Running a takeaway means your toughest written tasks happen at your busiest moments. The bad review arrives during the Friday rush. The complaint message comes in when you’ve got twelve orders on the go. You haven’t posted on Facebook in three weeks because by the time service ends, the last thing you want to do is write a promotional caption.

ChatGPT changes this. Not because it does everything — but because it compresses the written part of the job into seconds. You describe the situation on your phone, it writes the message, you paste and send. The kitchen doesn’t stop. The review gets answered. The customer feels heard.

Prompt 1 — The Bad Review Reply

A 1-star review on Deliveroo, Google or Just Eat is visible to every potential customer who looks you up. How you respond matters more than the review itself — a composed, professional reply tells new customers that you take feedback seriously and that you’re a business they can trust. An angry or defensive reply does the opposite. This prompt writes the composed version in seconds, even when you’re too stressed to think straight.

"A customer has left this review of my takeaway: [paste the review]. From my side, what actually happened was: [explain briefly — e.g. ‘the order was delayed because our driver had an accident’ / ‘we have no record of this order’ / ‘the customer is correct and we made an error on the order’]. Write a reply that: (1) thanks them for the feedback, (2) acknowledges their experience genuinely without being grovelling, (3) briefly explains our side if it’s fair to share, (4) offers to resolve it directly and gives a way to contact us. Under 80 words. Professional and warm — not defensive, not robotic."

Prompt 2 — The Wrong Order Complaint

A customer messages to say their order was wrong — missing item, wrong dish, dietary requirement missed. How you handle the next 90 seconds determines whether they order again or never come back. A quick, genuine response that acknowledges the mistake and offers a clear resolution converts a complaint into loyalty. This prompt writes that response before you have time to get defensive.

"A customer has messaged to say: [describe the issue — e.g. ‘their order arrived with items missing’ / ‘they received the wrong dish’ / ‘a dietary requirement wasn’t met’]. Write a short, genuine reply that: (1) apologises sincerely without making excuses, (2) offers a clear resolution — either a replacement, a refund or a credit on their next order [choose which fits your policy], (3) asks them to confirm their order details or preferred resolution. Under 60 words. Fast, warm and solution-focused — not defensive or corporate."

Prompt 3 — The Weekly Facebook Special

You know consistent Facebook posts drive orders. You know your regulars check for weekly specials. But writing a post at midnight after a full service is not happening — so nothing goes up, your page goes quiet, and your competitor who posts every Wednesday gets the orders you should have had. This prompt writes a week’s posts in one go, Sunday morning, before service starts.

"Write 3 short Facebook posts for my takeaway this week. Post 1: This week’s special — [describe the dish or deal, e.g. ‘3 curries and 3 naans for £25, Wednesday only’]. Post 2: A customer appreciation post — thank our regulars, mention how busy we’ve been and invite them to order this weekend. Post 3: A behind-the-scenes or fun post about life in the kitchen — warm, local, human. All three posts: under 60 words each. Friendly and local — not corporate marketing speak. Include a simple call to action (order now / link in bio / call us) at the end of each."

Prompt 4 — The Closure or Special Hours Announcement

Bank holiday. Staff illness. Boiler breakdown. Whatever the reason, you need to let customers know you’re closed before they order and are disappointed — or worse, leave a review saying you didn’t deliver. A clear, warm announcement across Facebook and WhatsApp takes 30 seconds with this prompt.

"Write a short, clear social media post and a WhatsApp message informing customers that we will be [closed / open limited hours] on [date or dates]. Reason (optional): [e.g. ‘bank holiday’ / ‘staff illness’ / ‘kitchen maintenance’]. We will be back: [date and normal hours]. The message should: be warm and apologetic, reassure customers we’ll be back soon, and end with a thank you for their support. Facebook post: under 60 words. WhatsApp message: under 40 words. Both friendly and local in tone."

Prompt 5 — The Seasonal Promotion

Ramadan. Valentine’s Day. Christmas. Bank holiday weekends. Every seasonal peak is a revenue opportunity that most independent takeaways miss because creating promotional copy feels like a marketing job they didn’t sign up for. This prompt creates a complete seasonal promotion pack in under two minutes.

"Write a seasonal promotion pack for my [type of food] takeaway called [name] in [location], for [occasion — e.g. Eid, Christmas Eve, Valentine’s Day, Bank Holiday Weekend]. Our offer is: [describe — e.g. ‘family feast box: 4 mains, 2 sides, 4 drinks for £35’]. Include: (1) A Facebook post announcing the promotion (under 70 words), (2) A WhatsApp broadcast message to send to regular customers (under 50 words), (3) A short caption for an Instagram story or post. All three: warm, appetising, local — make the food sound genuinely delicious. No corporate tone."

Why These Prompts Work When Vague Ones Don’t

Every prompt above uses the CRAFT Method — a five-part structure that tells ChatGPT exactly what you need, how long it should be and what it should sound like. Vague prompts get vague replies. Specific prompts get something you’d actually send.

Frequently Asked Questions