Hi friends 🧡 You know that caption. The one that starts with "Elevate your morning routine" and ends with a pile of sparkle emojis. Nobody wrote it. A robot did, and your followers can smell it from the first line.
Here is the good news. AI is not the problem. The prompt is. When you ask Claude or ChatGPT to "write an Instagram caption about my new product," you get the most average caption on the internet. When you give it your voice, your customer and one real detail, you get something that sounds like you wrote it on a good day.
Below are 9 copy-and-paste prompts I use and teach, each with a before and after so you can see the difference. Swap in your own details and go.
Instagram rules below were checked on Nov 13, 2026.
Before you start: two quick Instagram facts
Captions can run up to 2,200 characters, but most guides note that only about the first 125 characters show before people tap "more." So your first line has one job: make someone want to read the second line.
And hashtags matter less than they used to. In December 2025, Instagram head Adam Mosseri announced a gradual move to a five-hashtag limit per post and Reel, and he has said hashtags do not do much for reach. They mostly tell people what your post is about. So a few specific ones beat a wall of thirty.
Step zero: write your voice notes once
Every prompt below gets better when you paste your voice notes in front of it. Do this one time, save it in a note on your phone, and reuse it forever.
The prompt:
Interview me to figure out how I sound. Ask me one question at a time, up to 8 questions, about how I talk, words I use a lot, words I would never use, my sense of humor, and who my customers are. Then write a short "voice notes" paragraph I can paste into future prompts.
Answer out loud if you can (voice typing works great). The messier and more honest your answers, the more the result sounds like you.
The 9 caption prompts
1. The "tell it like a friend" caption
Best for: everyday posts when you have no idea what to say.
Using my voice notes, write an Instagram caption about [topic] as if I am texting a friend who is also my customer. Short sentences. No buzzwords. Start with something I would actually say out loud. End with one simple question.
Before (robot): "Elevate your self-care routine with our luxurious new candle collection. ✨ Indulge today!"
After (you): "Okay, I lit the new fig candle at 3pm on a Tuesday and my whole office smells like a fancy hotel lobby. Zero regrets. What scent gets you through the afternoon slump?"
2. The behind-the-scenes caption
Best for: photos of you working, packing orders, prepping, setting up.
Write a caption for a behind-the-scenes photo of [what is happening]. Include one small, specific detail most people would not know about how I do this. Keep it under 80 words and make it feel a little bit like a secret.
Before: "Hard at work behind the scenes to bring you the best! 💪"
After: "Every cake box gets a handwritten name on the lid before it leaves. Takes me an extra 20 minutes a day. Worth it every time someone texts me a picture of their kid holding it."
3. The customer question caption
Best for: turning the question you hear every week into a post.
My customers keep asking me "[question]." Write a caption that answers it in plain words, like I am answering at the counter. Open with the question itself. Give the real answer in 3 short sentences. End by inviting more questions.
Before: "Many clients wonder about the best time to book. Here are our expert tips!"
After: "'How early should I book for the holidays?' Honestly? Now. December fills up by mid-November every year. If you want a Saturday, grab it this week. Got another question? Ask me below."
4. The tiny story caption
Best for: stopping the scroll. Stories beat tips almost every time.
Turn this moment into a tiny story caption: [what happened]. Use a beginning, a turn, and a lesson in under 100 words. Start in the middle of the action. Do not explain the lesson too much. Let it land.
Before: "Customer service is at the heart of everything we do. 🙌"
After: "A man walked in yesterday holding a dead plant like it was a hamster. 'I killed it. Can you help me not kill the next one?' We spent 15 minutes on watering. He bought a cactus. Smart man."
5. The myth-buster caption
Best for: showing what you know without sounding like a lecture.
Write a caption that busts this myth in my industry: [myth]. Start with "Unpopular opinion:" or a line just as direct. Explain the truth in plain words. Be confident but kind. Do not shame anyone who believed it.
Before: "Did you know? There are many misconceptions about haircare! Let us educate you. 💇"
After: "Unpopular opinion: you do not need to wash your hair every day. Most of my clients with frizz are over-washing, not under-conditioning. Try every other day for two weeks and tell me what happens."
6. The "this or that" caption
Best for: easy comments. People love picking a side.
