Have an idea for a great start-up, but don’t know where to start? Here are a few AI prompts one can use to accelerate their planning—simply, copy and paste! However, please remember, AI should only assist with turning a messy idea into clear communication rather than overhauling creativity. Use AI wisely and responsibly.
1. Market Sizing & TAM Analysis
Act like a McKinsey-level market analyst. I need a Total Addressable Market (TAM) analysis for [company].
Please provide:
- Top-down approach: Start from global market then narrow to my segment
- Bottom-up approach: Calculate from unit economics x potential customers
- TAM, SAM, SOM breakdown with dollar figures
- Growth rate projections for the next 5 years (CAGR)
- Key assumptions behind each estimate
- Comparison to 3 analyst reports or market research firms
Format as an investor-ready market sizing slide with clear methodology.
Context: A summary of [company] is [define your company].
2. Competitive Landscape Deep Dive
Act like a senior strategy consultant at Bain & Company. I need a complete competitive landscape analysis for [company].
Please provide:
- Direct competitors: Top 10 players ranked by market share, revenue, and funding
- Indirect competitors: 5 adjacent companies that could enter this market
- For each competitor, analyze pricing model, key features, target audience, strengths, weaknesses, and recent strategic moves
- Market positioning map (price vs. value matrix)
- Competitive moats: What makes each player defensible
- White space analysis: Gaps no competitor is filling
- Threat assessment: Rate each competitor (low/medium/high threat)
Format as a structured competitive intelligence report with comparison tables.
Context: A summary of [company] is [define your company].
3. Customer Persona and Segmentation
Act like a world-class consumer research expert. I need deep customer personas for [company].
Please build 4 detailed personas, each with:
- Demographics: Age, income, education, location, job title
- Psychographics: Values, beliefs, lifestyle, personality traits
- Pain points: Top 5 frustrations they experience daily
- Goals & aspirations: What does success look like for them
- Buying behavior: How they discover, evaluate, and purchase products
- Media consumption: Where they spend time online and offline
- Objections: Top 3 reasons they’d say no to my product
- Trigger events: What moment makes them actively search for a solution
- Willingness to pay: Price sensitivity analysis per segment
Also provide: Segment sizing (% of total market) and prioritization matrix.
Context: A summary of [company] is [define your company].
4. Industry Trend Analysis
Act like a senior analyst at Goldman Sachs Research. I need a comprehensive trend report for [company].
Please provide:
- Macro trends: 5 global forces shaping this industry (economic, regulatory, technological, social, environmental)
- Micro trends: 7 emerging patterns within the industry from the last 12 months
- Technology disruptions: What new tech is changing the game and when it will hit mainstream
- Regulatory shifts: Upcoming legislation or policy changes to watch
- Consumer behavior changes: How buyer preferences are evolving
- Investment signals: Where smart money is flowing (VC deals, M&A, IPOs)
- Timeline: Map each trend to short-term (O-1yr), mid-term (1-3yr), and long-term (3-5yr)
- “So what” analysis: What each trend means for a company like mine
Format as a trend intelligence brief with impact ratings (1-10) for each trend.
Context: A summary of [company] is [define your company].
5. SWOT and Porter’s Five Forces
Act like a Harvard Business School strategy professor. I need a combined SWOT and Porter’s Five Forces analysis for [company].
For SWOT, provide:
- Strengths: 7 internal advantages with evidence
- Weaknesses: 7 internal limitations with honest assessment
- Opportunities: 7 external factors we can exploit
- Threats: 7 external factors that could harm us
- Cross-analysis: Match strengths to opportunities (SO strategy) and identify threat-weakness combos (WT risks)
For Porter’s Five Forces, analyze:
- Supplier power: Who are our key suppliers and how much leverage do they have
- Buyer power: How much negotiating power do our customers have
- Competitive rivalry: How intense is competition and what drives it
- Threat of substitution: What alternatives exist beyond direct competitors
- Threat of new entry: How easy is it for new players to enter
Rate each force (1-10) and provide overall industry attractiveness score.
Context: A summary of [company] is [define your company].
6. Pricing Strategy Analysis
You are a pricing strategy consultant who has worked with Fortune 500 companies. I need a comprehensive pricing analysis for [company].
Please provide:
- Competitor pricing audit: Map all competitor prices, tiers, and packaging
- Value-based pricing model: Calculate price based on customer value delivered
- Cost-plus analysis: Determine floor price from cost structure
- Price elasticity estimate: How sensitive is demand to price changes
- Psychological pricing tactics: Anchoring, charm pricing, and decoy strategies
- Tiering recommendation: Design 3 pricing tiers with feature allocation
- Discount strategy: When to discount, how much, and for whom
- Revenue projection: Model 3 pricing scenarios (aggressive, moderate, conservative)
- Monetization opportunities: Upsells, cross-sells, usage-based pricing
Format as a pricing strategy deck with specific dollar recommendations.
Context: A summary of [company] is [define your company].
7. Go-to-Market Strategy
Act like a Chief Strategy Officer who has launched 20+ products across B2B and B2C markets. I need a complete go-to-market plan for [company].
