The fastest way to see the point of artificial intelligence is to watch it do a job you recognise. Below are real, everyday use cases from the library we build for clients, each with a ready-made prompt for Microsoft Copilot. Try them on your own work and judge the results for yourself. They are the same prompts we lean on ourselves; how EPX IT uses AI shows what they add up to.
These prompts assume the groundwork is done
Every prompt here is written for Microsoft Copilot, which works inside your own Microsoft environment, on files you already have permission to see. Most need the full Microsoft 365 Copilot licence, the paid add-on that works inside Outlook, Teams, Word and Excel and can search your own files, mail and meetings; the Copilot Chat included with Microsoft 365 covers web research and any file you give it directly. That is a very different thing from pasting company information into a free public tool. Before AI spreads across your business, you want the rules in place: what may go into which tool, a check on who can reach what before you switch on, and your people briefed. That groundwork is EPX AI Essentials, and it is why our clients can use prompts like these with confidence rather than crossed fingers. Never paste passwords, keys or other credentials into any AI tool.
Good prompts share the same four parts
You do not need to learn a new language, you need to be specific. In Google's UK research, only 37% of AI users had ever asked an AI to help them improve a prompt, which is a lot of value left on the table. The ready-made prompts below all follow the same shape, so they double as worked examples.
- Goal. Say what you want back: a summary, a draft, a table.
- Context. Give the background: who it is for, the tone, why you need it.
- Source. Point at the material to use: this document, this thread, the web.
- Expectations. Say the format and length: five bullets, a short email, one page.
