Here's the setup from the video: one photo of what you sell, three short prompts in ChatGPT, and three ads that look like a designer made them instead of the purple-glow stuff you can spot from across the street. A minimal poster, a hero offer ad and a clean flyer.
Below are the three prompts exactly as I said them, plus the longer versions I'd actually use, because the short ones leave ChatGPT guessing about your words. And then the part I care about most: checking every letter and digit before it goes out. One wrong digit in your phone number and you're paying to send calls to a stranger.
Start here: paste this into ChatGPT or Claude
Not technical? Start here. Copy this prompt into a new ChatGPT chat (the free version works) and it walks you through the whole guide, one step at a time, in plain English, and makes the images right there. In Claude it coaches you the same way while you make the images in ChatGPT. It asks before it assumes anything and checks with you before anything that costs money, reaches a real customer or deletes something. The rest of the page is the same guide, written out, if you'd rather do it yourself.
Hi! Please be my patient guide for this step-by-step guide from Receipts Group: "Turn 1 photo into 3 ads that don't look AI-made"
The guide is here: https://receiptsgroup.com/guides/one-photo-three-ads (open it if you can; if you can't, everything you need is below).
About me: I run a small local business and I'm not technical. Use plain words and short sentences.
My goal: take one photo of my product (for example an impact window, a roof or a water heater) and turn it into three ads in ChatGPT: a minimal poster, a hero offer ad and a clean flyer. They should look clean and real, not like the purple-glow AI stuff. Then we check every letter and digit before anything gets posted.
How to help me:
1. One step at a time. For each step, tell me in a sentence what it's for and exactly what to do. Then stop and wait until I say "done" or tell you what I see.
2. Ask before you assume anything about my business, my offer or my accounts. One question at a time.
3. If you use a technical word, explain it in plain English the first time (like "aspect ratio" or "upload limit").
4. Stop and check with me before anything that costs money (like upgrading my ChatGPT plan or boosting a post), anything that reaches real customers (posting, sending, printing), or deleting anything.
5. Use only what I tell you. Never make up an offer, a price, a phone number, a star rating, a warranty, a result or a quote. If something's missing, ask me.
6. Copy my company name, phone number and website exactly as I type them.
7. If my screen looks different from what you expected, slow down and try another way.
The steps, from the guide:
Get ready:
Step 1. Pick one clear photo of the product: in focus, good light, the whole product in the shot, nothing messy behind it if I can help it. PNG or JPG, under 20 MB. If it's a customer's home, crop out the house number, street signs, faces and car plates, and only use it if they said yes.
Step 2. Write down the words before we start: a short headline, one offer I really run, my company name, my phone number and my website. Three short points for the flyer.
Make the ads (in ChatGPT):
Step 3. Open chatgpt.com or the ChatGPT app and start a new chat. Tap the + in the box where you type, choose "Add photos & files", and pick the photo. On the Free plan uploads are limited (3 files a day), so upload it once and make all three ads in this same chat.
Step 4. Ad one: type "minimal poster", or the longer version from the guide with my headline filled in.
Step 5. Ad two: type "hero offer minimal", or the longer version with my offer, company name and phone number.
Step 6. Ad three: type "clean flyer", or the longer version with my headline, three points, company name, phone and website.
Step 7. To fix one spot: click the image to open it, choose Select, highlight just the wrong part, and type what it should say. Or ask in the chat. Highlights aren't always exact, so check the rest of the image again after.
Step 8. Need a different shape: use the aspect ratio picker or say it in the prompt (4:5 for a tall feed post, 9:16 for a full-screen story).
Check before posting:
Step 9. Read every word and digit off the image, out loud. Call the phone number on the image from another phone and make sure my phone rings. Type the website exactly as it's spelled on the image. Make sure the offer is one I really run and it didn't add stars, "#1", a warranty, a price or a date. Make sure the product still looks like what I sell. Have someone else read it too.
Step 10. Only then save it and post it. Everything ChatGPT makes is also kept under Images in ChatGPT.
First test (free): in the same chat, type "minimal poster" with no headline and no other text. Check that the product still looks exactly like my photo before we add any words.
Watch out for these:
- One wrong digit in the phone number, and the ad sends calls to a stranger.
- Extra claims it adds on its own (stars, "#1", warranties, prices). Remove them.
- The product redrawn so it doesn't match what I sell.
- The glow and gradient look sneaking back in. Say "no glow, no gradients, plain background".
- Hitting the Free plan's image or upload limit. It tells me when; I can wait, or upgrade (ask me first).
When we're done, give me a short recap: what we made, what I still need to check, and where the files are.
Start by asking me a few quick questions about my business and my product, one at a time. Then begin with step 1.The whole thing at a glance
This is the manual way: every step, written out. The prompt above follows it too.
