AIDA, PAS and More: Copywriting Prompt Frameworks

Study guide

Copywriting Prompt Frameworks That Sell

This course teaches you how to use classic copywriting formulas as prompt frameworks inside ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini. You will learn AIDA, PAS, PAIN, FAB, 4Ps, PASTOR, QUEST, Hook Story Offer, AIDCA and the 4U headline checklist. Each formula is a proven order for an argument, such as attention first and action last. As a prompt, it tells the AI which job each sentence should do, so the output is structured and persuasive instead of generic.

It is built for busy marketing and sales professionals who write ads, emails, sales pages and product descriptions. You do not need a copywriting background. Every lesson explains the why, the how, a worked example in a real job, and a common mistake. You will see how to turn a formula into a brief with product facts, audience details, proof points and format. The goal is copy that fits your reader and your job, not a formula followed for its own sake.

What is a prompt framework?

A prompt is the request you type into an AI tool such as ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini. A prompt framework is a reusable structure for that request: a short checklist of the parts a good prompt contains, usually named with an acronym so it is easy to remember. Why it helps: the AI fills in whatever you leave out with generic guesses. A framework makes sure you include the parts that change the answer, such as who it is for, what you want to achieve and the format you need.

Frameworks make prompts repeatable: you fill the same parts each time, save the prompt as a template and share it with colleagues. They are not magic words: the value comes from the detail you put in each part. They help most when a request is complex or open to interpretation; a quick, simple question can stay short. There are well over sixty named frameworks, and most of them remix the same ingredients: role, task, context, audience, format, constraints and examples.

In this course you learn AIDA & PAS, which is a set of classic copywriting formulas that work as prompt frameworks for one kind of text: persuasion. It is best for: marketing and sales copy: ads, emails, sales pages and product descriptions.

Copy formulas as prompts

A copywriting formula is a proven order for an argument. AIDA, for example, stands for Attention, Interest, Desire and Action. It is attributed to E. St. Elmo Lewis in 1898 and remains the universal fallback when no other formula clearly fits. As a prompt, the formula tells the AI which job each sentence should do. It supplies structure. Your product facts, audience description and proof supply the power.

A good copy prompt reads like a brief. It includes the formula, the product, the audience, the facts, the proof and the format. Each element removes guesswork and cuts the editing you do afterwards. A prompt with a formula name and no facts produces polished emptiness. The AI then invents generic claims because it has nothing real to work with.

The most common failure is naming the formula and stopping there. You might type 'write an AIDA email about our software' and get a smooth but hollow result. Add the audience, the problem they face, one real result and the single action you want. The same formula now produces copy you can use.

AIDA: Attention, Interest, Desire, Action

AIDA is a four step copy formula. Each step has one job and earns the next, which is why the order matters more than the wording. The Attention step is a hook that stops the scroll. It should sound like the reader's problem or curiosity, not a greeting or a company name. Interest builds on that hook with relevant detail. Desire is about the outcome the reader wants, not the feature list. Name the benefit in their words, then let the features support it.

The Action step should ask for one thing. One button, one link, one reply. Multiple asks usually produce no action at all. AIDCA adds Conviction before Action. Conviction is proof, such as a review, a result or a guarantee, and it helps when the buyer is sceptical. AIDA works across ads, emails, landing pages and video scripts. The format changes how much room each step gets, not the order.

In a prompt, give each step its own line or slot. For example, ask for an AIDA email with a subject line, a hook about missed deadlines, one benefit about saving time, a proof point from a customer review, and a single call to action. The AI follows the structure, and your facts keep it honest.

PAS and PAIN: start from the problem

PAS stands for Problem, Agitate, Solution. The order matters more than the wording. Naming the problem first proves you understand the reader's day before you ask for anything. Agitation is the step that makes the reader feel the cost of the problem. Keep it honest. Real time lost, real deals stalled, real repetition. Exaggeration reads as manipulation and costs trust.

PAIN is a variant: Problem, Agitation, Interest, Next steps. Use it when the reader needs a fresh angle before a call to action, and when the ask should feel small. A prompt with separate slots for problem, agitation, solution and tone gives the AI clear boundaries. Vague prompts produce vague copy, and vague copy gets ignored.

Test the problem line on one real customer before writing the rest. If they do not recognise the problem, the agitation and solution will not land either, no matter how well written. Agitate the problem, never the person. The reader should feel understood, not accused. That distinction separates copy that gets replies from copy that gets deleted.

FAB and 4Ps: benefits and proof

FAB turns one fact into three lines. The feature is what it is. The advantage is why that is better. The benefit is what it means for the buyer's day. A feature on its own is a spec. The benefit is the line a buyer repeats to someone else, so always finish the translation. For example, a feature might be 'automated reminders'. The advantage is 'no manual follow up'. The benefit is 'you stop losing deals to forgotten emails'.

The 4Ps run in order: Promise, Picture, Proof, Push. The sequence works best on longer copy where you have room to build. Proof points are the evidence you supply: numbers, reviews, results, certificates. Without them the AI fills the gap with vague claims. The Push is the one clear next step. One action, stated plainly, beats three options that make the reader decide.

You can combine the two. Use FAB to build the benefit lines, then arrange them inside the 4Ps structure for the full ad. In a prompt, ask for a 4Ps product page and provide three proof points and one push. The AI will place your facts in the right order.

Long form: PASTOR, QUEST, Hook Story Offer

PASTOR stands for Problem, Amplify, Story, Transformation, Offer and Response, and comes from Ray Edwards. It suits long sales pages because it walks a reader from pain to action in a fixed order. QUEST stands for Qualify, Understand, Educate, Stimulate and Transition. It suits educational selling, where the reader is still learning and needs teaching before any ask. Hook Story Offer drives short video scripts. The hook stops the scroll, the story holds attention, and the offer gives one clear next step.

The 4U checklist asks whether a headline is urgent, unique, useful and ultra specific. A headline that fails one of the four is usually weaker than one that passes all four. Match the formula to the format. A long sales page and a thirty second video need different structures, even when they sell the same thing.

In a prompt, name the framework and fill each letter with your own detail. The AI follows the structure, but the facts about your offer must come from you. For a PASTOR sales page, provide the problem, the amplification, a customer story, the transformation, the offer details and the response you want. For a Hook Story Offer video, give the hook line, the story beats and the single offer.

Choosing a formula for your job

The formula follows the job. A short ad or email suits AIDA or PAS. A product page suits FAB. A sales page suits PASTOR. An education-led sale suits QUEST. Length and intent decide the choice. Short formulas nudge, long formulas carry proof and story. Ask what the reader must feel before they act.

Always test two formulas. Ask the AI for the same message in AIDA and in PAS, read both, and see which performs with your audience. Combine tools. Use CO-STAR to set audience and tone, and BAB to sharpen the core transformation the copy promises. A common mistake is forcing a long formula into a short ad. PASTOR in a three line email buries the point. Match the formula to the length.

Formulas are prompts, not rules. The goal is copy that fits the reader and the job, not a formula followed for its own sake. Start with the job, pick the formula that fits, fill it with your facts, and test the result.

Frequently asked questions