Core concepts

Prompting is how you direct Rocket using clear, natural language. You describe what you want (screens, logic, fixes, flows) and Rocket figures out the how.This guide covers:

The S.I.M.P.L.E. framework for writing effective prompts
Core prompting strategies (zero-shot, instructional, one-shot)
How to build features incrementally
Common mistakes and how to fix them

Looking for ready-to-use prompts? Browse the Prompt library. Running into issues? Check the Debugging guide.

Start with clear intent

Strong prompting always starts with one question: What should this app, screen, or feature do, in one sentence? Write that sentence first. Then layer in:

What

What the user can do (core actions)

Where

Where it lives (which screen, component, or flow)

Avoid vague prompts like “Make this better”, “Fix the layout”, or “Clean up the logic.” These feel fast to write but are slow to fix.A slightly longer, more specific prompt is almost always faster overall.

The S.I.M.P.L.E. framework

Use the S.I.M.P.L.E. framework as a quick checklist before you send any substantial prompt.

Letter	Principle	What it means
S	Specific	Say exactly what you want, not just how it should “feel”.
I	Incremental	Ask for one focused change at a time.
M	Meaningful context	Include only the context Rocket actually needs.
P	Pattern-aware	Point to existing screens, styles, or flows when helpful.
L	Limited scope	State what not to touch to avoid drift.
E	Explicit structure	Describe layout and order the way users experience it.

You do not need to label each part in your prompt. Just make sure these ideas are present.

S - Specific

Vague:

Make a screen that shows some user data.

Specific:

Create a dashboard that shows name, email, and last login date from the `users` table.

Specific prompts are faster overall because you skip back-and-forth corrections.

I - Incremental

Break big ideas into small, safe steps.

Step 1: Build just the layout for the checkout page (no payment logic yet).
Step 2: Add basic form validation.
Step 3: Connect to the payment provider.

Each prompt should move the app forward in a way you can quickly review.

M - Meaningful context

Include only the details that change the outcome, enough to be clear, not a full spec.

This is the main analytics dashboard for marketing.
Users scan it quickly, often on laptops.
Focus on making key metrics readable at a glance.

If a teammate would not need a detail to build it, the AI probably does not either.

P - Pattern-aware

When you already have good examples in your app, reuse them.

Create a settings page using the same card layout, spacing,
and button styles as the existing profile page.
Include sections for notifications, privacy, and account settings.

This keeps your app consistent without rewriting every requirement.

L - Limited scope

Tell Rocket what not to change so it does not “help” too much.

Only update the header layout on this page.
Do not change navigation links, routes, or any data fetching logic.

Use @ commands to automatically limit changes to specific files or folders, ensuring edits stay focused and predictable.

@pages/dashboard.jsx only update the header layout. Do not change navigation links or data fetching.
@components/card.jsx fix spacing between title and content. Keep all other styling unchanged.

E - Explicit structure

Describe the layout in the same top-to-bottom order a user experiences it.

Create a dashboard layout:
- Top: header with the user's name and a "New report" button.
- Middle: three metric cards in a row (revenue, active users, churn rate).
- Bottom: a table showing the last 20 events.

Logical order helps Rocket structure the screen cleanly on the first try.

Self-check before sending

Before you submit a prompt, ask yourself:

Do you know exactly what “done” looks like?
Is it Specific, Incremental, contextual, Pattern-aware, Limited, and Explicitly structured?
Could you review the result in under 5 minutes?

If any answer is “no”, shrink the prompt or clarify the outcome.

Basic prompting strategies

Once you are comfortable with S.I.M.P.L.E., these core strategies cover most day-to-day work.

Zero-shot

Direct instructions. Use when the task is small and clear, and you do not need to match an existing pattern.

Create a screen that lists all orders placed in the last 7 days.

Combine with S, L, and E from S.I.M.P.L.E. to keep it specific, scoped, and structured.

Instructional

Step-by-step “how.” Use when layout and structure really matter.

Build a form layout:
- Title centered at the top,
- Three input fields stacked vertically with 16px spacing,
- Submit button centered below the last field.

You are telling Rocket how to build it, not just what to build.

One-shot

“Like this, but for X.” Use when you already have a good example in your app and want to mirror it.

Create a billing settings page using the same card layout and spacing
as the existing profile page. Include sections for payment methods,
invoices, and subscription details.

This leans on the Pattern-aware part of S.I.M.P.L.E.

Plan, Build, Refine

Think of your prompting workflow in three lightweight phases.

Plan just enough

Spend a minute writing down:

What you are building
Who it is for
The top 3 jobs it must do well

I am building an internal CRM for our support team.
Top 3 jobs: 1) track conversations, 2) see customer history, 3) schedule follow-ups.
Start by creating a main dashboard layout that surfaces today's tasks and recently updated tickets.

