Resource
Fix a Vague Prompt
'Make it good', 'be detailed', 'keep it interesting' — vague prompts get vague output. The fix is mechanical: replace every fuzzy word with a checkable instruction.
Rewrite a Research Prompt
'Research X and tell me what you find' returns a topic summary, not an answer. The rewrite adds the control a research ask needs: scope, criteria, and output shape.
Overview
Weak research prompts are unfalsifiable — 'find the best option', 'be thorough' — so the model returns a confident overview of everything and a recommendation of nothing. The rewrite makes the ask answerable: 'be thorough' becomes a coverage list you name, and the missing format, length, and exclusion lines become slots, so the result arrives as a decision input instead of an essay. This resource loads an open-ended research ask and applies the control-focused rewrite.
How to use this resource
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Rewrite with Add Output Control
'Be thorough and detailed' becomes a coverage slot; 'a good one' becomes success criteria; format, length, and exclusion lines appear.
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Name the coverage
List the 3–5 things the research must evaluate — pricing at your size, deliverability, integrations. That list is the question.
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Set the output shape
'Comparison table, then a one-paragraph recommendation' turns the result from reading material into a decision input.
Why This Works
- Named coverage criteria give the model something to be wrong about — that's what makes research checkable
- An output shape forces ranking and trade-offs instead of even-handed summary
- Exclusions ('no vendor marketing claims') cut the lowest-quality source of research filler
Best for
- Decision-support research with a real choice at the end
- Anyone whose research prompts return Wikipedia-shaped overviews
- Recurring vendor/tool evaluations
Not for
- Comparing an open vs scoped research prompt side by side — that's the Prompt Comparator
- Reviewing how a research prompt changed across edits — that's the Prompt Version Diff
Use cases
- Sharpening a research ask before spending a long model run
- Converting 'tell me what you find' into a decision-ready output spec
- Teaching the difference between a topic summary and an answer
FAQ
How do you rewrite 'be thorough and tell me what you find' into an answerable research prompt?
The Prompt Rewriter's Add Output Control turns "be thorough and detailed" into a named coverage slot and "we want to pick a good one" into explicit success criteria, then adds format, length, and exclusion lines. The rewritten prompt is what you run in your own assistant — pasting the vague version here doesn't itself produce the research.
Why does naming the coverage list matter for a vendor research prompt?
Because the coverage list is the question. The rewrite replaces "be thorough" with 3-5 things the research must evaluate — pricing at your size, deliverability, integrations — which gives the model something checkable to be wrong about. Paired with an output shape like "comparison table, then a one-paragraph recommendation," the result arrives as a decision input instead of an even-handed overview.
More resources from Prompt Rewriter
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Rewrite an AI Prompt to Get Better Output
The fastest fix for mediocre AI output is rewriting the prompt: vague words become concrete instructions, hedges become commitments, and missing elements get filled.
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Add Output Control to Any Prompt
Format, length, and exclusions are the three levers that make AI output land in usable shape. A rewrite shows how to retrofit them onto a prompt that has none.
Resources that pair well
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Compare Two Versions of a Prompt
See exactly what changed between v1 and v2 of a prompt — added, removed, and modified instructions, plus whether the revision reduced or introduced risk.
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Compare Two ChatGPT Prompts
A side-by-side way to decide between two ChatGPT prompt drafts — scored on clarity, specificity, output control, and risk instead of gut feeling.
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Prompt Cleanup Examples (Before & After)
A set of before-and-after examples showing exactly what prompt cleanup removes — and what it deliberately leaves alone.
Related tools
Tool
Prompt Rewriter
Rewrite a weak prompt into a stronger one — vague wording fixed, gaps filled, goal unchanged.