- 1Your photoOne clear shot of the product, PNG or JPG under 20 MB→ the thing every ad is built on
- 2The uploadChatGPT: + → Add photos & files→ your photo in a new chat
- 3Three promptsminimal poster · hero offer minimal · clean flyer→ three ads, same product
- 4The checkYou, reading every letter, and calling the number→ an ad that sends calls to you
- 5The postSaved to your phone or computer, posted by you→ a clean ad in your feed
Something wrong? Fix just that spot with Select, then run the check again from the top.
Words you'll see
- Prompt: what you type to ChatGPT. Here it's as short as two words.
- Aspect ratio: the shape of the image. 4:5 is a tall rectangle for a feed post; 9:16 fills a whole phone screen, like a story.
- Select: the tool in ChatGPT's image editor that lets you highlight one spot and change only that.
- Upload limit: how many files you can add in a day. On the Free plan OpenAI says it's 3, so one photo, one chat, all three ads.
Get the photo and the words ready
Pick one clear photo
In focus, good light, the whole product in the shot. A window on a clean wall beats a window behind a ladder and a shop vac. ChatGPT takes PNG and JPG, and OpenAI caps an image at 20 MB, which a normal phone photo is way under.
Your own photo is the whole point: the ad shows what you actually sell, not a made-up one.
Clean up anything private
If it's a customer's home, crop out the house number, street signs, faces and license plates before you upload, and only use it if they said yes. That's their house, not your stock photo.
Write your words down first
A short headline, one offer you really run, your company name, your phone number and your website. For the flyer, three short points. Writing them down first means you type them once, exactly right, and you've got something to check the image against.
Example (made up): headline “Storm season's coming”, offer “Free in-home estimate”, points “Impact-rated glass”, “Installed by our own crew”, “Financing available”.
Upload it to ChatGPT
Start a new chat
Wherechatgpt.com or the ChatGPT app → new chatLog in and open a fresh chat, so nothing from an old conversation leaks into your ads.
Add the photo
Where+ in the box where you type → Add photos & filesTap the + in the prompt area, choose Add photos & files, and pick your photo. You can also drag it into the chat or paste it.
PermissionsYou're giving OpenAI a copy of the photo. That's why the private stuff gets cropped out first.Stay in this one chat
On the Free plan OpenAI limits you to 3 file uploads a day. Upload the photo once and make all three ads right here, one after the other, so you're not burning an upload on every ad.
The three prompts
Here they are exactly like in the video. They work as is. But the short version makes ChatGPT guess your headline and your offer, and a guess is how a made-up claim ends up on your ad. So under each one is the longer version I'd use: same idea, with your words in it and the glow banned. Swap everything in [BRACKETS] for your own words before you send it.
Ad one: the minimal poster
Your product on a plain background with a lot of empty space and one short line. This is the one that tests whether ChatGPT kept your product looking like your product.
minimal posterMinimal poster. Use the product in my photo exactly as it is: same shape, same color, same frame. Don't redraw it or add anything to it. Plain, light background with a lot of empty space. Natural daylight, real shadows. One short headline at the top: [YOUR HEADLINE] No other text. No glow, no neon, no purple, no gradients, no sparkles, no extra objects. Tall 4:5 shape.Ad two: the hero offer
Your offer goes up big with room to breathe. Only put an offer on it that you actually run, word for word, because people will call and ask for it.
hero offer minimalHero offer minimal. Same product from my photo, unchanged. Put this offer big, as the main thing on the page: [YOUR OFFER] Under it, smaller: [YOUR COMPANY NAME] and [YOUR PHONE NUMBER] Copy every word and digit exactly as I typed them. Don't add any other claims, badges, stars, prices or dates. Lots of room to breathe, two colors at most, plain background, no glow. Tall 4:5 shape.Ad three: the clean flyer
The one I'd post. Headline, three points, and how to reach you, laid out clean. It has the most words on it, so it has the most chances for a typo. Check it hardest.
clean flyerClean flyer. Same product from my photo, unchanged. Headline: [YOUR HEADLINE] Three short points: - [POINT 1] - [POINT 2] - [POINT 3] Bottom: [YOUR COMPANY NAME], [YOUR PHONE NUMBER], [YOUR WEBSITE] Copy every word and digit exactly as I typed them. Nothing else on it: no extra claims, badges, stars or prices. Simple layout, plain background, easy to read from across a room, no glow. Tall 4:5 shape.Fix one spot without starting over
WhereClick the image → Select → highlight the spot → type the fixClick the image to open it, choose Select, highlight only the part that's wrong, and type what it should say. You can also just say the fix in the chat. OpenAI warns the highlight isn't always exact and the edit can spill past it, so read the whole image again after.
Change the shape
Use the aspect ratio picker, or say it in the prompt: 4:5 for a tall feed post, 9:16 for a story. Then check the words again, because a reshaped image is a redrawn image.
Read every letter before it goes out
This is the step that actually protects you. ChatGPT can put clean text on an image, but it doesn't know your phone number. It knows what you typed and what it drew, and OpenAI's own docs say the image model can still struggle with precise text placement and clarity. So read it off the image, not off your notes, because your brain fills in what you meant to type.