Build in controlled steps

Use Incremental and Limited scope:

First, create the layout for the dashboard only.
Do not connect to real data yet, just use mock data.

Then:

Now connect this dashboard to the existing `tickets` table.
Keep the current layout exactly the same.

Refine safely

Once something basically works, avoid “start over” prompts. Instead:

The current version of this screen works correctly.
Now only improve the visual hierarchy:
- Keep all existing behavior and data loading,
- Focus on spacing, typography, and grouping related content.

Use / commands to make targeted changes - swap components, reorganize sections, or fix issues - without rebuilding from scratch.

Common mistakes and how to fix them

These common prompting mistakes map directly to the S.I.M.P.L.E. principles. Use this table as a quick reference when prompts are not working as expected.

Mistake	Example	Why it fails	S.I.M.P.L.E. fix
The Vague Vanisher	”Make it look nice”	Subjective, no clear anchor	Specific, Explicit structure
The Everything Bagel	”Create a full e-commerce site with products, cart, checkout, user accounts, and admin dashboard”	Too many responsibilities at once	Incremental, Limited scope
The Missing Data	”Show all user data in a table"	"All” is undefined, no source specified	Specific, Meaningful context
The Silent Change	”Clean this up”	No definition of what stays the same	Limited scope, Explicit structure
The Assumption Trap	”Make it user-friendly and fast”	Assumes Rocket knows your preferences	Specific, Meaningful context
The Reverse Order	”Add a submit button, then create a form with name and email fields above it”	Describes elements in wrong order	Explicit structure
The Constraint Gap	”Update the header”	No boundaries on what to change	Specific, Limited scope

The Vague Vanisher

Mistake:

Make it look nice.

“Nice” is subjective and open to interpretation. Rocket does not know what “nice” means to you.

Fix:

Improve the visual design of this screen while keeping all logic the same.
Increase white space between sections, use a clean sans-serif font,
set body text to 14-16px, and add subtle 8px rounded corners and soft shadows
to cards so they stand out from the background.

The Everything Bagel

Mistake:

Create a complete e-commerce site with product pages, shopping cart, checkout, user accounts, payment processing, order tracking, and admin dashboard.

Too many responsibilities in one prompt. Hard to review, debug, or roll back.

Fix (break it into smaller prompts):

Step 1: Create a product listing page with product cards showing image, name, price, and "Add to Cart" button.

Then build incrementally using iterative refinement.

The Missing Data

Mistake:

Show all the user data in a table.

“All” is undefined. No source table, fields, ordering, or filters specified.

Fix:

Display user data from the `users` table in a table format. Show columns for: user ID, name, email, registration date, and account status. Sort by registration date (newest first). Add a filter to show only active users.

The Assumption Trap

Mistake:

Make it user-friendly and fast.

Assumes Rocket knows your definition of “user-friendly” and “fast.”

Fix:

Use large input fields (minimum 44px height), minimal text, and a single-step submission flow. Optimize by lazy-loading images and implementing pagination for lists over 50 items.

The Silent Change

Mistake:

Clean this up.

No definition of what “clean” means and no boundaries on what should stay the same.

Fix:

Improve the code organization in the `utils` folder only:
- Refactor helper functions into separate files by category
- Add JSDoc comments to exported functions
- Do not change any function logic, parameters, or return values
- Do not modify files outside the `utils` folder

Or with commands: @utils/helpers.jsx refactor helper functions into separate files. Do not change function logic or parameters.

The Reverse Order

Mistake:

Add a submit button, then create a form with name and email fields above it.

Describes elements bottom-to-top instead of top-to-bottom.

Fix:

Create a form layout:
- Top: form title "Contact Us"
- Middle: name input field (required)
- Below name: email input field (required)
- Bottom: submit button labeled "Send Message"

The Constraint Gap

Mistake:

Update the header.

Too vague. No boundaries on what can be changed.

Fix:

Update only the header text color and font size:
- Change header text color to #1a1a1a
- Increase font size to 24px
- Do not change header layout, navigation links, logo, or any other styling
- Keep all existing functionality unchanged

Or with commands: @components/header.jsx update only the text color and font size. Do not change layout or navigation.

When a prompt is not working, check which S.I.M.P.L.E. principle it violates. Most mistakes fall into one of these categories: being too vague (S), asking for too much (I, L), missing context (M), or unclear structure (E).

Prompting for integrations

When prompting Rocket to work with external services, being specific about names, keys, and configuration makes the difference between a working integration and a broken one.

Stripe

Always include the exact product name, price, billing interval, and mode (test or live).

Add Stripe payments to my app.

Add a Stripe checkout button for the "Pro Plan" at $29/month. Use test mode. On success, redirect to /dashboard?upgraded=true. On cancel, redirect back to /pricing. Show a loading state on the button while the session is being created.

