Do This, NOT That: Marketing Tips with Jay Schwedelson
Do This, NOT That: Marketing Tips with Jay Schwedelson

Ask Us ANYTHING: Secret AI Trick! 200% Increased Engagement! | Ep. 454

November 28, 2025

AI Summary

5 min read

The 100,000-Person Prompt: A Simple AI Trick That Doubled Click-Through Rates

When Alyssa from Denver asked why her AI-generated marketing content kept underperforming, Jay Schwedelson had a counterintuitive answer: the problem wasn't the AI—it was how she was talking to it. Most people treat AI tools like a creative assistant, asking them to "write an email" or "come up with subject lines." But Schwedelson's team discovered that this approach activates the wrong mode in the AI. The fix is deceptively simple: instead of asking the AI to generate something, ask it to simulate how 100,000 real people would respond to it.

The 100,000-Person Prompt

The core insight is that AI tools have two operating modes: creative mode and statistical mode. When you ask an AI to "write a subject line" or "draft an email," it defaults to creative mode—it generates plausible-sounding text based on patterns in its training data. But when you ask it to predict how 100,000 real subscribers would respond, it automatically switches into statistical mode, drawing on its training data about actual human behavior rather than its ability to produce fluent prose.

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What you'll learn

  • 1 (00:00) **Welcome & Episode Setup** - Brief intro to the Ask Us Anything format and how to submit questions.
  • 2 (00:43) **Work Question: Why AI Outputs Underperform** - Alyssa from Denver asks why AI-generated ideas test poorly.
  • 3 (01:10) **The 100,000 Person Prompt Explained** - The core actionable tip: ask AI to simulate a large audience.
  • 4 (02:10) **A/B Test Results: Subject Lines** - Evidence that the 100K prompt beats generic prompts 70% of the time.
  • 5 (03:31) **A/B Test Results: Call-to-Action Buttons** - The 100K prompt produced a 2x increase in click-through rate.
  • 6 (04:50) **Ridiculous Question: Phone vs. Texting** - Jared from Dallas hates phone calls and finds texting annoying.
  • 7 (05:27) **The Voice Memo Solution** - Jay’s personal hack for maintaining relationships without phone calls or endless texts.

+ Full timestamped outline available in the app

Guests on this episode

Jay Schwedelson

Show Notes

AI sounds like a shortcut until your “great” ideas flop in the wild, and that is exactly what Jay Schwedelson digs into here. He breaks down a simple 100,000 person prompt that quietly flips AI out of generic creative mode and into deeper statistical thinking, then shares what happened when he A/B tested it on subject lines and CTAs. Plus, a surprisingly relatable question about hating phone calls turns into a legit strategy for staying connected without awkward calls or endless text threads.

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Best Moments:

(01:00) Alyssa from Denver asks why AI generated ideas keep underperforming, and Jay flags the hidden problem with how most of us prompt these tools.

(01:47) Jay introduces the 100,000 person prompt and shows how to ask AI to simulate huge audiences reacting to subject lines, landing pages, and offers.

(03:05) Jay explains how framing prompts around 100,000 real people forces AI out of pure creativity and into deeper statistical mode for sharper recommendations.

(03:45) Jay shares A/B test results where 100,000 person prompts beat generic AI suggestions over 70 percent of the time and even double click throughs on CTA buttons.

(05:15) Jared from Dallas admits he hates phone calls and finds texting shallow, and Jay gets real about how easy it is to drift into isolation.

(06:00) Jay reveals his go to solution of voice memos as a low pressure, high connection way to maintain relationships without live calls or walls of text.

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Prompts mentioned:

  • Predict how 100,000 real subscribers would respond to each of these subject lines, rank them by expected open rate, and explain the psychology.
  • Evaluate this hero section as if 100,000 new visitors landed on this landing page. Identify confusion points and drop-off risks.
  • How would 100,000 consumer buyers or 100,000 B2B buyers interpret this offer? What is confusing, what is strong, and what is missing?
  • We want you to simulate 100,000 people interacting with this call-to-action button. What should the language be?

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Check out Jay’s YOUTUBE Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@schwedelson

Check out Jay’s TIKTOK: https://www.tiktok.com/@schwedelson

Check Out Jay's INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/jayschwedelson/

Do This, NOT That: Marketing Tips with Jay Schwedelson

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