#FF4500) to increase visibility.
3. Use clear and simple language:
   • Write in clear, concise, and action-oriented style. For example, "replace the white background with a blue gradient" instead of "make it look nicer".
4. Describe visual elements in detail:
   • Include details like size, color, shape, style, or type of image. The more descriptive you are, the closer the AI will get to your vision.
   • You can also import a mockup or design or your variant using the Import a file feature. When using a file as a template (for popups, banners, etc.) and you want the AI to build something based on it, provide explicit instructions. For example: "Build a newsletter popup by using the attached template file and adapt it to my brand design". Adding details like "adapt to my brand image" can significantly influence the outcome and ensure that the generated content aligns with your visual identity.
5. Choose a pre-defined tool (optional):
   • To help you get more targeted results, we've designed specific prompt tools like Suggest ideas, Insert overlay element, Change element style, etc., available at the bottom of the prompt area. While optional, they can improve the quality and relevance of your output.
6. Stick to one request per prompt:
   • Avoid stacking multiple unrelated edits in a single prompt. For example, don't ask to "change the button color, add a promo image, and move the text" all at once. Break this up into separate focused prompts. This segmentation allows the AI to concentrate on one task at a time, reducing the likelihood of errors and "AI hallucination".
7. Use concrete examples if helpful:
   • Sometimes, showing is better than telling. For example, "add an icon like the Google Maps pin" or "use a blue similar to Facebook's".
8. Include a clear goal or intent:
   • Always explain what you're trying to achieve visually. For example, "make the button stand out more to improve click-through rate", or "highlight free shipping to reduce cart abandonment".
9. Rephrase if the first prompt doesn't work:
   • Try simplifying or rewording the prompt if you don't get the result you expected.
10. Start with a new variation when trying something different:
    • If you want to try a new idea, begin by creating a separate test variation.

DON'T — What to avoid

These common pitfalls can lead to vague or incorrect AI outputs.

1. Vague or overly general prompts:
   • Avoid broad instructions like "make it look nicer" or "change this design a bit". If you're looking for inspiration or direction, try using the Suggest ideas tool available at the bottom of the prompt area.
2. Technical jargon or uncommon abbreviations:
   • Keep your language beginner-friendly and visually focused.
3. Overly long or confusing prompts:
   • Too many ideas at once make it hard for the AI to respond clearly.
4. Mixing multiple intentions in one prompt:
   • For example, "change the button color, add a promo image, and move the text"—break this up.
5. Assuming the AI understands your marketing goal:
   • Always explain what you're trying to achieve visually; don't assume the AI can infer your marketing objectives.
6. Relying on the first result:
   • Always double-check that the visual change matches what you asked for and test it in simulation mode.
7. Vague terms like "this", "that area", or "something cool":
   • Be specific about what should change and how.
8. Requests that require back-end logic:
   • The AI cannot access or modify server-side systems or business logic. For example, do not request "change the product price", "adjust delivery options", or "add a discount for returning customers". Similarly, requests like "add a loyalty points tracker" or "create a subscription billing flow" involve dynamic data and server-side processing and must be handled by developers.