# Ask the right clarifying questions on a vague ticket

Turns an unclear customer message into a short list of targeted questions so you solve it in one more reply, not five.

- Topic: Customer Support
- Framework: RTF
- Level: Standard
- Tags: Customer Support, Write, Plan, Fill-in Template, Interactive
- Source: https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/prompts/ask-the-right-clarifying-questions-on-a-vague-ticket

## Prompt

```text
Help me reply to a vague support ticket with the right clarifying questions.

**Customer's message (remove personal data):** [PASTE]
**Product or service involved:** [WHAT THEY USE]
**What I can already see on my side:** [ACCOUNT STATUS, ORDER, LOGS, PLAN - or "nothing yet"]
**Common causes of issues like this:** [WHAT USUALLY GOES WRONG - optional]
**Channel:** [email / chat / social DM]

Steps:
1. List the 2-4 most likely interpretations of what the customer means.
2. Identify the minimum information needed to tell those apart and fix the issue. Skip anything I can look up myself.
3. Write the reply.

Rules for the reply:
- Acknowledge the issue in one sentence using their words.
- Ask no more than 4 questions, numbered, each answerable in a few words or a screenshot. Explain how to find anything technical (e.g. where the version number is).
- If there is a quick fix that solves the most likely cause, offer it first so they may not need to answer at all.
- Never ask for passwords, full card numbers, or other secrets.

Return: the likely interpretations, the reply (under 150 words), and what I should check in my own tools while I wait.
```

## What to fill in

- PASTE
- WHAT THEY USE
- ACCOUNT STATUS, ORDER, LOGS, PLAN - or "nothing yet"
- WHAT USUALLY GOES WRONG - optional
- email / chat / social DM

Free to copy and use. From ThinkWithPrompt (https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/), a library of 2,663 curated AI prompts.