BBB Flow™ Prompt Library: 25 Free AI Prompts for Any Bookkeeping File

Practical Learning 14 Day Refund Policy Live Sessions
Follow us

Practical Learning 14 Day Refund Policy Live Sessions
Follow us

BBB

BBB Flow™ Prompt Library

Open BBB Reports Get the Catch-Up Kit · R349

1

Upload your file. Open Claude or ChatGPT and attach your bookkeeping spreadsheet.

2

Paste Prompt 1 first. It tells the AI how to read your file and to speak plain English.

3

Pick any prompt below. Copy it, paste it into the same chat, and read your answer.

Using the BBB Flow Template? Upload it to BBB Reports for charts, a profit report and a trial balance, before you ask the AI.Open BBB Reports →

Before you uploadDelete ID numbers and bank account numbers from your file. Check your AI's settings so your chats aren't used for training.

Keep in mindAI can make mistakes, so check answers against your file. These prompts get you tax ready. They don't replace your tax practitioner.

A

Start here

Run Prompt 1 first in every new chat. It sets the rules.

RUN THIS FIRST

#01Start here

Read My File First

The AI confirms what's in your file before it analyses anything.

Why it matters: Stops the AI guessing, and sets plain-English, no-tax-advice rules for the whole chat.

I've uploaded my bookkeeping spreadsheet. It's the BBB Flow Template (or my own file). Before doing anything else:

1. Tell me which tabs you found and what each one holds.
2. Tell me the business name, the financial year and the months covered.
3. If it's the BBB Flow Template, the account numbers work like this: 100s money in, 200s cost of what I sold, 300s running costs (300 = not sure yet), 400s staff and salaries, 500s interest paid, 600s personal (not a business cost), 700s me and the business (owner money), 800s cash and loans (850 = suppliers I owe), 900s vehicles, equipment and deposits (950 = customers who owe me).
4. List anything you can't read or that looks incomplete.

Rules for this whole chat:
- Speak plain English. If you must use an accounting word, explain it in brackets.
- Only use numbers from my file. If you're guessing, say so clearly.
- Don't give tax advice. Tell me what to ask my tax practitioner instead.

Don't analyse anything yet. Confirm you understand the file, then wait for my next question.

B

Check and clean

Make sure your numbers are right before you trust them.

#02Check and clean

Is My File Ready? (Health Check)

A score out of 10 and a short list of fixes.

Why it matters: Shows you how clean your data is before you trust any numbers.

Do a health check on my file. Check for:
- lines with no account picked
- lines marked "300 Not sure yet"
- months with no transactions
- dates outside my financial year
- amounts that look like the wrong sign (minus vs plus)
- text where a number should be

Give me a score out of 10 for how ready my file is, then a short list of fixes, the most important first. For each fix, tell me how many lines it affects and which month they're in.

#03Check and clean

Sort Out My "Not Sure Yet" Lines

Suggests an account for every line you weren't sure about.

Why it matters: Gets you unstuck on the lines that stop you finishing.

List every line I've marked as "300 Not sure yet" (or left without an account). For each one, show the date, description and amount, then suggest the most likely account from my chart of accounts and say why in one short sentence.

Group lines with the same or similar description together so I can fix them in one go. Mark any you're really unsure about as "Ask your tax practitioner".

#04Check and clean

Find Double-Counts and Duplicates

Flags lines that may have been captured twice.

Why it matters: Duplicates inflate costs or income. They're the most common capture mistake.

Look for lines that may have been captured twice: the same amount on the same or nearby dates with a similar description. Also check whether any bill marked as paid in my "still to pay" list also appears as a separate expense, so it's counted twice.

Show each possible duplicate as a pair, side by side, and tell me how sure you are (high, medium or low). Don't assume they're wrong. Some payments really do repeat.

#05Check and clean

Personal or Business?

Separates personal spending from real business costs.

Why it matters: Personal spending in business costs is a SARS red flag, and it hides your real profit.

Go through my business costs (200s, 300s, 400s, 500s) and flag any lines that look like personal spending: groceries, school fees, clothing, personal subscriptions, family transfers, and so on.

Then check the other way round: flag anything in the 600s (personal) that looks like it might really be a business cost.

Show each flagged line with the date, description, amount and the account you'd suggest instead. Total how much might be in the wrong place.

#06Check and clean

Does My File Match My Bank?

Checks each month in your file against your bank statement.

Why it matters: If the file doesn't match the bank, nothing else can be trusted.

For each month in my file, work out the total money in, the total money out, and the closing balance per bank account (Bank 1, Bank 2, Bank 3, Cash) if my file shows them.

Then ask me for the closing balance on each month's bank statement. Once I give you those, show a table of file vs bank vs difference per month. For any month that doesn't match, suggest the likely cause: a missing line, a doubled line, or a wrong sign.

#07Check and clean

What's Missing?

Spots regular costs or income that disappear in some months.

