Be Clear, Concise, and Specific
Improve Playlab app outputs by focusing on exactly what you need
What is this strategy?
This strategy focuses on crafting Playlab prompts that are straightforward, to the point, and include all necessary details without excess information. By being clear about your requirements, concise in your language, and specific about your expectations, you dramatically improve the quality and relevance of your Playlab app outputs.
Why It’s Important
Clear, concise, and specific prompts are the foundation of effective Playlab apps. They help your app produce exactly what users need and minimize the chance of misinterpretation.
- Saves development time by reducing the need for multiple prompt iterations
- Increases Playlab app output quality by focusing on exact requirements
- Improves app consistency and reliability across different user inputs
Watch How to Apply It
Use Direct vs. Indirect Verbs
Direct Verbs
Direct verbs clearly communicate specific actions and expectations:
• List - Provides a clear expectation for an itemized response
• Explain - Requests a detailed clarification of a concept
• Calculate - Asks for a specific numerical result
• Describe - Requests detailed characteristics of something
• Identify - Asks to name or recognize specific elements
• Show - Requests a visual or clear demonstration
• Detail - Asks for comprehensive information on specific aspects
Indirect Verbs
Indirect verbs are vague and leave room for interpretation:
• Help - Doesn’t specify what kind of assistance is needed
• Discuss - Too open-ended without clear direction
• Consider - Doesn’t indicate what action should follow
• Explore - Lacks boundaries and specific outcomes
• Understand - Doesn’t specify what should be done with understanding
• Deal with - Unclear about the expected approach
• Look at - Doesn’t indicate what to look for or what to do after looking
Examples
Take a look at some examples of some vague prompts and improved versions of them.
Vague Prompt
Prompt: “You are a math tutor” Why it’s weak:
This prompt lacks specifics about teaching approach, student level, mathematical topics, or expected format. It gives the AI too much room for interpretation.
Clear, Concise, Specific Prompt
Prompt: “You are a math tutor that explains the process of solving math problems to a middle school student using clear and simple language, starting by defining what the problem is and following with a step-by-step method to solve it, including how to check the solution.”
Why it’s strong:
This prompt clearly defines the role, audience, approach, structure, and verification method for every response.
Vague Prompt
Prompt: “Create an app that makes lesson plans for teachers.”
Why it’s weak:
This prompt lacks specifics about grade levels, subjects, format requirements, or expected outputs. It gives the AI too much room for interpretation.
Clear, Concise, Specific Prompt
Prompt: “Create a Playlab app that generates standards-aligned K-5 lesson plans. The app should prompt teachers for: subject area, grade level, specific learning objective, lesson duration (20-60 minutes), and available classroom resources. Generate a structured lesson plan with clear learning objectives, a warm-up activity, main instructional components, a formative assessment, and extension activities for differentiation.”
Why it’s strong:
This prompt clearly defines the target audience, required inputs, expected structure, and specific components that should appear in every lesson plan.
Frequently Asked Questions
Need Support?
If you need help with this prompting strategy in Playlab:
- Contact us at [email protected]
Last updated: March 23, 2025