What I Was Trying to Accomplish
I had a simple task.
Every week, I summarize competitor blog posts. Five articles. One summary each. I wanted a consistent format so I could compare them easily.
So I wrote a prompt. It looked like this:
"Summarize this blog post. Include the main argument, key points, and a takeaway."
I used it five times. I got five different formats.
Some summaries had bullet points. Some had paragraphs. Some had headings. Some had no headings. Some included the takeaway at the end. Some buried it in the middle.
Same prompt. Same tool. Different output every time.
I didn't understand why. So I started testing. Here's what I found.
What I Used
Tool: A general-purpose AI assistant (free tier)
Input: Five competitor blog posts, each about 1,500 words
Prompt: The same prompt, pasted five times
Goal: A consistent format for comparison
The First Attempt
Here's the prompt I used:
"Summarize this blog post. Include the main argument, key points, and a takeaway."
Here's what I got for each post.
Post 1:
Main Argument: The author argues that...
Key Points:
First point
Second point
Third point
Takeaway: The author concludes that...
Post 2:
The author argues that... (paragraph). They make several points, including... (paragraph). The takeaway is... (paragraph).
Post 3:
The article makes the case that...
First point
Second point
Third point
In conclusion...
Post 4:
Main Argument: ...
Key Points:
First point
Second point
Takeaway: ...
Post 5:
This article argues that... (paragraph). The key points are... (list). The takeaway is... (paragraph).
Five posts. Five formats. Same prompt.
Why This Happens
I did some reading. I asked the AI tool. I tested different versions.
Here's what I found.
The AI doesn't know what format you want. My prompt said "summarize" but didn't say how. The AI picked a format. But it picked differently each time. Because it doesn't remember the previous output.
The AI varies its output. This is a feature, not a bug. The AI tries to be helpful. It tries to be natural. It varies its format to avoid sounding robotic. That's good for some tasks. It's bad for consistency.
The input varies. Each blog post was different. Different length. Different structure. Different style. The AI adapted its output to match the input. That caused variation.
The AI doesn't have a default format. Without specific instructions, the AI picks a format that seems reasonable. But "reasonable" is different every time.
The Fix
I fixed it by being more specific.
Here's my revised prompt:
"Summarize this blog post using this exact format:
Main Argument: [one sentence]
Key Points:
[point 1]
[point 2]
[point 3]
Takeaway: [one sentence]
Do not change the format. Do not use paragraphs. Use the exact headings shown."
I added the format. I added the exact headings. I added "do not change the format."
Here's what I got for each post.
Post 1:
Main Argument: The author argues that...
Key Points:
First point
Second point
Third point
Takeaway: The author concludes that...
Post 2:
Main Argument: The author argues that...
Key Points:
First point
Second point
Third point
Takeaway: The author concludes that...
Post 3:
Main Argument: The author argues that...
Key Points:
First point
Second point
Third point
Takeaway: The author concludes that...
Post 4:
Main Argument: The author argues that...
Key Points:
First point
Second point
Third point
Takeaway: The author concludes that...
Post 5:
Main Argument: The author argues that...
Key Points:
First point
Second point
Third point
Takeaway: The author concludes that...
Same format. Every time.
What Else I Learned
I learned a few other things while testing.
Use a template. If you want a consistent format, give the AI a template. Don't describe the format. Show it.
Use exact headings. If you want specific headings, write them exactly. Don't say "use headings." Say "use these exact headings: [list them]."
Use "do not change." The AI is helpful. It wants to improve things. Sometimes that means changing the format. Adding "do not change the format" helps.
Use the same tool. Different tools produce different outputs. If you want consistency, use the same tool.
Use a lower temperature. Some AI tools have a "temperature" setting. Lower temperature means more consistent output. Higher temperature means more creative output. If you want consistency, lower it.
The Limitation
This fix doesn't work for everything.
It works for tasks with a clear, repeatable format. Summaries. Reports. Structured outputs. It doesn't work for creative tasks. Brainstorming. Writing. Tasks where variation is a feature, not a bug.
Also, the fix still isn't perfect. Sometimes the AI still varies. Sometimes it still adds a paragraph instead of a bullet point. Sometimes it still changes a heading. I still check the output.
The Math
Without the fix: Summarizing 5 posts took about 10 minutes. But the format was inconsistent. I had to fix it manually.
With the fix: Summarizing 5 posts took about 5 minutes. The format was consistent. I didn't have to fix anything.
Time saved: About 5 minutes. Plus the mental energy of not having to reformat.
My Question for You
Have you had this problem?
What did you do to fix it? Do you use a template? Do you use a different tool? Do you just deal with the variation?
I'm curious what works for other people. I've been using the template approach for a few months. It's not perfect, but it's better than reformatting every time.
