Microsoft Brazil announces the courseFluency for Small and Medium Businessesa series of educational videos produced by company specialists, offering practical and accessible tips to optimize daily business operations. The course was developed to help small entrepreneurs understand and apply artificial intelligence in their businesses. Divided into ten episodes, the content covers everything from basic AI concepts to creating effective prompts to achieve results with generative AI tools.
The content is permanently available on the official channel.Microsoft AI SkillsOn YouTube, where the company provides tips about AI for beginners and professionals at various levels worldwide. Through the channel, Microsoft offers tutorials, expert insights, and accessible tips to help diverse audiences gain confidence and achieve results with the use of artificial intelligence.
In the courseFluency for Small and Medium BusinessesRande Rodrigues, Technical Specialist, and Liliane Lima, Channel Manager at Microsoft Brazil, demonstrate examples of how generative AI can be useful for SMEs, such as automating repetitive tasks, improving internal processes, and creating a data analysis foundation to guide decision-making.
One of the techniques explored in the course is OCFE – an acronym for "Objective," "Context," "Source," and "Expectations." The technique is essential for creating effective prompts when interacting with artificial intelligence:
- ObjectiveIt refers to what the user wants to obtain as a response from the AI.
- ContextIt can be described as the reason why the information is necessary and its importance to the business, as well as who else may benefit from it, such as clients or partners.
- Sourceindicate where the AI should look for the necessary information.
- ExpectationsThey should describe how the user expects the AI to respond in order to meet their needs.
Check out three examples of practical tips offered in the courseFluencIA for small and medium-sized businesses:
1. Automation of repetitive tasks
Imagine you are an entrepreneur who spends a lot of time managing emails, scheduling meetings, and organizing information. These repetitive tasks can be automated using AI, freeing up your time for more strategic activities. In the FluencIA course, you learn to use Microsoft Copilot to automate these tasks. For example, you can ask the tool to create a task table from your emails from the previous week. An effective prompt for this action would be: "From my emails last week, create a table of actions, including who the action is assigned to, who assigned it, and the deadline. I need this to have a good structure to organize my day. Be concise." This type of prompt helps to better organize your time and prioritize important tasks.
Lesson 2 – Learn to write good prompts (source: Microsoft AI Skills)
2. Data analysis for decision making
For many SMEs, analyzing large volumes of data can be a challenge, but it is essential for making informed decisions. In the course, you learn to use AI to analyze financial data, predict consumption trends, and optimize production processes. For example, if you need to add columns about gross profit and net profit in a sales spreadsheet, you can describe the context to Copilot within Excel and ask it to generate comparative charts and describe the observed trends. A detailed prompt for this case would be: "Add a column for gross profit and another for net profit to my sales spreadsheet. Generate comparative charts and describe the observed trends." This allows you to better visualize the data and make more accurate decisions.
Lesson 7 – How to create and manage your cash flow (source: Microsoft AI Skills)
3. Creation of marketing campaigns
Developing effective marketing campaigns is crucial for the growth of SMEs. AI can assist in content creation, target audience segmentation, and campaign performance analysis. In the FluencIA course, you learn to use Microsoft Copilot for these tasks. For example, when planning a new product launch campaign, you can ask Copilot to create a detailed activity schedule and suggest content for social media. A good prompt to achieve this goal is: "Create a detailed activity schedule for the launch campaign of a new product."Describe the product and the target audience.), including content suggestions for social media and success indicators. This helps to better structure the campaign and reach the target audience more effectively.
Lesson 8 – How to create a social media marketing campaign(source: Microsoft AI Skills)
