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10 Surprising Uses for ChatGPT You Haven’t Tried Yet

ByNina Clapperton Updated on

ChatGPT has become more mainstream in the last year, but so many people are only using it for the basics. While I love ChatGPT for writing content or repurposing content, or even just turning my dog into a Pixar character, there is so much more that the tool is capable of!

I’m sharing 10 of my favourite unique ways to use ChatGPT to benefit you. These are all methods I regularly use and stumbled upon during one hyperfixation or another.

I’ll share some prompts I use for these different uses as well to get you started.

You’ll want to save this post for later so you can really make the most out of ChatGPT – especially if you have a paid plan.

Surprising Uses for ChatGPT

1. Coding Custom Web Elements

I can’t code. I can barely bold a word with HTML.

But with ChatGPT, I’ve been able to code custom elements that I would have had to pay a developer thousands of dollars for.

Here are just some of the fun things I’ve been able to do to customize my site:

  • Turn every instance a certain word is used a colour, for example “red” would turn red across the site
  • Center all images (notice all the images on She Knows SEO?)
  • Add space before and/or after h2s
  • Change the link colour for headers

These might seem like small fixes, and they are, but they’re just the start.

I’ve also used ChatGPT to help me work out non-code solutions with my theme, that I expected I’d need to code. So it saved me even more hassle!

To customize a website with ChatGPT, use this prompt:

“Hey ChatGPT, please act as an expert coder. I have a [WordPress/Squarespace/etc.] website that I would like some custom code for. I want to [what do you want to do]. Can you suggest a simple way to do this?”

You can also ask it to “provide a step by step guide on how to implement this code on my website” if you’re not sure where to add code.

If you know that you need HTML, CSS, or Javascript, tell it and you’ll get an even more precise answer.

For anything beyond one or two lines of code, I recommend the paid plan as it’s much better with coding.

2. Fix Coding Problems When You Can’t Code

I get dozens of emails from readers who are having a problem with their blog and need help. But I’m not a coder. I can’t fix a random white space or all of the capitalized words being italicized for some reason.

But ChatGPT can!

Go to any blog post causing you issues and do one of two things. Either:

  1. Screenshot the page if it’s a visual issue, such as a weird white space
  2. Right click on the page and click “Page Source”. Provide this code to ChatGPT for any coding issues.

Provide this information to ChatGPT, explain the problem and anything you’ve done to attempt to fix it, and let ChatGPT work its magic.

For example, if I was having a problem with all of my headers being centered when I didn’t want them to be, I would give ChatGPT this prompt:

“Hey ChatGPT, please act as an expert coder. I have a WordPress blog that uses the Kadence theme and Kadence blocks. All of my headers are showing up as centered in the front end view when they are left-oriented in the block editor. How can I fix this? Here is the code of a webpage from my site for you to examine and help me pinpoint the issue: [paste code]”

If you are half decent at coding, you can also use this method to have it troubleshoot code that isn’t working. The best prompt, as simple as it is, is to ask ChatGPT “why isn’t this working?”

3. Create Custom Formulas for Spreadsheets

I get so lost with Google Sheets and Excel formulas. I always assume the same will work for both of them, and then somehow get it all wrong.

But I still love a spreadsheet and use them constantly to organize my business and create calculators for my Profitable Part-Time Blogger students.

When I’m not sure of exactly the formula I need, or even if one exists, I’ll go over to ChatGPT and ask it for help.

You need to be very clear to provide it the row, column, and sheet names so it can create the appropriate formula for you. Otherwise you’ll need to do a lot of editing and that’s just annoying.

I’ve had ChatGPT create 4 paragraph formulas for me before with all the variables I needed. I never would have been able to figure that out on my own!

I even use it for formulas in my bookkeeping and my accountant called to tell me how impressed he was with my spreadsheet. Jokes on him, I have no idea what I’m doing! I just asked ChatGPT for help.

The prompt is as simple as:

“Hey ChatGPT, I need to do [x] in an [Excel/Google Sheet]. The first sheet is called [x] and has the columns [list] and rows [list]. The second sheet is called [x] and has the columns [list] and rows [list]. What is a formula that can do [x] for me?”