Write a short "this or that" caption about [two options my customers choose between]. Make it playful, take my own side at the end, and ask people to vote in the comments with one word.
Before: "Which do you prefer? Let us know below! 👇"
After: "Chewy chocolate chip or crispy chocolate chip. There is no wrong answer, except crispy. (Kidding. Mostly.) Drop CHEWY or CRISPY below and settle this for my team."
7. The product caption that does not feel salesy
Best for: when you need to sell but hate sounding like an ad.
Write a caption for [product or service]. Lead with the feeling or the moment it creates for my customer, not the features. Mention one feature only, in passing. Finish with one clear next step: [link in bio / book now / stop by Saturday]. No hype words.
Before: "Introducing our premium 12-week coaching program! Packed with value. Limited spots! 🔥🔥"
After: "Picture this: it is March, and you are not dreading opening your inbox. That is what my 12-week coaching group is really about. We meet weekly, small group, real homework. Doors open Monday. Details at the link in my bio."
8. The milestone or thank-you caption
Best for: anniversaries, big orders, wins, slow seasons you survived.
Write a thank-you caption for [milestone]. Make it about my customers, not me. Include one real memory from the journey: [memory]. Keep it warm and honest, and skip the clichés like "we couldn't have done it without you."
Before: "We are so grateful to celebrate 5 years! We couldn't have done it without you! 🎉"
After: "Five years ago my first customer paid me in cash and a jar of homemade jam. I still have the jar. Every one of you who came back, told a friend, or left a review built this place. Thank you, truly."
9. The "fix my caption" prompt
Best for: when you already wrote something and it feels off.
Here is a caption I wrote: [paste]. Using my voice notes, give me 3 rewrites. Keep my meaning. Cut any word that sounds like AI or marketing speak. Make the first line stronger. Tell me which version you would post and why, in one sentence.
This one is my secret weapon. You keep your own ideas, and AI just does the polishing.
How to make every caption sound more like you
Give it one real detail
The fastest way to kill robot voice is a specific detail only you would know. A time of day, a customer's exact words, a number from your own shop. AI cannot make those up well, so you bring them.
Ban the robot words
Add this line to any prompt: "Never use the words elevate, unlock, dive into, game-changer, or journey." Add your own pet peeves too. You will be shocked how much better things read.
Read it out loud before you post
If you would not say it to a customer standing in front of you, change it. That one habit fixes most captions.
Keep hashtags short and specific
Pick three to five tags that describe the post (your city, your niche, the product). Skip the giant generic ones.
Frequently asked questions
Can people tell when a caption was written with AI?
They can tell when it was written with a lazy prompt. Generic words, too many emojis, and no real details give it away. When you add your voice notes and one specific detail, most people just hear you.
Should I use Claude or ChatGPT for Instagram captions?
Both work well with these prompts. Pick the one you already use and stick with it, because the real magic is your voice notes, not the tool.
How long should an Instagram caption be?
Instagram allows up to 2,200 characters, but only about the first 125 show before "more." Short captions are great for quick posts. Longer story captions work when your first line earns the tap.
How many hashtags should I use on Instagram?
Three to five specific ones. Instagram announced in December 2025 that it is moving to a five-hashtag limit per post and Reel, and it has said hashtags mostly help describe your post rather than boost reach.
Do I need to edit what AI writes?
Yes, always give it a quick read. Fix anything that is not true, swap in your own words, and read it out loud. Two minutes of editing is what turns a good draft into your caption.
What if I do not know what my voice sounds like?
That is exactly what the step zero prompt is for. Let AI interview you, answer honestly, and it will describe your voice back to you. Most people are surprised how clear it is once someone asks the right questions.
Want your marketing to sound like you every time?
Here is what most people do not realize. Once you know how to use Claude or ChatGPT, you can automate almost all of your marketing, captions included.
I just trained 450 people on my AI Marketing Machine skill. You install it, answer a few questions, and it takes my 20 years of marketing and puts it into 6 files that live on your laptop. From then on, every time you ask Claude or ChatGPT to make something for you, it pulls from those files and writes content that sounds exactly like you. No more pasting voice notes into every prompt.
It is not magic. It is just a new kind of technology, and you do not need to be a developer to use it.
No membership. No subscription. Just one download.
Club Jam