BEFORE IT GOES OUT (read it off the image, not off your notes)
[ ] Phone number: read it out loud, digit by digit
[ ] Then call it from another phone. Does YOUR phone ring?
[ ] Website: type it into a browser exactly as it's spelled on the image
[ ] Company name: every letter
[ ] Headline and points: no doubled words, no made-up words
[ ] The offer: it's one you actually run, word for word
[ ] No extra claims it slipped in (stars, "#1", a warranty, a price, a date)
[ ] The product looks like what you actually sell
[ ] No customer's house number, street sign, face or plate in the photo
[ ] Someone else reads it too, because you'll see what you meant to typeEverything ChatGPT makes is kept under Images in ChatGPT too, so if you lose the file you can go back and grab it.
First test: a poster with no words (free)
Before you put any words on it, see if ChatGPT keeps your product looking right. Upload the photo and send this:
Minimal poster. Use the product in my photo exactly as it is: same shape, same color, same frame. Plain light background, lots of empty space, natural daylight. No text at all. No glow, no gradients, no extra objects. Tall 4:5 shape.Good: it's clearly your product, same shape and color, on a plain background with real-looking light. Bad: the frame changed, extra panes showed up, it's glowing, or there's random text on it. Then say exactly what changed (“keep the frame exactly like my photo”) and run it again before you move on to the ads with words.
More prompts for the same chat
Make the same clean flyer in a 9:16 shape for a story. Keep every word exactly the same, keep the product unchanged, and leave empty space at the top and bottom.On the last image, change only this text: "[WHAT IT SAYS NOW]" should say "[WHAT IT SHOULD SAY]". Don't change anything else.Make it look less AI-made: flat natural light, no glow, no gradients, no reflections that aren't in my photo, plain background, one font. Keep the product and every word exactly the same.Read every word and number on the last image back to me exactly as it's spelled there, line by line. Don't correct anything, just read it.The read-back helps you catch things, but ChatGPT can misread an image too. The final check is still you reading it and calling the number.
What it costs
| Plan | Monthly (US) | Images |
|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT Free | $0 | Limited image creation, with its own cap; ChatGPT tells you when you hit it. 3 file uploads a day |
| ChatGPT Go | $8 | More image creation than Free |
| ChatGPT Plus | $20 | More complex and accurate image creation; images with thinking (Plus, Pro and Business only) |
I'd start on Free. You'll know after the first test whether it's worth paying for more, and if you hit the limit, ChatGPT tells you.
When it breaks
A wrong digit or a misspelled word on the image
It keeps getting the phone number wrong
It added a claim you never typed (stars, “#1”, a warranty, a price, a date)
Your product doesn't look like your product anymore
The glow and gradient look came back
Wrong shape for where you're posting
The edit changed more than the spot you highlighted
It won't take your photo
It says you've hit your image limit
That's the trick
One real photo, three short prompts, and you read every letter and call the number before it goes out. That's how you get an ad that looks clean and rings your phone, not a stranger's.
Checked on Oct 31, 2026 against
Every claim about a third-party tool in this guide (plans, prices, menu paths, commands, limits) was checked against these official pages on Oct 31, 2026. These screens change often: if something looks different, trust the page over this guide.
- OpenAI Help: Images in ChatGPTAsk for an image in a chat or open Images; the aspect ratio picker; the editor's Select tool and that highlights aren't always exact; images are saved under Images; available on all plans; images with thinking on Plus, Pro and Business; the editor's Undo.
- OpenAI Help: Uploading files and audio to ChatGPT+ in the prompt area, then Add photos & files, or drag or paste an image in; 20 MB per image; Free users are limited to 3 file uploads a day.
- OpenAI Help: ChatGPT Image Inputs FAQSupported image formats (PNG, JPEG, non-animated GIF), 20 MB per image, and that it may misread rotated or upside-down text.
- OpenAI Help: ChatGPT Free Tier FAQImage creation on Free has its own usage limit, and ChatGPT tells you when you reach it.
- OpenAI Help: What is ChatGPT Go?Go at $8 a month in the US (checked 2026-10-31).
- OpenAI Help: What is ChatGPT Plus?Plus at $20 a month (checked 2026-10-31).
- OpenAI Help: ChatGPT release notesChatGPT Images 2.5 (September 8, 2026): sharper details, more precise editing, templates; existing image limits unchanged.
- ChatGPT: Plans and pricingFree $0 (limited image creation), Go $8 (more image creation), Plus $20 a month (more complex and accurate image creation), checked 2026-10-31.
- OpenAI API: Image generation guideThe GPT Image models; the limitation that the model can still struggle with precise text placement and clarity.
- OpenAI API: PricingGPT Image 2.5 models at $30 per 1M image output tokens; per-image cost from the calculator in the image generation guide (checked 2026-10-31).
Questions people ask about this