You will need to test this, as sometimes ChatGPT doesn’t understand what we’re asking of it, especially if it’s more complicated.

If it doesn’t work, just like with coding any elements, I’ll ask ChatGPT, “why didn’t this work?” and paste the formula in for it to evaluate.

4. Create Interactive Elements

We all love interactive elements because they’re more fun!

Who wants to read a boring 12,000 word long blog post when you could do a quiz, play with a name generator, or use a calculator that gives a custom result just for you??

I started coding calculators randomly in the summer of 2023. Not only did my users love them, but Google loved them! I started ranking for keywords with thousands of pageviews with simple calculators I made in 5 minutes.

I share my base code and the best methods to SEO optimize interactive elements in my AI Powered Site Boosters course.

I’ll give you the base code for calculators, quizzes, and name generators so you don’t have to worry about the complex coding. Then you just tell ChatGPT how you want to adapt it.

For example:

“Please take this code for a calculator and change it so that it calculates a 15% tip added on top of whatever number is inputted by the user. Here is the code: [paste code]”.

5. Convert Long Form Content to Scripts

The key to success these days is repurposing your work. Whether that’s turning a newsletter into a blog post, video into a social promo, or turning long form content like this into a script.

And it’s so easy to make those changes with ChatGPT!

Most people prefer to start from video then convert to text, but I rarely see people doing the opposite. However, as a text-first girlie, I much prefer to start with the writing.

Although, ironically, this post was actually a video first:

First you need to train ChatGPT on what a “good” script looks like to you. This will vary by your needs.

Is it a Tiktok script? A long form video? Do you have a special intro style?

Train it on an existing transcript or an example script you have, and then feed it the content to turn into the script.

You’ll get the best results for long form content by doing this piece by piece – intro, then body or chapter, then conclusion.

Here’s a basic prompt to get you started:

“Hey ChatGPT, please act as a video expert with a specialization in [platform, i.e. Youtube]. I am going to provide you with a piece of content that I need you to turn into a great video script. Here is an example of a great video script that you should emulate the tone and style of, but ignore the content: [paste script]. Here is the piece of content for you to adapt: [paste blog post or provide URL if using paid GPT].”

6. Automating Social Media

I hate social media.

I know it’s not cool to say, but I am not a fan.

I love long winded posts, like this one. A 180 character post drives me insane. And the need for constant posting just burns me out.

So I found a way around it!

All you need is an Open AI API account (free to set up, then you pay per word), a Zapier or Make.com account, and WordPress. This probably works with other systems too, but I’ve only tested it with WordPress.

You will build a connection that alerts the connector, Zapier or Make, when a new blog post is published on WordPress. This will send the URL and title of the post to Open AI’s API with a pre-written prompt to turn your blog post into a social post. Then, it will send it back to Zapier or Make, and post it to your relevant social feeds. It can even include the post’s featured image for Instagram and Pinterest.

You can get the full set up instructions in my post here.

I recommend a prompt like:

“Write an engaging 1 sentence promotion for this blog post. Include a relevant emoji.”

7. Brainstorm Thumbnails and Featured Images

I am not a visual person, so I really struggle to come up with ideas for visuals to go with blog posts and Youtube videos.

Luckily, ChatGPT can do that for you!

Now, there are legal issues with using AI images for resale. I’m not going to weigh in on them in depth here. Go chat with a lawyer as this is evolving quickly.

So I’m not comfortable reselling them. But I am comfortable using them as a base idea, or for a featured image for a blog post (since I don’t sell those).

You can feed ChatGPT the content of your video or blog post, or write a short brief (I find the brief is more accurate) and ask it to pitch you 10 ideas for images. Then pick the one you want and have Dalle-3 generate it for you.

I then take this to Canva to DIY my own version of something similar.

Here’s a prompt:

“Hey ChatGPT. I am recording a video on [topic]. The video is for [audience] with the goal of [goal]. My channel is [niche]. Please suggest 10 thumbnail designs I could use for this video.”

This is the prompt I used to make the featured image for this blog post!

8. Finding Sources to Verify or Disprove Facts

Audiences trust sources.

But it can be hard to find sources if you don’t know where to look.