Why it matters: Catches statements that were never pasted, and costs put in the wrong month.

Find payments and income that normally happen every month (rent, salaries, insurance, phone, regular customers) and show me any months where they're missing or very different from usual.

Show a simple grid: each regular item down the side, each month across the top, with a tick or a gap. Then list the gaps I should check first.

C

Understand your numbers

See what your business is really telling you.

#08Understand your numbers

My Year on One Page

A one-page, plain-English summary of your whole year.

Why it matters: Most owners have never seen their year in one view. This is the "aha" moment.

Write a one-page summary of my business year in plain English, as if you're explaining it to me over coffee:
- How much money came in
- How much it cost to make or buy what I sold
- How much went on running the business
- What was left (profit or loss)
- How much I took out for myself

Finish with the 3 most important things my numbers are telling me. Keep it under 300 words.

#09Understand your numbers

My Profit and Loss, Explained

A simple profit report, grouped and explained line by line.

Why it matters: Turns the "profit and loss" into something you understand, not something you fear.

Build a simple profit report for my financial year using the account groups: money in (100s), cost of what I sold (200s), running costs (300s), staff (400s), interest (500s). Leave out personal (600s), owner money (700s), cash and loans (800s) and assets (900s). Explain why those don't count as profit or loss.

Show each group's total, then the biggest 3 accounts inside each group. Under the table, explain in 3 or 4 plain sentences what this report means for my business.

#10Understand your numbers

Month by Month

A month-by-month table of money in, costs and profit.

Why it matters: Shows the rhythm of your business, and which months lost money.

Show me a month-by-month table with: money in, cost of what I sold, running costs, staff costs, and profit or loss for each month.

Then tell me my best month and my worst month and why, any month where I lost money, and whether things are getting better or worse over the year. If you can draw a chart, show money in vs total costs per month.

#11Understand your numbers

Where Does My Money Go?

Your top 10 costs ranked, each shown as a share of sales.

Why it matters: Owners are often shocked by which cost is really the biggest.

List my 10 biggest costs for the year (from the 200s to 500s). For each one, show the total and the percentage of my total money in, for example "for every R100 that came in, R12 went on fuel".

Then point out any cost that looks high for a business my size, and one cost that grew the most during the year.

#12Understand your numbers

What's Left After Each Sale?

Works out what's left from every R100 of sales after paying for what you sold.

Why it matters: Shows whether your prices cover your costs, the root of most cash problems.

For each month, take money in (100s) minus cost of what I sold (200s). Show what's left in rand and as a percentage, for example "for every R100 of sales, R38 is left to pay running costs".

Tell me whether this percentage is steady, rising or falling, and what could cause the change: price changes, supplier costs going up, or capturing mistakes. If my 200s are empty, tell me and explain what usually belongs there.

#13Understand your numbers

My Busy and Quiet Months

Shows the seasonal pattern of your business.

Why it matters: Helps you set cash aside for quiet months instead of being caught short.

Look at my money in month by month and show me my busy season and quiet season. How much lower is my quietest month than my average month?

Based on my running costs, tell me how much cash I'd need set aside to get through my quiet months without stress. Show your working simply.

#14Understand your numbers

This Year vs Last Year

A side-by-side comparison of two years.

Why it matters: Shows growth or decline, which banks and tenders always ask about.

I'm uploading two files (or one file with two years). Compare the two years side by side: money in, cost of what I sold, running costs, staff, profit, and what I took out.

Show the change in rand and as a percentage. Highlight the 3 biggest changes and explain what might have caused each one. If the two files use different account numbers, tell me before comparing.

#15Understand your numbers

Odd and Unusual Transactions

Flags once-off, unusually large or strange lines.

Why it matters: Catches mistakes, and the lines a tax practitioner will ask about.

Find transactions that stand out: unusually large amounts, round-number amounts (like R10,000 exactly), once-off payments, payments to people instead of businesses, and anything captured on a weekend or public holiday that looks out of place.

List them with the date, description, amount and account, and say in one line why each one stood out. Don't assume anything is wrong; these are just lines to double-check.

D

Cash and who owes who

Find the money: what came in, what went out, and who still owes.

#16Cash and who owes who

Where Did My Cash Come From and Go?

A simple cash story, including loans and money you put in or took out.

Why it matters: Answers "I made a profit, so why is there no money?"

Explain where my cash came from and where it went this year, in plain English. Include:
- profit or loss from trading
- money I put in or took out (700s)
- loans received or repaid (800s)
- vehicles, equipment or deposits bought (900s)
- personal spending paid from the business (600s)

Show it as a simple "cash at the start, in, out, cash at the end" table, then explain why my cash is different from my profit.

#17Cash and who owes who

Who Owes Me and Who I Owe

Lists unpaid customers and unpaid suppliers, oldest first.

Why it matters: Finds money owed to you, and bills that could become a problem.

