Using ChatGPT

Getting started

ChatGPT is an AI assistant made by OpenAI. Open chatgpt.com in a browser or install the app on your phone or computer, and sign up with your email or Google account.

There's a free plan and paid plans with more usage and features. The layout changes from time to time, so if something on your screen looks a little different from this course, look for the nearest match.

Everything starts in the message box at the bottom of the screen.

Ask focused questions

ChatGPT gives better answers to specific requests. Compare:

Tell me about marketing.

I sell handmade leather sandals on Instagram from Kano. Give me five
low-cost ways to get more customers this month, with one concrete
action for each. Keep it practical.

Three habits make a big difference:

• Say who it's for. "Explain it for a 15-year-old" or "for my boss, who has two minutes."
• Say what shape you want. A list, a table, a short email, three options.
• Give the facts it can't know. Your prices, your location, your deadline.

Refine instead of restarting

Treat the first answer as a draft and reply with changes in the same chat:

• "Shorter, please: five lines."
• "Point 3 won't work for us, we don't deliver. Replace it."
• "Turn this into a WhatsApp broadcast message."

If you want a fresh start on a new topic, open a new chat so the old conversation doesn't get mixed in.

Work with files and pictures

Use the attach button (a paperclip or +) to add a PDF, spreadsheet, document or photo. Then ask about it:

Here's our sales spreadsheet for the last three months. Which product
sold the most, and which month was weakest? Explain in plain English.

This is a photo of a handwritten price list. Type it out as a neat table.

For spreadsheets, check any important totals yourself in Excel or Google Sheets. ChatGPT usually gets them right, but not always.

Research with sources

When you need current information, such as news, prices or recent events, ask ChatGPT to search the web and show where the information came from. When it searches, it lists its sources as links.

Search the web: what are the main requirements to register a small
business name in Nigeria? Include the official source.

Open the sources and check them. For anything official, like regulations, fees or deadlines, the government or organisation's own website is the one to trust.

Tell it how you like to work

In the settings you can personalise ChatGPT: tell it about yourself and how you want answers written. For example:

I'm a final-year accounting student in Lagos. Use British English,
explain with Nigerian examples, and keep answers short unless I ask
for more detail.

After that, new chats start already knowing this. Look for Personalisation or Customise ChatGPT in the settings.

Try it

1. Open chatgpt.com and sign in.
2. Ask a focused question about something you're working on, with who it's for and what shape you want.
3. Reply once to improve the answer.
4. Ask a question that needs current information and ask it to search the web. Open one of the sources it gives.
5. Add a short description of yourself in the personalisation settings.