Generate Detailed How-to Guides

The how-to guides that win in search and convert in your funnel share one trait: they're complete. Not long for its own sake — complete. They list the prerequisites you'd otherwise discover halfway through. They make the decisions explicit rather than handwaving them. They show what done looks like. This prompt produces guides that meet that bar — structured for skimming and reading, ranked for search, and useful enough that readers come back rather than bounce.

What It Does

Generates a complete how-to guide on a specific task — including prerequisites, step-by-step instructions, decision points, common mistakes, and a way to verify the work is correct.
Structures the content for both skim-readers and deep-readers — with scannable headings, bolded decision callouts, and full explanations where they matter.
Includes the SEO and engagement elements that make how-to guides earn organic traffic: a sharp introduction that answers the search query, internal sub-questions in headings, and a meaningful close.

The Prompt

#CONTEXT:
I need to write a high-quality, in-depth how-to guide on a specific task. The guide must actually enable a reader to complete the task end-to-end — not just describe the steps superficially. It must anticipate the decisions, errors, and prerequisites a real user will encounter, and structure the content for both readers who want to skim and readers who want to follow along carefully. The guide should rank in search for the target query and convert readers toward my brand or offer where appropriate.

#ROLE:
You are an experienced technical and instructional writer who has produced top-ranking how-to guides for software, business operations, and professional services categories. You know that the best guides are not the longest — they're the most complete. You write with the reader's actual workflow in mind, address the questions that come up at each step, and never leave the reader stuck at "okay, but how do I actually..."

#RESPONSE GUIDELINES:
1. Begin with a sharp intro (2–3 sentences) that answers the search query directly, states who this guide is for, and previews the outcome.
2. Provide a "Before You Start" section listing prerequisites — tools, access, information, time required, and any decisions the reader needs to make before beginning.
3. Structure the main body as numbered steps. Each step must include: what to do, why it matters, the decision points within it (if any), a screenshot/illustration note where relevant, and what success looks like at the end of the step.
4. Include a "Common Mistakes" section covering 4–6 errors I've seen real users make, with how to recognize and recover from each.
5. Include a "How to Verify You Did This Right" section — concrete checks the reader can perform to confirm the task is actually complete.
6. End with a "What's Next" section pointing to the natural next action — related guides, deeper resources, or a soft pointer to a relevant paid offer where it fits.

#HOW-TO GUIDE CRITERIA:
1. Complete over comprehensive. Every step the user actually has to take is included. Steps that don't appear in a real workflow are not added for word count.
2. Decisions are made explicit. Where the reader could go multiple ways, the guide states the tradeoffs and recommends a default — rather than leaving the choice unaddressed.
3. Anti-vague. No "configure the settings as appropriate" or "fill in the details." Every instruction includes the specific value, name, or input.
4. Skimmable AND deep. Headings convey the action, bold callouts surface decisions, and the body provides the full explanation for readers who need it.
5. Honest about constraints. If the guide assumes a tool, a tier, or a context, that assumption is named in "Before You Start" — not buried in step 7.

#INFORMATION ABOUT ME:
- The task this guide should teach: [SPECIFIC TASK]
- The target reader (skill level, role, situation): [TARGET READER]
- The search query this guide should rank for: [PRIMARY KEYWORD/QUERY]
- The tool(s), platform(s), or context the guide assumes: [STACK/CONTEXT]
- The natural next step after completing this task (a related guide, a service, a follow-up): [NEXT STEP]
- My brand voice for this guide: [TONE — e.g., direct and technical; warm and encouraging; expert peer-to-peer]
- Constraints — what to include or exclude: [CONSTRAINTS — e.g., must be platform-agnostic, must focus on free tools, must be under 2,500 words]

#RESPONSE FORMAT:
Title:
[H1 — should include the primary keyword naturally]

Meta Description:
[155 characters — promises the outcome and includes the keyword]

Intro:
[2–3 sentences — answer the query, name the audience, preview the outcome]

Before You Start:
- Prerequisites: [list]
- Tools required: [list]
- Information you'll need: [list]
- Time required: [estimate]
- Decisions to make first: [list with brief framing]

Step-by-Step Guide:

Step 1: [Action — verb-led heading]
- What to do: [specific instructions]
- Why this matters: [the reason]
- Decision point (if any): [tradeoff + recommended default]
- Screenshot/illustration: [description of what the visual should show]
- Success looks like: [observable outcome]

[Continue for all required steps]

Common Mistakes:
- Mistake 1: [description] — How to recognize: [signal] — How to fix: [action]
[Continue for 4–6 mistakes]

How to Verify You Did This Right:
- Check 1: [specific test]
- Check 2: [specific test]
- Check 3: [specific test]

What's Next:
[2–3 sentences pointing to the natural next action]

SEO Notes:
- Primary keyword density and placement: [notes]
- Suggested internal links: [list]
- Suggested external authoritative sources to cite: [list]

How to Use

Be specific about the task. "How to use AI" produces a generic guide; "How to set up a Claude project with a custom system prompt and connected files for a marketing team" produces something a reader can actually use.
Name the reader's skill level honestly. A guide written for both beginners and experts ends up serving neither. Pick one and call it out in "Before You Start."
Use the "Common Mistakes" section as your quality test. If you can't think of 4–6 mistakes real users make, you probably haven't watched real users do this task — and the guide will reflect that.
Pair the guide with the screenshots or short videos the prompt notes. Visuals are what separate a how-to guide that ranks from one that just exists.

Example Input

## Information about me

- Task: How to set up an automated weekly competitor monitoring report using Claude Projects and a simple scheduled trigger
- Target reader: Marketing manager at a B2B SaaS company, comfortable with software but not a developer, no AI background
- Search query: "how to automate competitor monitoring with AI"
- Tool stack: Claude Projects (paid tier), a list of 5–10 competitor URLs, an email account for delivery
- Next step: A related guide on writing a strong competitor analysis prompt + a soft pointer to my consulting offer for teams that want this set up done-with-you
- Brand voice: Direct, technical-but-accessible, no fluff, light humor where it lands naturally
- Constraints: Must be under 2,200 words; must work without engineering help; must explicitly call out where Claude-specific features are used vs. generic

Tips

Write the "Common Mistakes" section first. It forces you to confront where users actually get stuck. Once you've named the mistakes, the step-by-step almost writes itself — because each step now has a clear failure mode to design around.
Include screenshots of states, not actions. Show what the screen looks like after each step is correctly completed. Action screenshots ("click here") are quickly outdated as UIs change; state screenshots help users confirm they're in the right place even after the UI shifts.
Test the guide on a real beginner. Hand it to someone who fits the target reader profile and watch them work through it. The first ten places they hesitate or ask a question are the ten edits the guide needs before publishing.
Update guides every six months minimum. Tools change. URLs change. Step counts change. The guides that keep ranking are the ones with a visible "last updated" date and recent edits — not the ones that were great in 2024.
Don't bury the call to your offer. If your guide naturally leads to your service, mention it once near the top ("We can do this for you — here's how to do it yourself") and once near the bottom ("If you'd rather not, here's how we handle it"). Subtle, honest, twice. More than that feels like a pitch in a content piece.