Prompts in Microsoft Copilot: Best Practices 

What is a prompt? 

A prompt is a way to communicate with digital assistants, such as Copilot or ChatGPT. It’s a short piece of text that clearly indicates what you expect from the AI language model. Whether you want it to create, summarize, or edit something, your prompt keeps everything on track. The secret to a good prompt? Keep it simple and to the point. That way, Large Language Models (LLMs) will understand you better, and you’ll get exactly what you need. Don’t be afraid to get creative with Copilot’s capabilities to arrive at a good answer! In this article, you’ll discover how to prompt efficiently and innovatively in Microsoft Copilot.  

There are all kinds of prompts you can use, depending on what you want to achieve or what task you need to complete:  

• Learning About Projects and Concepts: “What is [Project X], and who are the key people working on it?”  
• Edit text: “Check these product launch assumptions for inconsistencies”  
• Transforming Documents: “Turn this FAQ document into a 10-slide onboarding guide” 
• Summarizing Information “Write a summary of this [presentation]” 
• Creating Engaging Content: “Create a value proposition for [product x]”  
• Making Up for Lost Points: “Provide a summary of the updates and action items for [Project X]”  

Differences Between Prompts in Copilot and Prompts in ChatGPT 

Both ChatGPT and Copilot are powerful AI language models that can help you generate text. But how they’re used and integrated with other tools is what makes them unique and sets them apart. They both operate based on prompts, but Copilot goes a step further by seamlessly integrating with Microsoft 365 applications and internal data from your organization. This provides a more personalized experience. 

While ChatGPT is widely applicable for general text generation, Copilot takes it a step further. It can extract information from your company, recognize it, and convert it into tasks within the Microsoft environment. The prompts you give Copilot lead to actions that go beyond just text generation: they can help automate tasks, analyze data, and even generate charts—all within the familiar environment of Microsoft 365. Microsoft is actively rolling out Copilot across all its applications, including Microsoft Customer Insights, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, Microsoft Power Platform, and many more. 

Important: Large language models (LLMs) are designed to predict and generate words and phrases. It is therefore always wise to check the answers you receive from these AI models for any inaccuracies or biases and to verify them against reliable sources. 

How do I write a good prompt in Copilot? 

The Basics of Writing a Good Prompt in Copilot 

According to Microsoft, a good prompt in Microsoft Copilot consists of four basic elements: goal, context, source, and expectation.  

• Purpose: What kind of response do you expect from Copilot?  
• Context: Why do you need this, and who is involved? 
• Source: What sources of information or examples is Copilot allowed to use? 
• Expectations: How would you like Copilot to respond in order to best meet your expectations? 

A Deeper Dive into the Basics  

If you want to make your Microsoft Copilot prompt truly powerful, it’s essential to delve deeper into the four basic components. By better understanding and refining these elements, you can make the most of Copilot and improve the quality of the conversation. Use the following building blocks to continue crafting the perfect prompt. 

• Role Definition: Define the role and the corresponding area of expertise that Copilot should use as a basis.  
• Task Description: Tell Copilot exactly what you want it to do for you. Provide all the details accurately, be clear, and use language that’s easy to understand. 
• Context: Provide as much relevant context as possible, such as the target audience, products, services, reasons for the prompt, locations, resources, or other relevant details.  
• Specify the response format: How would you like Copilot to respond? Would you prefer a list, step-by-step instructions, a detailed explanation, or a short and concise answer? 
• Set Limits: Limit the style, tone of voice, and phrasing that should be avoided, or limit the length of the response. 
• Give examples: Examples help Copilot provide a similar response. Be sure to include the example in your prompt.  

Sample prompt for a sales manager:  

“You are a sales manager at a computer company. Write a sales pitch for the latest line of high-end gaming laptops. The pitch should highlight powerful specifications, such as the latest generation of graphics cards and processors, as well as the cooling systems that deliver an optimal gaming experience. Your target audience is the gaming community in and around Ghent. The tone of voice should be energetic and persuasive, with a focus on your technical expertise and gaming performance. Avoid generic sales talk and ensure that the benefits are clearly communicated. The pitch should not exceed 200 words and will be used in marketing campaigns.”  

This example prompt highlights all the essential elements of an effective prompt: it defines the user’s role, states the expected task, provides context, specifies the response format, sets limits, and provides clear guidance on the desired output.  

Keep the conversation going and don't stop at your prompt 

With the right ingredients for a strong prompt, you have a powerful tool at your disposal to help Copilot provide the most relevant answer. But it doesn’t stop there. After you’ve provided a good prompt, it’s important to keep the conversation going to get an even better answer on specific points. You can do this by:  

• Generating Ideas for Content: Start with broader requests and then provide specific details about the content. 
• Insights from Meetings: Ask for a summary of a meeting, and then ask for more information about what you specifically want to know.  
• Assistance with storytelling: Ask Copilot to write a story, and then guide it by providing specific and relevant details. 
• Gain insights: Request a summary of a case file and then ask relevant questions to gain deeper insights.  
• Translate: Ask Copilot to translate sentences, and then ask for more context or for a regional dialect. 
• Troubleshooting Technical Issues: Describe a technical problem and ask for step-by-step guidance.  

