Prompt Engineering Best Practices

You are a senior financial analyst at a Fortune 500 company. Your task is to evaluate investment opportunities for Q4 2024. Consider the following market conditions:
- Rising interest rates
- Inflation concerns
- Technology sector volatility

Based on this context, analyze the following investment proposal...

Act as an experienced software architect with 15 years in distributed systems. 
Review the following system design and provide feedback on:
1. Scalability concerns
2. Security vulnerabilities
3. Performance bottlenecks
4. Recommended improvements

Analyze the customer feedback and respond in the following format:

## Summary
[Brief overview in 2-3 sentences]

## Key Issues Identified
- Issue 1: [Description]
- Issue 2: [Description]
- Issue 3: [Description]

## Recommended Actions
1. [Action item with timeline]
2. [Action item with timeline]
3. [Action item with timeline]

## Risk Assessment
[Low/Medium/High] - [Explanation]

Extract the following information and format as JSON:
{
  "customer_name": "string",
  "order_id": "string (8 characters)",
  "issue_category": "string (one of: shipping, product, billing, other)",
  "priority": "number (1-5 scale)",
  "resolution_required": "boolean"
}

Let's solve this step by step:

1. First, identify all the given variables in the problem
2. Then, determine what we need to find
3. Next, choose the appropriate formula or method
4. Finally, calculate the result and verify it makes sense

Problem: [Your problem here]

I need you to categorize customer inquiries. Here are some examples:

Input: "My order hasn't arrived yet, when will it be delivered?"
Category: Shipping
Urgency: Medium

Input: "I was charged twice for the same item"
Category: Billing
Urgency: High

Input: "How do I return this product?"
Category: Returns
Urgency: Low

Now categorize this inquiry:
Input: "The product arrived damaged, I need a replacement"
Category: ?
Urgency: ?

Create a product description with these constraints:
- Maximum 150 words
- Include exactly 3 key benefits
- Use active voice only
- Include one compelling statistic
- Target audience: small business owners
- Tone: professional but approachable
- Avoid technical jargon

<task>
Analyze the customer support ticket and provide a structured response
</task>

<context>
<customer_info>
Name: {{customer_name}}
Tier: {{customer_tier}}
Account_since: {{account_date}}
</customer_info>

<ticket_details>
Category: {{issue_category}}
Priority: {{priority_level}}
Description: {{issue_description}}
</ticket_details>
</context>

<instructions>
<response_format>
<summary>Brief issue summary in 1-2 sentences</summary>
<analysis>Detailed problem analysis</analysis>
<solution>Step-by-step resolution plan</solution>
<timeline>Expected resolution timeframe</timeline>
</response_format>

<guidelines>
- Use empathetic language appropriate for {{customer_tier}} customers
- Include specific next steps with deadlines
- Reference relevant help articles when applicable
- If {{priority_level}} is "high", include escalation options
</guidelines>
</instructions>

Task: Write a technical blog post about API security.

Step 1: Create an outline covering these topics:
- Authentication methods
- Authorization patterns
- Data encryption
- Rate limiting
- Input validation

Step 2: Write the full article based on the outline

Step 3: Review your article and verify:
- All topics from the outline are covered
- Examples are accurate and current
- Tone is consistent throughout
- Length is 1200-1500 words

Situation: You're a product manager at a SaaS company facing declining user engagement
Task: Develop a strategy to increase user retention by 20% in Q4
Action: Analyze user data, identify drop-off points, and create targeted interventions
Result: Present a comprehensive retention strategy with specific metrics and timelines

Your task is to recommend a cloud architecture solution.

Point: State your recommendation clearly
Reason: Explain why this is the best choice
Example: Provide a specific use case or comparison
Point: Restate your recommendation with confidence

Problem: [Clearly define the problem you're solving]
Solution: [Your proposed solution approach]
Benefits: [Expected outcomes and advantages]

Please analyze the following scenario using this framework...

Dear {{customer_name}},

Thank you for your {{interaction_type}} regarding {{product_name}}. 
Based on your {{customer_tier}} status, I can offer the following resolution:

{{#if priority_customer}}
- Expedited processing within 24 hours
- Dedicated support manager assignment
- Complimentary premium features for 3 months
{{else}}
- Standard processing within 48 hours
- Priority queue placement
- 10% discount on next purchase
{{/if}}

Best regards,
{{agent_name}}

Before processing this prompt, verify that all required variables are present:
- customer_id: {{customer_id}}
- order_date: {{order_date}}
- product_category: {{product_category}}

If any variable is missing or invalid, respond with:
"Error: Missing required variable [variable_name]. Please provide [expected_format]."

After generating the response, verify:
□ All required sections are present
□ Format matches the specified template
□ Tone is appropriate for the context
□ Key information is accurately represented
□ Length meets the specified constraints
□ No hallucinated or inaccurate information

Optimize your prompts for token usage:
- Remove redundant phrases
- Use concise language
- Eliminate unnecessary examples
- Focus on essential instructions only

Before: "Please kindly analyze the following data that I am providing to you..."
After: "Analyze this data:"

Customer service prompts should include:
- Empathy and understanding language
- Clear escalation paths
- Brand voice guidelines
- Compliance requirements
- Resolution timelines

Template:
"Respond with empathy and professionalism. Acknowledge the customer's concern, 
provide a specific solution, and include next steps with timelines."

Technical prompts should specify:
- Target audience skill level
- Required depth of explanation
- Code example formats
- Accuracy requirements
- Version-specific considerations

Template:
"Write for intermediate developers. Include working code examples, 
explain complex concepts in simple terms, and verify all technical details."

Content prompts should define:
- Target audience demographics
- Brand voice and tone
- SEO requirements
- Content structure
- Call-to-action placement

Template:
"Create content for [audience] that [objective]. Use [tone] and include 
[specific elements]. Optimize for [SEO keywords]."

Prompt Evaluation Rubric:

Clarity (1-5): How clear and unambiguous are the instructions?
Completeness (1-5): Does the prompt provide all necessary information?
Specificity (1-5): How specific are the requirements and constraints?
Efficiency (1-5): Is the prompt concise while being comprehensive?
Reliability (1-5): How consistent are the outputs across multiple runs?

Total Score: ___/25

Step 1 Prompt: "Analyze this customer complaint and identify the core issues"
Step 2 Prompt: "Based on the issues identified: {{issues}}, research our company policies"
Step 3 Prompt: "Create a response using the policies: {{policies}} to address: {{issues}}"

Analyze the customer type:
{{#if enterprise_customer}}
  Use formal language and include technical details
{{elseif small_business}}
  Use friendly but professional tone, simplify technical concepts
{{else}}
  Use casual, helpful tone with step-by-step explanations
{{/if}}

After providing your response, evaluate it against these criteria:
1. Does it fully address the user's question?
2. Is the tone appropriate for the context?
3. Are all technical details accurate?
4. Is the response length appropriate?

If any criterion scores below 4/5, revise your response accordingly.

Prompt Version: 2.1.0
Last Updated: 2024-03-15
Author: [Your Name]

Changelog:
v2.1.0 - Added error handling for missing variables
v2.0.0 - Restructured output format for better parsing
v1.5.0 - Added context length optimization
v1.0.0 - Initial version

Testing Notes:
- Tested with 50 sample inputs
- 98% accuracy rate
- Average response time: 2.3s