Title: Writing product templates and AI captions that convert | AutoPost guides Description: How to structure a social post template, which product variables to use, where AI copy helps, how to prompt for a consistent tone and how to adapt per network. Canonical URL: https://autopostbyamasty.com/guides/product-templates-and-ai-captions.html Product: AutoPost — AI Social Media Posting — a Shopify app by Amasty (https://apps.shopify.com/autopost-social-media-ai-post) Updated: September 9, 2026 --- # Writing product templates and AI captions that convert Content · 7 min read · Updated September 9, 2026 A template is the part of your social presence you only write once. Get it right and hundreds of posts inherit the quality; get it wrong and you automate a bad habit. Here is how to structure one, where AI helps, and where fixed copy is better. ## Contents 1. [The structure of a good template](#structure) 2. [Using product variables](#variables) 3. [Where AI belongs](#ai) 4. [Writing a prompt that behaves](#prompts) 5. [Adapting to each network](#networks) 6. [Hashtags without the spam](#hashtags) 7. [Discount-aware templates](#discounts) 8. [Testing before you scale](#test) ## 1. The structure of a good template Almost every effective product post has the same four parts: 1. **Hook** — the first line, the only one everyone reads. 2. **Substance** — what the product is, or what it does for the buyer. 3. **Action** — a clear instruction plus the link. 4. **Context** — a handful of hashtags. Keep the hook and the action under your control, and let the substance vary per product. That is the split that makes automation safe. ## 2. Using product variables Variables are replaced with real values at publish time: | Variable | Becomes | Note | | --- | --- | --- | | `{PRODUCT_TITLE}` | The product title | Long titles can wreck a tight caption — preview before saving | | `{PRODUCT_URL}` | The product page link | Always link the product, not the homepage | | `{PRODUCT_PRICE}` | Current price | Powerful for value-led products, risky if you reprice often | | `{COMPARE_AT_PRICE}` | Compare-at price | Pair with the current price to make a saving visible | | `{DISCOUNTED_PRICE}` | Price after an applied discount | Only meaningful when a discount actually applies | | `{DISCOUNT_CODE}` | The Shopify discount code | Pulled from the real discount, so it cannot go stale | | `{RULE_DISCOUNT}` | The discount value from the rule | Good for “20% off” style copy | | `{GET_PRODUCT}` | The “get” item of a Buy X Get Y offer | For BxGy templates | | `{SHOP_NAME}` / `{SHOP_URL}` | Your store name and storefront | Use the name sparingly; followers know where they are | | `{AI_RESULT}` | AI-generated text for this product | The one variable that changes voice, not just data | ## 3. Where AI belongs AI is good at rephrasing a product description into something conversational and different for every item. It is bad at knowing your promise, your legal claims and your tone boundaries. So: - **Let AI write** the product-specific middle: the benefit, the use case, the small observation about why it is nice. - **Keep fixed** your brand line, your call to action, your link and your hashtags. - **Never let AI generate** prices, discounts, stock claims, delivery promises or health and safety statements. Use variables for facts. **A template that follows the rule** `{AI_RESULT}` Shop it here: `{PRODUCT_URL}` #newin #madeforeveryday Two fixed lines you approved, one variable line that adapts to every product. ## 4. Writing a prompt that behaves Specific prompts produce consistent output. Say the length, the tone, the format and the exclusions: - **Weak:** “Write a caption for this product.” - **Strong:** “Write two sentences about this product for Instagram. Warm, plain English, no exclamation marks, no hashtags, no emoji. Mention one concrete benefit from the description. Do not mention price or shipping.” Then generate against three very different products — your cheapest, your most technical and your oddest — and read all three. If any of them embarrasses you, the prompt is not finished. ## 5. Adapting to each network | Network | What works | Length | | --- | --- | --- | | **TikTok** | A scroll-stopping first line; casual, specific, no corporate voice | Short, though up to 2,200 characters is allowed | | **Instagram** | A little more story; line breaks; hashtags at the end | Medium | | **Facebook** | Plain description plus a clear call to action; audiences skew older | Medium | | **Pinterest** | Descriptive, search-oriented copy — people arrive through search | Short to medium | | **X (Twitter)** | One sharp sentence and a link | Very short | ## 6. Hashtags without the spam - Three to five tags is plenty on TikTok and Instagram; one or none on X. - Mix one broad tag, one category tag and one specific tag. - Keep them in the fixed part of the template so they stay deliberate. - Skip tags unrelated to the product — platforms notice, and so do people. ## 7. Discount-aware templates The built-in discount templates read the real Shopify discount, code or Buy X Get Y offer, which means a promo post cannot advertise a code that does not exist. Use them for sales rather than hard-coding “SUMMER20” into a caption you will forget to change — and pair a dated campaign with the **Disable automation** end-of-run action so it cannot outlive the offer. ## 8. Testing before you scale 1. Create the template and preview it against three different products. 2. Build an automation with a narrow condition — one collection, one network. 3. Let it publish five posts. 4. Read them on the platform, not in the app. Copy reads differently in a real feed. 5. Adjust the template, then widen the condition. Five posts on the free plan is exactly enough for this test, which is what the free plan is for. **Next:** [Building your first automation](https://autopostbyamasty.com/build-first-automation.html) · [A social content calendar for a Shopify store](https://autopostbyamasty.com/social-content-calendar-for-shopify.html)