Getting Better Answers: Prompt Tips
The AI Research Assistant can do a lot, but the quality of your answers depends partly on how you ask. These tips will help you get more useful, accurate, and relevant responses.The Golden Rule: Be Specific
The more specific your question, the better your answer.| Vague Question | Specific Question |
|---|---|
| ”Tell me about Tesla" | "What are Tesla’s gross margins and how have they changed over the last 3 years?" |
| "Is Apple good?" | "What are the bull and bear arguments for Apple at its current valuation?" |
| "What about dividends?" | "Which S&P 500 stocks have increased dividends for 25+ consecutive years?” |
7 Tips for Better Questions
1. Use Ticker Symbols
Ticker symbols are unambiguous. Company names can be confusing.- ✓ “What’s AAPL’s P/E ratio?”
- ✗ “What’s Apple’s P/E ratio?” (Works, but less precise)
- ✓ “Compare GOOGL and MSFT on profit margins”
- ✗ “Compare Google and Microsoft” (Google could mean Alphabet Class A or C shares)
2. Specify Time Periods
Financial data is time-dependent. Tell the AI what period you care about.- ✓ “What was Amazon’s revenue growth from 2020 to 2024?”
- ✓ “How have Netflix’s margins changed over the last 5 years?”
- ✓ “What was Tesla’s gross margin last quarter?”
- ✗ “What’s Amazon’s revenue growth?” (Which period?)
3. Ask for Comparisons
Comparative analysis is often more useful than looking at one stock in isolation.- “Compare Costco and Walmart on operating margins”
- “How does AMD’s valuation compare to Nvidia and Intel?”
- “Rank the big banks by return on equity”
- “Which has grown faster: Microsoft’s cloud or Amazon’s?“
4. Request Specific Metrics
If you know what metric you want, ask for it directly. Valuation: P/E, P/S, P/B, EV/EBITDA, PEG ratio Profitability: Gross margin, operating margin, net margin, ROE, ROA, ROIC Growth: Revenue growth, earnings growth, free cash flow growth Financial Health: Debt-to-equity, current ratio, interest coverage Example: “What’s NVDA’s EV/EBITDA compared to its 5-year average?“5. Ask for Both Sides
Avoid confirmation bias by asking for balanced analysis.- “What are the bull and bear cases for [stock]?”
- “What are the biggest risks facing [company]?”
- “What could go wrong with this investment thesis?”
- “What are analysts who are bearish on [stock] saying?“
6. Use Follow-Up Questions
The AI remembers your conversation. Build on previous answers instead of starting over. Effective follow-up sequence:You: Give me an overview of Nvidia’s business. You: What are their profit margins? You: How does that compare to AMD? You: What’s driving the difference? You: What are the main risks to Nvidia’s margins?Each follow-up drills deeper without repeating context.
7. Specify the Format You Want
Tell the AI how you want information presented.- “Give me a quick summary in 3 bullet points”
- “Explain this like I’m new to investing”
- “Create a comparison table of these 5 stocks”
- “Walk me through this step by step”
- “Give me the detailed version with numbers”
Power Prompts to Try
For Stock Analysis
For Portfolio Analysis
For Learning
For Screening
What to Do When Answers Aren’t Helpful
If the answer is too general
Add more specifics to your question:- Include ticker symbols
- Specify time periods
- Name the exact metrics you want
- Ask for numbers, not just descriptions
If the answer seems wrong
- Ask the AI to show its sources or data
- Try rephrasing the question
- Ask about a specific metric directly to verify
- Check the data on the stock page yourself
- Report the issue using the feedback button
If the AI won’t answer
The AI declines certain questions for good reasons:- It won’t give buy/sell recommendations (regulatory compliance)
- It won’t predict specific future prices (nobody can)
- It won’t provide personalized advice (requires knowing your full situation)
If you hit your query limit
Free accounts have weekly limits. You can:- Wait for your limit to reset (Mondays)
- Upgrade to Pro for unlimited queries
- Use the stock pages and screener, which don’t count against your chat limit
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Don’t ask the AI to predict the future- ✗ “Where will AAPL be in 6 months?”
- ✓ “What factors could affect AAPL’s stock price over the next year?”
- ✗ “Should I put my 401k in this stock?”
- ✓ “What are the risks of having a concentrated position in one stock?”
- ✗ “Is this a good investment for me?”
- ✓ “What type of investor would find this stock attractive, and why?”
- ✗ “What do you think about it?” (What’s “it”?)
- ✓ “What do you think about Tesla’s current valuation?”