Key details to include:

Product or plan name (for example, “Pro Plan”, “Starter Pack”)
Exact price and billing interval (for example, “ $29/month", "$ 199/year”)
Test or live mode
Success and cancel redirect URLs
Whether it is a one-time payment or a subscription

Supabase

Always name your tables, list the columns with their types, and specify which auth method you are using.

Connect my app to Supabase and show user data.

Fetch data from the Supabase `profiles` table. Show columns: display_name (text), avatar_url (text), bio (text), and created_at (timestamp). Filter by the currently authenticated user's ID using auth.uid(). Display the data in an editable form on the /settings page.

Key details to include:

Table name and column names with types
Auth method (email/password, Google OAuth, magic link)
RLS requirements (who can read, write, update, delete)
Redirect paths after auth events
Whether to use real-time subscriptions

AI features

Always specify which model to use, the desired tone or style of output, and any context limits.

Add AI to generate descriptions for my products.

Add a "Generate Description" button next to the product description field. When clicked, send the product name and category to OpenAI's gpt-4o model with the prompt: "Write a 2-sentence product description in a friendly, professional tone." Insert the result into the description field. Let the user edit the result before saving.

Key details to include:

Model name (for example, gpt-4o, claude-3.5-sonnet, gemini-pro)
Tone or style (for example, professional, casual, technical)
Output format (for example, bullet points, paragraph, JSON)
Maximum length or token limit
Fallback behavior if the API call fails

Email

Always specify the trigger event, recipient, subject line, and body content.

Send emails when things happen in my app.

When a user completes checkout, send an order confirmation email using Resend. Recipient: the user's email from their profile. Subject: "Order #[order_id] confirmed". Body: list purchased items with name, quantity, and price, then show the total and a "View Order" button linking to /orders/[order_id]. Use the RESEND_API_KEY from environment variables.

Key details to include:

Trigger event (for example, signup, purchase, password reset)
Recipient (who gets the email)
Subject line
Body content and any dynamic data to include
Which email service to use (Resend, SendGrid)
API key location (environment variables)

Quick comparison

Integration	Bad prompt	Good prompt	Why it is better
Stripe	”Add payments"	"Add a Stripe checkout for the Pro Plan at $29/month in test mode, redirecting to /success on completion”	Specifies plan, price, mode, and redirect
Supabase	”Save data to the database"	"Insert a new row into the `tasks` table with columns title (text), status (text), and user_id (uuid) from the task creation form”	Names the table, columns, and types
AI	”Use AI to help users"	"Add a summarize button that sends article content to OpenAI gpt-4o and returns 3 bullet points in a professional tone”	Names the model, output format, and tone
Email	”Send notification emails"	"When a team member is invited, send an email via Resend with subject ‘You have been invited to [team_name]’ and an accept button linking to /invite/[token]“	Specifies trigger, subject, body, and service
Analytics	”Add tracking"	"Track a ‘signup_completed’ GA4 event with parameters signup_method and plan_name when a user finishes registration”	Names the event, parameters, and trigger

LEARN

TUTORIALS

PROMPT STARTERS

TEMPLATES

WORKFLOWS

RECIPES

GUIDES

EXAMPLES & VIDEOS

Start with clear intent

What

Where

The S.I.M.P.L.E. framework

S - Specific

I - Incremental

M - Meaningful context

P - Pattern-aware

L - Limited scope

E - Explicit structure

Self-check before sending

Basic prompting strategies

Zero-shot

Instructional

One-shot

Plan, Build, Refine

Common mistakes and how to fix them

The Vague Vanisher

The Everything Bagel

The Missing Data

The Assumption Trap

The Silent Change

The Reverse Order

The Constraint Gap

Prompting for integrations

Stripe

Supabase

AI features

Email

Quick comparison

​Start with clear intent

What

Where

​The S.I.M.P.L.E. framework

​S - Specific

​I - Incremental

​M - Meaningful context

​P - Pattern-aware

​L - Limited scope

​E - Explicit structure

​Self-check before sending

​Basic prompting strategies

Zero-shot

Instructional

One-shot

​Plan, Build, Refine

​Common mistakes and how to fix them

​The Vague Vanisher

​The Everything Bagel

​The Missing Data

​The Assumption Trap

​The Silent Change

​The Reverse Order

​The Constraint Gap

​Prompting for integrations

​Stripe

​Supabase

​AI features

​Email

​Quick comparison

Start with clear intent

The S.I.M.P.L.E. framework

S - Specific

I - Incremental

M - Meaningful context

P - Pattern-aware

L - Limited scope

E - Explicit structure

Self-check before sending

Basic prompting strategies

Plan, Build, Refine

Common mistakes and how to fix them

The Vague Vanisher

The Everything Bagel

The Missing Data

The Assumption Trap

The Silent Change

The Reverse Order

The Constraint Gap

Prompting for integrations

Stripe

Supabase

AI features

Email

Quick comparison