All articlesTools & Systems

Your AI team: 4 free prompts for small business owners

Four ready-to-use ChatGPT and Claude prompts for the jobs that eat your week — customer replies, social captions, review replies and invoice follow-ups. Copy, paste, fill in the brackets.

R
Ray S
26 July 2026 · 4 min read
Your AI team: 4 free prompts for small business owners

Most business owners think an AI team means hiring a developer. It doesn't. It means four prompts and about ten minutes.

Each one below is written for a specific, repeatable job — not a vague ask. Copy it, paste it into ChatGPT or Claude, swap in your own details in the brackets, and read what comes back before you send it. It's a first draft, not a final answer.

The four prompts

1. THE REPLY GUYcustomer messages
You're replying to a customer message for [business name], a [type of business] in [suburb]. Here's the message: [paste message]. Reply in a friendly, professional tone, keep it under 60 words, answer their question directly, and end with a clear next step (e.g. booking link, phone number, or 'let me know a good time'). No emoji. Match how a real person would text back, not a corporate script.
2. THE CAPTION WRITERsocial captions
Write an Instagram caption for this photo: [describe the photo]. Business: [business name], based in [suburb]. Tone: direct, a bit of personality, no corporate speak. Keep it to 3–4 short lines, sentence case, no emoji, no hashtags inside the caption itself. End with one clear call to action (book, call, or visit). List 5 relevant hashtags separately underneath.
3. THE REVIEWS MANAGERreview replies
Here's a customer review for [business name]: [paste review]. Write a reply that thanks them by name if given, references one specific detail from their review, and stays under 50 words. If the review is negative, acknowledge the issue without getting defensive and offer to sort it out offline (phone or email). No generic 'we value your feedback' filler.
4. THE FOLLOW-UP CLERKinvoice chase
Write a polite follow-up message for an unpaid invoice. Invoice number: [X]. Amount: [$X]. Due date: [date]. Days overdue: [X]. Tone: friendly first reminder if under 7 days overdue, firmer but still polite if over 14 days. Keep it under 80 words. Include the amount, the due date, and one easy way to pay. No threats, no legal language unless specifically asked for.

How to use: paste the prompt into ChatGPT or Claude, fill in the brackets with your own details, and treat what comes back as a first draft — read it before you send it.

Want this running without you typing a prompt at all?

These four are worth using by hand today. If the admin side — replying, posting, chasing reviews and invoices — is eating more of your week than you'd like, see what's included in AI automation for small business, or tell us what's taking the time and we'll send back a clear, fixed quote — get a proposal.

R
Written by Ray S
Founder & CEO at Whale Digital Consulting

Keep reading

How to get more Google reviews (the right way)Get Found

How to get more Google reviews (the right way)

A Melbourne small business guide: when to ask, how to stay inside Google's rules, and how to turn reviews into more calls.

Read more
How Melbourne tradies get more job calls from GoogleGet Found

How Melbourne tradies get more job calls from Google

Word of mouth dried up? The four moves — Google Business Profile, reviews, a fast website and ads — that get a tradie's phone ringing again.

Read more
AEO Melbourne: what it is, and why your business should care nowGet Found

AEO Melbourne: what it is, and why your business should care now

Answer engine optimisation in plain English — how AI assistants decide which businesses to name, and the five things to do first.

Read more
Your website is still your best salesperson — even in the AI ageConvert & Sell

Your website is still your best salesperson — even in the AI age

Why a working website converts bookings and revenue around the clock — and matters more in 2026, not less.

Read more
SEO in plain English — a restaurant owner's guideGet Found

SEO in plain English — a restaurant owner's guide

What SEO actually means, and what changes — in dollars — when you have a real website versus none.

Read more
SEO, AEO, GEO — the three ways customers find you nowGet Found

SEO, AEO, GEO — the three ways customers find you now

Ranking on Google was the whole game. Now you also need to be the answer — and the recommendation.

Read more
How much should a small business website cost in Melbourne?Plan & Budget

How much should a small business website cost in Melbourne?

Real Melbourne market price ranges for 2026 — what changes the number, the hidden costs nobody quotes, and how to avoid overpaying.

Read more
Why your cafe isn't showing up on Google Maps (and how to fix it)Get Found

Why your cafe isn't showing up on Google Maps (and how to fix it)

If you're not in the top three on the map, nearby diners never see you. The signals that move you up — and four fixes to do this week.

Read more
Take restaurant bookings on your own website — and stop paying commissionConvert & Sell

Take restaurant bookings on your own website — and stop paying commission

Booking platforms and delivery apps take a cut of every cover. How to take reservations and orders on your own site and keep the margin.

Read more
AI tools for business: the shortlist that's actually worth your timeTools & Systems

AI tools for business: the shortlist that's actually worth your time

Every “best AI tools” list has fifteen entries and no verdict. Here's the five jobs that actually save a small business time — and the part every list leaves out.

Read more
AI chatbot for business: what it actually answers, and what still needs a personConvert & Sell

AI chatbot for business: what it actually answers, and what still needs a person

A chatbot that quietly answers the 9pm question beats one that pretends to replace you. What an AI chatbot for a small business actually does — and doesn't.

Read more
AI for small business: what it actually does (and doesn't)Tools & Systems

AI for small business: what it actually does (and doesn't)

Everyone says “use AI” — almost nobody says what that looks like on a Tuesday morning. A plain-English breakdown of what's actually working right now, and what to be careful about.

Read more
Ecommerce website cost in MelbournePlan & Budget

Ecommerce website cost in Melbourne

Real market ranges for an online store in 2026 — what Melbourne agencies typically charge, what changes the number, and how our fixed-price Shopify builds compare.

Read more
Customer gone quiet after your quote? The follow-up cadence that wins the jobConvert & Sell

Customer gone quiet after your quote? The follow-up cadence that wins the job

A quote that goes quiet isn't a lost job. The 24-hour, day-3, day-7 and day-14 cadence — with the texts and emails to copy-paste.

Read more
How to cut your admin hours as a tradie (and win back billable time)Tools & Systems

How to cut your admin hours as a tradie (and win back billable time)

Six repeatable admin tasks worth handing off, the one that's not automated yet, and an honest word on the stats floating around about how much time it all costs you.

Read more
ChatGPT prompts for tradies: what real electricians and plumbers actually typeTools & Systems

ChatGPT prompts for tradies: what real electricians and plumbers actually type

A real electrician prices jobs in under 30 seconds with it. Ready-to-copy prompts for quotes, safety paperwork and customer replies — plus how to write one that actually works.

Read more
Get your restaurant recommended by ChatGPT: the GEO checklist, in orderGet Found

Get your restaurant recommended by ChatGPT: the GEO checklist, in order

Generative engine optimisation (GEO) is the unglamorous, doable work that gives ChatGPT and Perplexity something solid to recommend your restaurant with — no guarantees, just the checklist in order.

Read more
Get your trade business found in AI search: a GEO guide for plumbers, electricians and buildersGet Found

Get your trade business found in AI search: a GEO guide for plumbers, electricians and builders

When someone's hot water system dies at 9pm, they're increasingly asking ChatGPT, not just Google. Here's how plumbers, electricians and builders get named in that answer — no guarantees, just the groundwork that actually matters.

Read more

Built to lead. Built to convert. Built to bring customers. Built to turn a profit.

We build digital tools that lead and convert — turning traffic into value, clicks into customers, and customers into profit in your pocket. No fluff. That's the job.

Whale
Get a proposal →