You’ve probably been asked this question before. The problem is remembering where the answer is. It might be in a proposal, email, letter or shared document, and finding it can take longer than rewriting it.
With the right prompt, an approved AI tool can search your files, find the original answer and show you where it came from. That means less time searching, fewer duplicated answers and more consistent responses for your customers.
Here’s how to set it up in five steps.
What you get
A simple prompt set that helps AI find work your business has already created, with the source file and date included.
How it helps
It saves time searching, reduces duplicated work and helps keep customer responses consistent.
What to check
Always review the source before reusing anything. Make sure it’s accurate, current and suitable for the client. Only use AI tools your business has approved.
What you get
A simple prompt set that helps AI find work your business has already created, with the source file and date included.
How it helps
It saves time searching, reduces duplicated work and helps keep customer responses consistent.
What to check
Always review the source before reusing anything. Make sure it’s accurate, current and suitable for the client. Only use AI tools your business has approved.
Stop rewriting answers you already have
You know you’ve answered this before. The response is probably in a letter, proposal, email, document or colleague’s files. But if you can’t find it quickly, it’s tempting to start again. That takes up valuable time and can create slightly different versions of the same answer.
An AI tool connected to your files can help. But vague prompts can return summaries, near matches or the wrong version. A short brief tells AI where to search, what to return and what to do if nothing relevant exists.
AI can search and suggest a first draft. A person still needs to check the answer is correct, current and suitable before the business uses it.
What you need before you start
An approved AI tool connected to the folders your business has authorised it to search, with the same access permissions as the person using it. Without that connection, it won’t be able to find anything.
If you’re not sure whether your AI tool can search your files, check with the person who manages your IT. They can confirm which folders are connected, who has access and which AI tools are approved for business use.
The three parts you’ll set up
This guide walks you through three things:
Your standing brief
Who you are, who you’re not (so AI won’t make unnecessary mistakes) and how you sound, written once and added to every AI task.
Use AI to find and reuse work you’ve already done. AI is most useful here when it works from real context, not a blank page. Deciding whether it’s still correct should remain the responsibility of a person, and the brief makes that clear. Your team can add in later anything the notes didn’t already cover.
Think of this as the context AI needs every time it works with your business. It explains who you are, how you communicate, what your clients expect and where the boundaries are. If you’ve already written it for another prompt pack, use the same version.
Otherwise, complete the sections in brackets, then add it to every prompt or save it as standing instructions in your approved AI tool (how you do this will depend on the tool you’re using, but for most you can do it by accessing the settings or profile section – if in doubt, ask the AI tool and it should tell you). Use that tool through work accounts only, so client information is protected in the way your business has agreed it should be.
Copy this prompt
We are [business name], a [kind of business] with [number] people based in [location]. Our [clients or customers] are [who they are]. People know us as [plain-speaking and friendly / formal and precise].
We will never ask AI to [what the business never does in AI tasks, for example: give advice, mix one client’s information with another’s, or quote fees before they are agreed]. Work from the information we provide first. If you use any additional information, say where it came from.
If you are unsure, or the information doesn’t cover it, say so. A person checks everything before it is used.
Tips:
AI works best when it understands your business. Detailed context about your customers, services, tone of voice and business rules will usually have a bigger impact on the quality of the output than switching to a different AI tool. A well-written standing brief gives AI that context every time.
Step 2: Add search instructions
The standing brief above gives AI the background that should be applied to every task. The following task brief tells it what to look for, what to include, what not to assume and how you want it presented.
Copy this prompt
Search only in [approved folders, shared drives or client files]. Do not search personal drives or email unless instructed.
Return the original wording together with the source file and date. Do not rewrite it unless asked.
The person reusing the information must compare it with the original source document.
Step 3: Pick a prompt and run it
Paste in both briefs and your notes. Then choose a prompt below and adapt the words in brackets to match the meeting. The prompts are starting points, so make them more specific if your team needs more detail.
1. Recruitment: The letter you know you wrote but can’t find
Find the letter where we told a client about [topic] during [time period].
Return the relevant passage exactly as found, together with the source file and date.
2. Accountancy: The advice note worth reusing
Find where we previously wrote about [topic] for [type of client]. Return the original passage, source file and date.
Then suggest wording that could be adapted for [this client’s situation].
Highlight anything that may need checking before use.
3. Legal: Search approved client files
Find what we have previously told clients about [topic].
Return the three closest matches, newest first, and provide a brief summary of each.
Step 4: Check it before you use it
Whoever requested the draft should review it carefully before they send it anywhere. A simple checklist can help:
Check:
Are the names, dates, figures and all other information still correct?
Has AI clearly flagged anything that is missing, unclear or based on limited information?
Is there anything confidential or sensitive that does not need to be included?
Does it sound like your business, and is there anything that needs human judgement before it is used?
Taking a few minutes to check the draft can prevent mistakes and unnecessary rework later.
Step 5: Keep one version, and keep it up to date
Keep the briefs in a shared document or your AI tool’s standing instructions, so there is one version. Give one person responsibility for them. They should update the briefs when someone finds more effective wording for a particular prompt, and whenever your business changes how it works or communicates. That way, your prompts improve as your business changes.
Here’s how it could work in practice.
A 35-person recruitment business writes its standing brief, adds the task brief and uses Prompt 1. Below are the briefs, prompt and AI output.
Step 1: Their standing brief input
We are a 35-person recruitment business in the North West. Our clients are growing employers who hire through us, and also the candidates we place. People know us as straightforward and quick to respond. We never ask our AI tools to share one client’s or candidate’s information with another, provide employment law advice or quote fees before they are agreed. Work from the information we provide first. If you use anything else, say where it came from. If you are unsure, or the information doesn’t cover it, say so. A person checks everything before it is used.
Step 2: Their task brief input
Search only within the Client Letters and Proposals folders on the shared drive. Do not search personal drives or email. Return the original wording together with the source file and date. Do not rewrite it unless asked. The consultant using the content must compare it with the source document.
Step 3: The prompt input
Find the letter where we told a client what happens when a candidate withdraws after accepting an offer, from within the last two years. Return the relevant passage exactly as found, together with the source file and date.
Step 4: Checking the AI output
The AI outputs
------------------------------------------------------- I found two letters in Client Letters covering this topic, dated 9 May 2025 and 2 February 2026. Nothing relevant was found in Proposals. The wording differs, so I have returned the newer version and highlighted the difference in the older version. I can’t tell which version reflects your current process
“If a candidate withdraws after accepting an offer, we notify you the same day and restart the search on the same terms. Candidates previously shortlisted are contacted first. A revised timetable is agreed within two working days.”
Also found: Client Letters / Letter_Candidate withdrawal_09.05.2025.docx
This version says “within a week” rather than “within two working days” and does not mention previously shortlisted candidates.
The consultant compares the text with the original document, confirms the current process and reuses the wording.
Not sure what your business should hand to AI, and what should always stay with people?
Practical AI guardrails for UK SMEs is a simple starting point, with ready-to-use guidance for legal, accountancy, recruitment and consultancy businesses.
