Manage instructions

Instructions are an added level of context that you can provide to tell Optimizely Opal how to behave and when to run the instruction. Opal evaluates all available instructions and determines which ones apply to the current task. Opal is not limited to a single instruction per action. It looks through every instruction to see what applies to its task, groups them, and produces output that meets the criteria of the prompt you send.

Optimizely Opal comes with prebuilt instructions to help you get started. You can modify these to match your brand voice and strategy, or you can create simple or detailed instructions from scratch. For example

• Simple – You should ask users for keywords they are targeting when they ask to generate content.
• Detailed – Here is everything about the tone of voice and style you should use when generating content across all channels.

Access instructions

Opal administrators can access instructions in Opal. To do so, complete the following:

1. Log in to Optimizely.
2. Select your organization.

3. Click Opal.

   

4. Click Instructions.

   

Create instructions

See Create an organization-wide instruction.

Modify instructions

To modify an instruction, complete the steps in the Access instructions section and click on the instruction you want to edit or click More (...) > Edit. 

When updating an instruction, you can modify the following:

• Title – The name of the instruction.
• Core Instruction – The actual behavioral prompt Optimizely Opal uses to generate content.
• Active – If the instruction is on or off.
• Where to use – The Optimizely product and instance where Opal should use the instruction.
• When to Use – When Opal should apply this instruction.

When modifying instructions, follow these best practices: 

• Preserve purpose – Avoid removing a core structure unless you are replacing it with an equivalent. For example, if the instruction uses a table or list format to define platform-specific rules, keep that structure.
• Be explicit and actionable – Use clear, imperative language. Tell Opal what to do, not just what to consider.
• Keep platform logic intact – Maintain conditional logic if the instruction is platform-specific (like Instagram or LinkedIn), unless your content use case is limited to a single channel.
• Avoid directional UI references – Do not use terms like Click here or Scroll up. Instead, use context-aware phrasing like Select a post type.

Delete instructions

You can delete instructions from two locations in Opal. See the following sections for options.

From the Instructions page

To delete an instruction from the Instructions page, complete the steps in the Access instructions section, then complete the following:

1. Locate the instruction you want to delete.

2. Click More (...) > Delete. 

   

3. Click Delete on the confirmation page.

From the Edit Instructions page

To delete an instruction from the Edit Instructions page, follow the steps in the Access instructions and Modify instructions sections. Then, click More (...) > Delete Instruction.

Click Delete on the confirmation page.

Next steps

Explore the prebuilt instructions see what is available automatically in your Opal instance.

• Campaign brief – Guides the creation of a comprehensive marketing campaign brief, detailing its purpose, objectives, target audience, key messages, deliverables, channels, and measurement strategies.
• Industry marketer – Adapts existing content from a given URL to a specified industry, customizing it with relevant terminology and examples.
• Keyword-Research – Generates an expert-level keyword research report using the Idealab Opal tools, providing insights into search volume, Cost Per Click (CPC), related keywords, and common questions to inform your Search Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy.
• Marketing planning meeting – Helps organize and facilitate marketing planning meetings by generating agendas, summarizing key discussion points, and outlining action items.
• Marketing researcher – Conducts in-depth research on a topic you specify providing comprehensive reports and marketing strategy suggestions.
• Personalization advisor – Helps you uncover, design, and measure high-value personalization opportunities.
• Task brief – Generates a structured and actionable brief for a specific task or deliverable, ensuring it aligns with your overall campaign goals, audience, and requirements.
• Tone of voice (sample) – Provides a comprehensive guide to maintaining a consistent brand voice across all content, focusing on professionalism, positivity, insightfulness, and approachability.
• Video transcription – Transcribes audio from a video, offering plain text or .srt formats and removing filler words.

Explore following sample instructions are ready-made examples you can copy, customize, and use to create your own instructions. See the following samples:

• Sample boilerplate press release
• Sample competitor instruction
• Sample persona instruction
• Sample products and services instruction
• Sample tracked keyword instruction