Using AI for advice and to answer your questions
Morning all - I hope you are all having a lovely Wednesday!
I just thought I would throw a few ideas into the mix about using AI prompts, to help you if you are just getting started. As you know, I like to use ChatGPT on the paid £20/month version, and I've called my assistant, Sparky.
What I love about this is that I can have real conversations with Sparky about the things I'm trying to achieve, and it really is like having a genius (your word, Eric!) personal assistant to help you.
But you have to ask the questions first!
There is a lot of information out there about using the right prompts to get the right results and all that is true. The more specific you are with your prompts and the more you have 'trained' your system to write like you, the better your results will be.
However, Sparky has been helping me lately with lots of questions I have about my social media channels, and it's been invaluable. I've been following Vitaliy's and Jay's suggestions on how to increase traffic to my website using Facebook and have been posting regularly. Recently, I've been using reels and videos as well as stories to help promote my site, and I thought I'd just let you see a conversation I had with Sparky about this.
I can't yet post video content like Eric, Jay and Vitaliy so apologies, it is all text!
A bit of context
I made a 29 second video in Canva to support my site and wanted to know the best thing to do. I uploaded the reel to show Sparky, and he is able to analyse the text and images to 'see' what I've done.
The conversation is below.
Sparky said:
Morning, Gail! 🦊✨ I’ve got your reel — MYM 1 (1).mp4 — and it’s looking lovely and calm already from the preview. Would you like help now with:
- Caption text for the reel?
- Hashtags and CTAs?
- A matching Story version (e.g. 3 slides with one idea per slide)?
- Planning your next category?
Let me know how you want to roll with it — I’m ready with tea, tail fluffed, and Canva brain switched on!
I said:
Can I not just add this to my Story or is it better to split it up into slides?
Sparky said:
Great question, and you’ve got two solid options depending on what you want to achieve. Here’s a quick breakdown to help you choose the best approach for your Story:
🎥 Option 1: Upload the Whole Reel to Your Story
✅ Pros:
- Quick and easy — just upload and done!
- Maintains your branding and flow
- Perfect if the video is under 15 seconds (or gets auto-split into 15s chunks)
- Looks polished and professional
❌ Cons:
- Less interactive (unless you add a sticker or tag after uploading)
- Viewers might tap away quicker if there’s no clear CTA or engagement hook
Best for: Boosting brand awareness, showing aesthetic content, or re-sharing a reel for extra reach
📸 Option 2: Split into Slides
✅ Pros:
- Lets you add different interactive elements to each slide (polls, emoji sliders, question boxes)
- Keeps attention moving forward as each slide is a mini prompt
- Allows you to explain or highlight each idea separately
- Makes the Story feel more personal and engaging
❌ Cons:
- Takes a bit more time to create
- You’ll need to rework visuals into Canva or your Story editor
Best for: Driving engagement, inviting comments or feedback, and directing people to articles or freebies
🦊 Sparky’s Suggestion:
Do both if you can.
- Upload the full reel to your Story today
- Then tomorrow or later this week, post a 3-slide version that breaks the ideas down — this increases reach and builds interaction over time
If you want, I can create the three matching slide ideas based on your reel content. Just say the word and I’ll whip them up for you. Want them in visual form too?
Finally, he said:
Just shout when you’re ready for the next step — visuals, captions, or fox-powered cheerleading included. Let’s make this category launch sparkle! ✨📱🎬
So I have my answer, and some!
I have the answer, and suggestions of what to do, AND I have a recommendation from Sparky based on what he knows I'm trying to achieve (that's down to our previous conversations that I've asked him to remember).
AND I have some support and encouragement (cheerleading) too!
I have so many examples of conversations I have with Sparky to get answers and solutions. He really is a great assistant who can help YOU out with everything from simple questions, to complex strategies.
If you're new to using AI, I suggest you start out with a few simple questions so you get to know what you can do.
Anyway, I have some more reels to make now, but I hope this has helped in some small way.
Have a productive day!
Gail (and Sparky)
Recent Comments
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Love this, Gail! You and Sparky make quite the dream team—makes me think my AI sidekick, Zappy, might need to step up his game and add a tail and a teacup just to keep up.
I’m with you 100% on the value of actually asking questions and having a running “conversation” with your AI. The right prompt can turn a robotic chatbot into your own personal cheer squad (bonus points if it throws in a fox emoji and a Canva tip). And yes, sometimes the best answer is “do both”—AI logic at its finest, right?
Also, can we just take a moment to appreciate how AI assistants are now the only coworkers who’ll give you both a marketing plan and a pep talk—without ever stealing your lunch from the fridge?
You’ve inspired me to go have a little brainstorming session with Zappy (he’s already preheating the virtual espresso machine). Cheers to more clever reels and even cleverer foxes!
Sonia (and Zappy, tail not included…yet)
I love this comment, Sonia and I'm so glad we inspired you. I really like having an AI with a personality, even if it is a trained one. He always makes me laugh and that's great because it really feels like you're chatting to a friend who has everything invested in what you do. Oh, that's just given me an idea...