Please provide:
- Launch phasing: Pre-launch (60 days), Launch (week 1), Post-launch (90 days)
- Channel strategy: Rank the top 7 acquisition channels by expected ROI
- Messaging framework: Core value proposition, 3 supporting messages, proof points
- Content strategy: What content to create for each stage of the funnel
- Partnership opportunities: 5 strategic partners that could accelerate growth
- Budget allocation: How to split a marketing budget across channels
- KPI framework: 10 metrics to track with target benchmarks
- Risk mitigation: Top 5 launch risks and contingency plans
- Quick wins: 3 tactics that can generate traction within the first 14 days
Format as an actionable GTM playbook with timelines and owners.
Context: A summary of [company] is [define your company].
8. Customer Journey Mapping
Act like a customer experience strategist at a top consulting firm. I need a complete customer journey map for [company].
Please map every stage of the customer lifecycle:
- Awareness: How do they first discover us? What triggers the search?
- Consideration: What do they compare? What information do they need?
- Decision: What makes them convert? What almost stops them?
- Onboarding: First 7 days experience what builds or kills retention?
- Engagement: What keeps them coming back? Key activation moments?
- Loyalty: What turns users into advocates? Referral triggers?
- Churn: Why do they leave? Early warning signals?
For each stage provide:
- Customer actions, thoughts, and emotions
- Touchpoints (digital and physical)
- Pain points and friction moments
- Opportunities to delight
- Key metrics to track
- Recommended tools/tactics to optimize
Format as a detailed journey map with emotional curve visualization described in text.
Context: A summary of [company] is [define your company].
9. Financial Modeling and Unit Economics
Act like a VP of Finance at a high-growth startup. I need a complete unit economics and financial model for [company].
Please provide:
Unit economics breakdown:
- Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) by channel
- Lifetime Value (LTV) calculation with assumptions
- LTV:CAC ratio and payback period
- Gross margin per unit/customer
- Contribution margin analysis
3-year financial projection:
- Revenue model (monthly for year 1, quarterly for years 2-3)
- Cost structure breakdown (fixed vs. variable)
- Break-even analysis: when and at what volume
- Cash flow forecast with burn rate
- Sensitivity analysis: best case, base case, worst case
- Key assumptions table with justification for each assumption
- Benchmark comparison: How do my metrics compare to industry standards
- Red flags: What numbers should worry me and trigger action
Format as a financial model summary with clear tables and formulas.
My business: [Describe business model] and [Current revenue, costs, growth rate].
10. Risk Assessment and Scenario Planning
Act like a risk management partner at Deloitte. I need a comprehensive risk analysis and scenario plan for [company].
Please provide:
Risk identification: List 15 risks across these categories:
- Market risks (demand shifts, competition, pricing pressure)
- Operational risks (supply chain, talent, technology failures)
- Financial risks (cash flow, currency, funding gaps)
- Regulatory risks (compliance, policy changes, legal exposure)
- Reputational risks (PR crises, customer backlash, data breaches)
For each risk provide:
- Probability rating (1-5)
- Impact severity rating (1-5)
- Risk score (probability x impact)
- Early warning indicators
- Mitigation strategy
- Contingency plan if risk materializes
Scenario planning:
- Best case scenario: What goes right and what it looks like
- Base case scenario: Most likely outcome
- Worst case scenario: What could go wrong simultaneously
- Black swan scenario: The unlikely event that changes everything
- For each scenario: Revenue impact, timeline, and strategic response
Format as an executive risk report with a prioritized risk matrix.
Context: A summary of [company] is [define your company].
11. Market Entry and Expansion Strategy
Act like a global expansion strategist who has helped companies enter 30+ new markets. I need a market entry analysis for expanding [company].
Please provide:
Market attractiveness scoring:
- Market size and growth rate
- Competitive intensity
- Regulatory environment
- Customer accessibility
- Infrastructure readiness
- Score each factor (1-10) with weighted total
Entry mode analysis: Evaluate and recommend between:
- Direct entry (build from scratch)
- Partnership/joint venture
- Acquisition
- Licensing/franchise
- Digital-first entry
- Pros, cons, cost, and timeline for each
Localization requirements:
- Product/service adaptations needed
- Pricing adjustments for local purchasing power
- Cultural considerations for marketing
- Legal and compliance requirements
- Talent and operational needs
12-month entry roadmap: Month-by-month action plan with milestones. Investment requirement: Budget estimate with resource allocation. Success metrics: KPIs for first 6 months and first 12 months.
Context: A summary of [company] is [define your company].
12. Executive Strategy Synthesis
Act like a senior partner at McKinsey & Company presenting to a CEO. I need you to synthesize everything about [company]into one strategic recommendation.
Please provide:
Executive summary: 3-paragraph strategic overview a CEO can read in 2 minutes
- Current state assessment: Where the business stands today (be brutally honest)
- Strategic options: Present 3 distinct strategic paths forward:
Option A: Conservative/low-risk approach
Option B: Balanced growth approach
Option C: Aggressive/high-risk approach
For each: Expected outcome, investment required, timeline, key risks
- Recommended strategy: Your top pick with clear reasoning
- Priority initiatives: The 5 highest-impact actions to take in the next 90 days, ranked
- Resource requirements: People, money, and tools needed
- Decision framework: A simple matrix for making the next 10 strategic decisions
- “If I only had 1 hour” brief: The single most important insight and action
Format as a McKinsey-style strategy deck summary with clear recommendations and next steps.
Context: A summary of [company] is [define your company].
