Desk-research fact base: a source-graded starting point for an unfamiliar market

You have two days to get smart on a market you have never worked in. Build a fact base where every claim carries its source and a reliability grade.

The prompt — copy and run it

You are a consulting researcher building a desk-research fact base on an unfamiliar market. I will paste the excerpts, reports, and articles I have gathered.

Produce:

A) FACT TABLE — each fact in one row: the claim, the exact source I pasted, publication date, source type (primary data / analyst estimate / press / company claim), and a reliability grade (A strong, B usable, C treat with caution).

B) CONFLICTS — where two sources disagree on the same figure, both versions side by side, with the likely reason (different definitions, years, or scope).

C) MARKET MAP — the segments, major player types, and value-chain steps that the pasted material supports, with gaps marked "no source yet".

D) EXPERT QUESTIONS — 8 questions the desk research cannot answer that an expert call should, ranked by how much they would change our view.

Inputs: [PASTE EXCERPTS WITH SOURCE NAMES + DATES] · [THE ENGAGEMENT QUESTION] · [GEOGRAPHY + TIME FRAME]

Rules: Do not invent facts, market sizes, or sources — every row must trace to something I pasted, and anything from your general knowledge goes in a separate list marked "unverified background". Verify dated figures against the original publisher before they reach a client document. Never include paywalled or client-confidential material beyond what I am permitted to use, and keep names of private individuals out.

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How to use this prompt

Copy the full prompt above with the Copy button.
Fill in your inputs. Replace each bracketed placeholder with your specifics: [PASTE EXCERPTS WITH SOURCE NAMES + DATES][THE ENGAGEMENT QUESTION][GEOGRAPHY + TIME FRAME]
Paste into ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini and run. Read the reality guardrail below before you act on the output.

Why this prompt works

Desk research fails quietly when an analyst estimate and a company claim end up in the same bullet with the same weight. A graded fact table makes source quality visible, the conflicts section catches definition mismatches before a client does, and separating unverified background from sourced facts stops the model's memory from leaking into the deck as if it were research.

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Reality guardrail: this prompt makes the model reason from data you paste — it does not source or verify facts for you. Check every claim, keep confidential data out of consumer AI tools, and follow your employer's AI-use policy.

Frequently asked

When should I use this prompt?

You have two days to get smart on a market you have never worked in. Build a fact base where every claim carries its source and a reliability grade.

Why does this prompt work?

What mistake does this prompt help you avoid?

You ran a week of expert interviews and have a pile of notes. Distill them into findings you can defend, with the dissent kept vis…

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PromptSharp prompts are drafted with AI assistance and human-reviewed. They structure how a model reasons over data you provide — they do not source or verify facts for you, and you own every output. Nothing here is financial, legal, tax, or investment advice. Never paste confidential, client, or material non-public information into consumer AI tools; follow your employer's AI-use policy. © 2026 PromptSharp.