I love ChatGPT and Bing’s AI for this! Both can look over past material before I knew to add 3 external sources per blog post, and suggest a source for me.

I actually ask it for 3 sources that prove and disprove the fact so I can also verify that it is, in fact, correct.

For example, if I needed the population of a location, I would ask for a couple sources so I could verify that I have the most up to date number. If it’s been a few years, there will be sources that agree with my number, but they’ll be out of date.

You can also ask for the “most up to date sources”.

Always open the sources to actually check that they are legitimate and that they are making the claim that the AI says they are. It’s getting more accurate, but I still always recommend fact checking it yourself.

I also use this for any fact that an AI has provided to me without a source. If it tells me that Canada has 1 billion people living in it, I’d ask for 3 sources to back that up. (No, we don’t. We’ve only got about 41 million people – and I found that source with ChatGPT).

Here’s the prompt:

“Hey ChatGPT, please provide me with 3 sources proving and disproving this claim: [paste fact/claim]. These should be reputable sources. They should be published in the last 3 years.”

9. Interview Your an Audience Avatar

Businesses, whether they’re ecommerce, blogs, or services, need an audience. These are the people you’re speaking to and, probably, selling to.

Even social media content creators need an audience, otherwise they’re doing “Get Ready With Me”s into the vacuum of space.

Most people never define this audience. And even fewer actually understand them.

ChatGPT can help with that! You can feed ChatGPT your audience avatar (also referred to as a “customer avatar” or “buyer persona” in some fields).

Then you can ask ChatGPT to act as that avatar and let you interview them.

This allows a business owner to gain key insights into their audience to figure out their pain points and what benefits the business owner can offer the audience.

Try to include the avatar’s name, age, gender, goals, challenges, preferences, industry/niche context, and any relevant behaviours.

“Hey ChatGPT, please act as [customer avatar name]. [Customer avatar name] is [describe avatar in as much detail as possible]. You will act as [customer avatar name] and I will ask questions with you answering so we can have an open-ended, dynamic conversation that helps me understand [customer avatar name] better.”

10. Get an Accessibility Audit

Most content on and offline isn’t accessible to disabled individuals.

I created a Blog Accessibility Checklist to help online businesses with their accessibility, but many people still struggle to enact it because it feels like it’s too complicated. They often need someone to specifically look at their site and tell them what’s wrong with it so they can improve it.

Enter ChatGPT.

You can ask ChatGPT to perform an accessibility audit on any type of content and suggest ways to improve. It can even walk you through the tasks you need to complete step by step, so anyone can follow them.

Here is the prompt:

“Hey ChatGPT. Can you please guide me through performing an accessibility audit on [content]? I’m looking to make sure it’s accessible for people with disabilities, including visual, auditory, motor, and cognitive impairments, and those who use [accessibility tool(s)/aid(s)]. What are the key elements I should evaluate, and could you provide a checklist of items to assess to be compliant?”

Conclusion

There are so many amazing things that ChatGPT can do. You’re really online limited by your own creativity.

I’ve coded plugins with ChatGPT – you can get my Scavenger Hunt plugin for WordPress free here, written limericks about my morning lavender lattes, read ingredients at the grocery store to find hidden gluten in ingredients, and organized my calendar based on my to do list and my availability.

It really is like having an assistant on hand at all times!

I’d love to hear about some creative ways you’ve used ChatGPT. Tweet them to me @ninaclapperton or post them in my free Facebook group.

Read More About AI and Content Creation

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Nina Clapperton is the founder of She Knows SEO.

She started blogging in 2018 and spent years doing everything “right” while earning $0. Then she stopped guessing and learned how search actually works. She rebuilt her travel site around audience intent and structure and grew to 50,000 sessions in 6 months. Within a year, the blog was bringing in $30,000 months and later crossed 243,000 pageviews.

She took the same audience first SEO approach and built her education business into multiple $100,000 months.

Now Nina teaches bloggers and online business owners how to build search powered businesses grounded in strong positioning, clear structure, and monetisation that actually supports their audience. She covers traditional SEO and AI driven search without the tech bro noise, and she’s known for explaining complex strategy with analogies you won’t forget.

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