How I use ChatGPT to write PRDs as a Product Manager?
One thing that I’ve learned over the years is a well written PRD brings a lot more clarity to the team while solving specific customer problem and it also reduces back and forth between product & engineering teams.
Remember, this image?
That’s why most CPOs or VPs of Product share certain templates, and PMs have to mostly fill them with all the details.
Honestly, this helps in a couple of ways:
- PRDs follow certain standard practices.
- You don’t miss anything critical while writing PRDs.
- Reviewing PRDs for the leadership team also becomes easier.
But, it takes around 2–3 hours to write a comprehensive PRD covering all the scenarios and edge cases — and as PMs, we don’t have time :)
We’re always jumping from one meeting to another. I face this too, and it’s hard to get focused time without interruptions.
“Hey, can we connect for 5 mins over huddle?” or “Quick Huddle?”
[we are all in the same boat]
This is where AI tools helped me and we all know it will get better and better from here.
I’ve been using ChatGPT from almost the time when they launched it. Over time, I figured out a better way to use it for my day to day product manager tasks starting from crafting well written PRDs within 15–20 mins provided I already have all the necessary details.
Let’s jump to How I do this?
1. Create the PRD Template and Break It into 3–4 Parts
First, I start with a template and break it into different sections, such as:
- One-pager document
- Writing the Introduction or Objective section with Success Metrics, Estimated Impact etc.
- User Stories and Acceptance Criteria
- GTM (Go-to-Market)
2. Next, I Share the Template in ChatGPT with this prompt
Act as an expert Product Manager at <company_name> and help me write the PRD for <specific task in detail> by following this template. Let’s do it step by step, first we will focus on <part of PRD eg: Introduction> using the template below.
[More details about feature]
[Template]
I’ve noticed that including <company_name> provides more context in understanding the task better. You can also put more details around pod or team structure, such as-
Act as an expert Product Manager at Instagram working on the Feed charter..
3. Iterate if it Misses something
In certain cases you may need to go back and forth to refine specific parts. Alternatively, you can use the output as a reference rather than starting from a completely blank slate and make it your own. You will have to proof read everything before directly copying it because sometimes AI will just fill in random data confidently around Observation & Insights section.
Here is an example conversation where I played around “Recommendation feature of Zomato”
https://chatgpt.com/share/675d7ec6-0434-800f-92a0-07e105f88f20
Why This Method Works
Essentially, I’m doing three core things here:
- Providing as much context as possible in terms of the company, role, and product feature I’m working on, so the LLMs can follow a set of guidelines.
- Breaking the PRD into smaller chunks instead of asking it to generate everything at once. Models has limited context windows and it can hallucinate or take shortcuts.
- Sharing an exact template in which I need the output.
You can also experiment with prompts by adding your sample writing templates and asking ChatGPT to follow the same.
I’m confident this method will save you at least 1–1.5 hours every time you write your next PRD.
Here is the PRD Template that you can duplicate or refine based on your use case or even use your company’s PRD template https://docs.google.com/document/d/13jrXdK4yinP7qv0lw6GcQXvB4JuDfq6zZZOEhg4yQ14/edit?tab=t.0
Happy writing!
