What is ChatGPT (and what it’s actually doing for my clients’)?

Written by matt on 12 August 2025. Posted in ChatGPT, AI.

I spend my days in the trenches with marketing teams, wrestling with Shopify bugs at 2am, and watching Google Ads accounts like they’re newborn babies. I’m not here to sell you AI fairy dust or promise ChatGPT will replace your entire team by Thursday.

Instead, let me show you exactly how my clients are using ChatGPT to get actual work done – the unglamorous, deadline-driven, client-breathing-down-your-neck kind of work that keeps businesses running.

ChatGPT in one sentence (because you’re busy)

ChatGPT is like having a bright marketing assistant who never sleeps, writes faster than you do, and doesn’t judge you for asking the same question three different ways until you get what you need.

OpenAI just rolled out GPT-5 across ChatGPT, and honestly? It’s the first AI update that made me text my clients at 7pm because I was genuinely excited about what we could build together.

What it actually does (with real client stories)

Writing & editing that doesn’t sound like a robot wrote it

Last Tuesday, Sarah from Optima Hair Specialists called me in a panic. She needed three landing pages by Friday, each targeting different customer fears about hair systems. Twenty minutes with ChatGPT later, we had:

“Hair that looks like you – only better” (for first-timers)
“The maintenance question everyone asks” (for the practical crowd)
“What your colleagues will actually notice” (for the self-conscious)

The workflow: I fed ChatGPT her customer consultation notes, asked for headline variations by emotional angle, then had it write landing page sections that spoke directly to each worry. Sarah’s conversion rate jumped 23% that month.

Research that doesn’t take all weekend

Remember when “competitive research” meant opening 47 browser tabs and crying softly? My client at Midland Air Conditioning was struggling to position their home office AC units against cheaper alternatives.

I uploaded their competitor pricing sheets to ChatGPT and asked: “What’s the real value gap here, and how do we explain it without sounding defensive?”

It came back with a comparison that highlighted energy efficiency savings over 5 years, turning a £2,000 “expensive” install into a £300-per-year investment. That framing helped them close three big residential jobs in the following month.

Data analysis that actually makes sense

My Shopify client at Sunday Print Shop was drowning in sales data. Which products should they bundle? When should they run promotions? ChatGPT ate their 90-day export and spat out:

Five high-margin bundle ideas (custom hoodie + matching cap = 34% higher AOV)
A seasonal promotion calendar that actually matched their inventory cycles
Product descriptions that mentioned the best-selling items first

Result: Their average order value increased 18% in six weeks.

How real businesses use this stuff

Monday morning at the solicitors’ office

Emma runs a husband-and-wife legal practice specialising in wills and probate. Every Monday, she needs to publish something helpful for families dealing with bereavement – but writing about death is emotionally draining.

Now she starts with: “Act as a caring legal guide. Write a 900-word blog helping families understand what happens in the first week after someone dies. Tone: warm, no legal jargon, like you’re explaining to a neighbour.”

ChatGPT gives her the structure and sensitivity she needs, then she adds the personal touches that make her practice special. Her Google ranking for “probate help” improved, but more importantly, the phone calls got gentler – people felt prepared instead of panicked.

Wednesday crisis at the print shop

The Sunday Print Shop team needed 12 product descriptions by Thursday (classic client timing, right?). Instead of panic-writing generic copy, I showed them how to batch-process:

“Act as a Shopify copywriter. Here are 5 embroidered hoodies in different colors. Write unique descriptions that highlight the fabric quality, personalisation options, and UK dispatch times. Make each one feel special, not like a template.”

Four hours instead of four days. The descriptions were good enough to use immediately and personal enough that customers started mentioning the copy in their reviews.

Friday afternoon with the cultural workshops

Jas runs Punjabi Roots, offering cultural workshops to schools. Teachers kept asking the same logistical questions, so we used ChatGPT to create a comprehensive schools pack:

“Create a teacher-friendly overview of our KS2-KS4 Indian cultural workshop. Include learning outcomes, equipment needs, and a sample timetable. Write it like you’re addressing practical head teachers who need to justify educational value.”

The result? Bookings doubled because teachers could see exactly how the workshops fit their curriculum requirements. Less back-and-forth emails, more confirmed sessions.

The simple workflow that actually works

Here’s what I teach every client:

Monday: Feed ChatGPT your customer context (who they are, what they worry about, how they talk)
Tuesday: Ask for first drafts of whatever you need
Wednesday: Edit like you normally would
Thursday: Test the results
Friday: Refine your prompts based on what worked

No magic, no revolution – just faster first drafts that sound human.

Download: Idea → Prompt → ChatGPT → Draft → Edit → Publish (pipeline graphic)

My copy-paste prompt formula (steal this)

Act as a [role that matches your voice].
Write a [specific deliverable] for [your exact audience].
Context: [their situation, your offer, their main worry].
Tone: [how you normally sound].
Include: [must-have elements].
Output: [exact format you need].

Real example from last week:

“Act as a reassuring clinic copywriter. Write a 300-word FAQ answer: ‘Will my hair system look obvious?’ Audience: men considering their first non-surgical option. Tone: confident but understanding. Include: fitting process, natural hairline techniques, and maintenance reality. Output: headline + 3 short paragraphs + gentle CTA.”

The result felt like a conversation, not a sales pitch.

Where ChatGPT shines vs where it definitely doesn’t

It’s brilliant at:

Breaking through “I don’t know where to start” paralysis
Turning messy notes into clean copy
Creating multiple versions of the same message
Research that would take you hours on Google

It struggles with:

Your specific industry quirks (unless you teach it first)
Perfect accuracy on numbers (always double-check)
Capturing your exact brand voice without examples

My rule: Treat it like hiring a talented freelancer. Give clear briefs, provide examples, and edit everything.

Features worth knowing about (the ones clients actually use)

Web search with citations: When my racing stables client needed current prize money data for owner presentations, ChatGPT pulled fresh figures from the British Horseracing Authority and cited every source.

Canvas for co-editing: Instead of endless email attachments, my solicitor client and I now edit blog posts together in real-time. She adds legal accuracy, I keep the tone human.

File uploads: Drop in CSVs, PDFs, meeting transcripts — ask for summaries, action lists, or talking points. Game-changer for client strategy calls.

Voice mode: Perfect for car journeys between client meetings. I’ll talk through a brief, and by the time I arrive, I have three headline options to present.

Is GPT-5 actually worth the hype?

Short answer: if you’re already using ChatGPT for work, yes.

The difference isn’t revolutionary — it’s evolutionary in the best way. Better first drafts, fewer “that’s not quite what I meant” moments, faster responses when you’re on a deadline.

My racing stables client noticed it first: “The training updates sound more like how I’d actually write them.” My print shop client loved that bundle suggestions now considered seasonal trends automatically.

It’s like the difference between a good assistant and a great one — subtle but significant when it’s 4pm and you need something done properly.

Quick start for your team (the version that actually sticks)

Pick one weekly task (blog writing, ad copy, product descriptions)
Save your successful prompts in a shared doc
Create a brand brief for ChatGPT (your tone, your audience, your key messages)
Measure what matters (time saved, quality of first drafts, client feedback)

Start small, get wins, build confidence. Revolution through evolution, not disruption.

Need help setting this up properly? I work with teams to create ChatGPT workflows that actually save time instead of creating more work. Drop me a line — I promise no AI snake oil, just practical systems that help you ship better work faster.