Tips to Keep in Mind When Prompting 

• Be aware of Copilot's limitations. Copilot is limited to your current conversation, so please provide as many details as possible to get the most relevant answer. 
• Be professional. Using polite language improves Copilot's response. 
• Use quotation marks. Enclose the text you want Copilot to generate, modify, or replace in quotation marks. This will help Copilot understand your question better. 
• New topic, new conversation. Avoid interruptions or overlaps, and start a new chat when you ask Copilot about a new topic.  
• Clear communication. Be clear, and pay attention to punctuation, grammar, and capitalization so that Copilot can understand your question correctly.  
• Retrieve files or people. Use “/” in Copilot to refer to a specific person, document, meeting, or other topic.  

Document Length Limits in Copilot  

Although Copilot does not explicitly state it, it does impose limits on the size of the documents you include in your prompts. For optimal performance, it is recommended to limit documents to a maximum of 20 pages or approximately 15,000 words. Although Copilot accepts references to documents of any size, there are limits to the amount of text it can process at one time. For longer documents, Copilot focuses only on the first part. 

So how can you use longer documents in Copilot?  

There are two solutions: split it up or summarize it. You can divide your document into smaller sections and feed them to Copilot one at a time. Or you can summarize sections of your document separately in Copilot. 

Do’s and Don’ts for Prompting in Copilot  

Creating the perfect prompt is sometimes an art in itself. Discover the best dos and don'ts for prompts in Microsoft Copilot. By following these guidelines, you can improve your communication with Copilot and increase your chances of getting more relevant answers.  

Do's for Prompting

• Structure and Order: Structure your prompts carefully. Copilot places more emphasis on the later parts of a prompt, so place the most important elements—such as specific files or sources—at the end of your prompt.  
• Positive Instructions: Tell them what it should do, rather than what it shouldn't do. 
• Repeat for accuracy: The first result isn't always the best answer. Change your prompt and let Copilot generate a new answer.  
• Clear and specific: Provide specific instructions by specifying the objective, context, source, and expectations. 
• Conversation: Keep the conversation going to generate more relevant answers and let the AI discover your preferences.  
• Give examples: Help Copilot provide a better answer by providing specific keywords or phrases to guide it as it writes a text. 
• Check for accuracy: Copilot is still an AI model. So always check Copilot's answers for accuracy, grammar, and style.  
• Provide details: Include contextual details in your prompt, such as colleagues, topics, details that have already been established, or planned actions. 
• Politeness: Improve your collaboration with Copilot by always communicating politely and professionally. 

Don’ts When Prompting

• Don't be vague: Avoid vague prompts that could lead to inaccurate answers. 
• Do not post inappropriate or unethical content: Please adhere to ethical standards and legal regulations in your prompts.  
• Do not give conflicting instructions: This causes confusion and affects the quality of Copilot's response. 
• Avoid interruptions: Don't switch to a new topic abruptly.  
• Do not use informal language: Use professional language; avoid slang, jargon, dialects, or informal language.  
• Don't rely solely on Copilot: Copilot is still an LLM, so don't blindly trust its output; be sure to consult reliable sources. 
• Do not ask for help with illegal activities: Copilot always adheres to ethical and legal guidelines.  

Sample prompts to use in Copilot   

Prompts for Copilot in Teams  

• “Summarize our team’s discussion on /[topic] during our meeting today.” 
• “Identify the key points from our /[meeting].”
• “What’s the latest from /[person’s name], organized by emails, chats, and files?”
• “Make a list of unresolved issues from our team regarding /[topic]” 
• “Are there any action items from /[meeting] for me?” 
• “I’m late for the Teams meeting—was my name mentioned at all?”  

Prompts for Copilot in Word  

• “Rewrite the second part of the ride report to make it more concise.”  
• “Revise the document to make it more engaging and persuasive.” 
• “Summarize the main findings of the /[document].” 
• “Create a standard template for customer feedback reports.”  
• “Check this document for consistency in terminology.”  

Prompts for Copilot in Excel  

• “Remove duplicates from [Column A]” 
• “Use the color scales to visualize data trends in the /[table].”  
• “Summarize the customer feedback scores using a pivot table.”  
• “Compare website traffic over the past 6 months using a line chart.”  
• “Combine the first names and last names from Column E and Column F.” 

Prompts for Copilot in PowerPoint  

• “Create a sales presentation for Client X based on /[document]” 
• “Generate a visual representation of [topic]” 
• “Rearrange my slides to improve the flow or coherence.” 
• “Create an interactive slide with clickable buttons or hyperlinks.” 
• “Add a slide about the benefits of our latest product.”  

If you're looking for extra inspiration or sample prompts, check out the Microsoft Copilot Lab. Here you'll find a collection of prompts you can use to explore Copilot and get the most out of it. 

Join the Copilot Community on Reddit!  

Are you curious about the latest developments and want to deepen your knowledge of Microsoft Copilot? The Copilot Community on Reddit is where enthusiasts come together to share insights, information, prompts, and new updates. It’s a platform where you can not only learn how to get the most out of Copilot but also share your own insights. Visit the Reddit Community and join in on lively discussions.