Using my "still to pay" list and accounts 850 (suppliers I owe) and 950 (customers who owe me), show me:
1. Who owes me money, how much, and how long it's been outstanding
2. Who I owe money to, how much, and since when
3. Bills marked as paid but missing a payment date or a "Paid from" account

Put the oldest amounts first. Suggest which 3 to follow up this week.

#18Cash and who owes who

My Biggest Customers and Suppliers

Ranks where your money comes from and where it goes, by name.

Why it matters: If one customer brings in half your income, your business is at risk.

Group my money in by customer (using the description) and my spending by supplier. Show the top 10 of each with the totals and percentage of the whole.

Tell me if any one customer brings in more than 30% of my income, and what the risk is if I lost them. Point out any supplier I pay a lot to, where it might be worth getting a second quote.

#19Cash and who owes who

What Did I Pay Myself?

Compares what you took out with what the business earned.

Why it matters: An honest look at whether you're draining the business.

Add up everything I took out of the business for myself: owner money (700s) and personal spending (600s). Then compare it with my profit for the year.

Tell me plainly whether I took out more than the business made, and by how much. Show it month by month too. Don't lecture me. Just show the numbers and one practical suggestion.

E

Get tax ready

Hand over to your tax practitioner with confidence.

#20Get tax ready

Explain My Trial Balance

Explains the trial balance (the list of every account's total) line by line.

Why it matters: You hand it over with confidence instead of fear.

Open the TRIAL BALANCE tab (or build one from my file if there isn't one). First check that the two columns (debit and credit) add up to the same total, and tell me if they don't.

Then explain each line in one plain sentence, for example "Account 310: what you spent on cleaning this year". Finish with the 3 lines my tax practitioner is most likely to ask me about, and why.

#21Get tax ready

My Tax Practitioner Handover Pack

A checklist and a list of questions for your tax practitioner, ready to email.

Why it matters: Saves your practitioner time (and you fees), and shows you're prepared.

Prepare a handover pack for my tax practitioner:
1. A short summary of my year (income, costs, profit, what I took out)
2. A checklist of what to send them: this file, bank statements, and anything else my file suggests I'll need
3. A list of open questions they'll need to answer, based on my file (unsure lines, personal items, loans, vehicles, large once-off items)
4. Anything that looks incomplete

Write it so I can paste it straight into an email. Don't give tax advice. Frame everything as questions for the practitioner.

#22Get tax ready

Which Registrations Should I Ask About?

Turnover totals that help you ask the right SARS registration questions.

Why it matters: Gives you the facts to take to your practitioner, without guessing at the rules.

Work out my total money in (100s) for every 12-month period my file covers, rolling month by month. Show the highest 12-month total.

Do the same for my staff costs (400s), and tell me whether I appear to have paid salaries or wages in any month.

Then list the questions I should ask my tax practitioner about which SARS registrations apply to me (for example VAT, or payroll taxes if I have staff). Don't tell me the current thresholds or what applies to me. Tell me to confirm those with my practitioner, because the rules change.

F

Plan ahead

Use your numbers to get a loan, a bond or a tender, and plan next year.

#23Plan ahead

My Bank, Bond or Tender Summary

A one-page summary of your numbers for a loan, home loan or tender.

Why it matters: Be ready the moment a bank, a panel or SARS asks for your numbers.

I'm applying for [a business loan / a home loan / a tender / tax clearance]. Using my file, write a one-page summary a bank or panel would want to see:
- what the business does and how long it's been trading (ask me if you don't know)
- money in, costs and profit for the year, and the trend over the months
- what I took out
- loans and amounts owed

Be honest. Don't make it look better than the numbers. Then list what else they'll probably ask me for, so I can prepare.

#24Plan ahead

My Simple Budget for Next Year

A month-by-month budget built from your real numbers.

Why it matters: Moves you from catching up to planning ahead.

Using this year's actual numbers, build a simple month-by-month budget for next year. Start from this year's figures, then ask me 3 questions before finalising: expected price increases, any new staff or big purchases, and expected growth.

Show the budget as a table (money in, cost of what I sold, running costs, staff, profit per month), with a short note on each assumption you made.

#25Plan ahead

My 5 Next Steps

Five practical actions to improve your business, easiest big win first.

Why it matters: Ends with action, not just information.

Based on everything in my file, give me my 5 most important next steps to improve my business. Look at cutting costs, collecting money owed, pricing, cash for quiet months, and cleaning up my records.

For each step: what to do, why it matters (using my actual numbers), roughly how much it could save or bring in, and how hard it is (easy, medium or hard). Put the easiest, biggest win first.

BETTER FILE, BETTER ANSWERS

Messy spreadsheet in, messy answers out.

The BBB Flow Template gives every line a numbered account, so the AI knows exactly what it's looking at. The Catch-Up Kit includes the template, three short how-to videos and the reports tool. Your R349 counts towards the Boot Camp if you join later.

R349 once-off

Get the Catch-Up Kit Not ready? Join the free 30-minute live Q&A