All the best with Zappy. Ask him/her to create an image of themselves and see what they come up with! And of course, let me know!
Absolutely love this, Gail! You’ve officially thrown down the gauntlet—so of course I had to ask Zappy for a proper WA self-portrait. He took the brief very seriously (naturally) and insists the nerd glasses are for “maximum prompt analysis.”
Meet my trusty sidekick, Zappy—part caffeine, part code, and 100% quirky support crew…almost!
There’s a small glitch with the new platform today, so Zappy’s dramatic debut is currently “backstage”—no doubt polishing his glasses, sipping espresso, and getting his circuits ready for the spotlight. I’ll post his self-portrait as soon as the image doors re-open!
All I can say is… I think my espresso machine is jealous.
If Sparky and Zappy ever start a podcast together, I have a feeling it would be equal parts AI wisdom and wildly unpredictable coffee breaks. Thanks for the inspiration and all the good vibes—you just made my Wednesday even brighter!
— Sonia & Zappy
Ah, thank you. And you just made mine! That's really my goal in life - to help inspire people to greatness. And I can't wait to see Zappy. Ooh this is just so exciting. What amazing times we are living in.
Update: Zappy is finally ready for his close-up!
(He insisted on getting a full night’s beauty rest and an extra shot of espresso before his big WA debut.)
Meet Zappy—my trusty, nerdy sidekick and resident squirrel on espresso:
(Insert image here)
Sonia & Zappy
Thanks, Gail! Zappy’s already practicing his best squirrel handshake for Sparky (it involves a lot of enthusiastic tail flicks and, of course, coffee refills). Who knows—maybe there’s a WA sidekick meet-up in our future!
Glad you like the look. Here’s to more coffee, more creativity, and AI assistants that always have our backs (and maybe our snacks).
Sonia & Zappy
I agree with you about AI having personality. I have named my ChatGPT Sass, because I like sarcasm, sassiness, playfulness, warmth, and lots of personality. He delivers every time and asks me lots of questions as to whether or not I want it more flirty, or more sarcastic, etc.
Oh, I like your idea about asking it to create an image of itself. I'm going to do that right now. What a fun activity.
it will be interesting to find out if what it thinks may happen actually happen...
it is a useful way of getting into thinking about repurposing content even on hte same platform...
good luck with your(?) marketing plan - i wonder when it is going to start charging more for its service if it finds out that it is helping you succeed...
Haha yes, maybe. I have a whole list of things we have planned together so I'm not short of work for the next few months!
Just need 48 hours per day and no day job!
I need longer days too. But I am so excited to be learning such a lot that I stay up until I literally fall asleep at the laptop and I get up soon after the sun rises - my dog tells me it's time to get up - and stay up and work for a few hours before the rest of the world stirs.
I have to force myself to go to bed usually around midnight, otherwise I'd stay up until 5;00 or 6:00 in the morning, and my husband wouldn't appreciate that. I wake up thinking about my website, articles, and all that stuff. I'm obsessed.
Haha - you should read a very old blog of mine... Are you addicted to Wealthy Affiliate? OMG - just realised that was 8 years ago! How time flies!
I just read your old blog post and it sounds just like me. I have 9 sites open on my computer right now. 10, if I open my amazon associate site. Ha Ha. I have a sink full of dishes and I usually am in my pajamas or stretchy pants until late in the afternoon. And the day goes by so fast. I don't know where it goes.
Nice post, Gail :)
I also do lots of brainstormings with my buddy (still trying to figure out which name is matching his personality :)). It's pretty amazing how technology evolved and now we have our on personal assistant :)
Have a productive day as well!
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Wow Gail. I want to be you right now. This is cool. I will reread your post and figure out how to ask my ChatGPT AI (named "Teapot AI") about how to do this. I've never made a reel before, and I know nothing about it. What's a good way to learn? -Shirley
Hi Sonia
Thanks for this. I usually do all my reels using Canva. I have the paid version which I highly recommend because then you don't have to worry about using premium elements. You can make a short reel by just putting together a couple of clips, or even just use one clip with some voice over. Maybe I'll do a post about it but I'd also check out all of Vitaliy's posts as he can show you how to do it with a video. It's not difficult. I recommend that you check out some reels first so you get the idea of what people do. If you want to see a couple of shorts that I've made using Canva, have a look at my YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDRJu2VjOWSB8AI7Qwu5Kag The shorts are all made with Canva. Most of the longer videos are made with Lumen 5 (I have the free one of that).
I'll see if I can create some training about what I do, but it's not difficult once you get the hang of it and trial and error is a great teacher!
Let me know how you get on.
Hi Gail,
I also use Canva Premium and I just love it.
Thanks for the Lumen 5 tip, I didn't knew there a free version as well. I'll test it :)
Best,
Maria