Most people use Microsoft Copilot wrong. They type vague requests, get mediocre results, and conclude AI isn’t worth the hype. Meanwhile, teams who follow best practices save hours every day and wonder how they ever worked without it.
The difference isn’t the tool. It’s how you use it.
Microsoft Copilot is powerful, but it’s not mind-reading software. The quality of what you get depends entirely on how you ask, what data it can access, and whether your team understands how to work with AI.
At Airiam, we help businesses implement Copilot the right way. We’ve seen what works and what doesn’t across dozens of deployments, and these 13 best practices are what separate the best-of-the-best from the rest.
13 Microsoft Copilot Best Practices
1. Write Clear, Detailed Prompts
Vague prompts produce vague results. “Write a report” gives Copilot nothing to work with. “Write a 2-page executive summary of Q3 sales performance for our board meeting, highlighting revenue growth in the Northeast region and challenges in customer retention” gives Copilot everything it needs.
The best prompts include four elements:
- Goal: What you want Copilot to do
- Context: Why you need it and who it’s for
- Expectations: Format, tone, length, style
- Sources: Which files, emails, or meetings to reference
2. Use Context IQ to Reference Specific Content
Copilot’s Context IQ feature (the “/” command) lets you point to specific files, people, meetings, or emails. This grounds Copilot’s responses in your content instead of generic internet knowledge.
Type “/” in any Copilot prompt and you’ll see options to reference:
- Specific documents
- Recent meetings
- People in your organization
- Email conversations
Example: “Create a project update using /Q3_Strategy.docx and /last week’s leadership meeting”
This tells Copilot exactly which information to use, producing focused results that reflect your organization’s work rather than generic business advice.
3. Iterate and Refine Responses
The first response Copilot gives you is rarely the final answer. Treat it as a starting point.
If the output isn’t quite right, tell Copilot what to change. “Make this more concise” or “Add specific metrics” or “Adjust the tone to be more formal” all work.
You wouldn’t expect perfect work on the first try from a new employee. Same principle applies with AI. Guide it toward what you need through conversation, not single commands.
4. Keep Your Data Organized and Accessible
Copilot can only work with data you have permission to access. If your SharePoint is a mess, your Copilot results will be a mess too.
Clean up your data environment:
- Archive or delete old, irrelevant files
- Remove duplicate versions of documents
- Fix broken permissions so people can access what they need
- Use clear, descriptive file names
- Organize content in logical folder structures
The cleaner your data, the better Copilot performs. Garbage in, garbage out applies to AI just like everything else.
5. Manage Permissions Properly
Copilot surfaces information users have access to, including things they might not have found on their own. This is powerful but can expose data that shouldn’t be widely available.
Audit your SharePoint and OneDrive permissions regularly. Make sure sensitive documents have appropriate restrictions. If someone shouldn’t see financial data, remove their access to those files. Copilot will respect those permissions.
Use sensitivity labels to protect confidential information. Copilot needs the EXTRACT usage right to include labeled content in responses, so configure labels thoughtfully.
6. Start Tasks with “New Topic”
When switching between different tasks, start a new conversation topic in Copilot. This prevents context from bleeding between unrelated requests.
If you’re working on a sales proposal, then switch to analyzing data for a different project, starting fresh keeps Copilot focused. Mixing contexts in one conversation confuses the AI and produces worse results.
7. Review and Verify Everything
Copilot generates content based on patterns in language models. It can produce outputs that sound confident but are wrong, biased, or incomplete.
Never use Copilot’s first draft as your final version. Always review for:
- Factual accuracy
- Appropriate tone
- Missing information
- Logical flow
- Brand voice consistency
Copilot eliminates blank page syndrome and speeds up routine work. It doesn’t eliminate the need for human judgment and expertise.
8. Use Copilot Across Multiple Apps
Copilot works in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Teams. The real productivity gains come from using it throughout your workflow instead of a single app.
Draft a document in Word with Copilot. Turn it into a presentation in PowerPoint using Copilot. Email it to your team with Copilot writing the message. Summarize the discussion in Teams using Copilot.
Each app has specialized Copilot features built for that context. Learn what Copilot does best in each application and use it there.
9. Train Your Team Properly
Most employees won’t figure out effective prompting on their own.
Run structured training that covers:
- How to write effective prompts
- When to use Copilot vs. doing it manually
- App-specific features and capabilities
- Security and data considerations
- Real examples relevant to their roles
Start with a pilot group of 10-15 people. Learn what questions they have. Refine your training. Then roll it out company-wide with confidence.
10. Give Feedback to Improve Results
Copilot learns from usage patterns, but it also needs direct feedback. Use the thumbs up/down buttons on Copilot responses to signal what works and what doesn’t.
This feedback helps Microsoft improve Copilot over time. More importantly, it helps you understand which types of prompts and tasks produce the best results for your specific needs.
Track what works for your team. Document successful prompts. Share examples across departments. Build institutional knowledge about how your organization uses Copilot most effectively.
11. Break Complex Tasks into Smaller Steps
Don’t ask Copilot to handle massive, multi-layered projects in one prompt. Break work down into manageable pieces.
Instead of “Create a comprehensive marketing strategy for our new product launch,” try a sequence: First, “Analyze competitor positioning for similar products in our market.” Then, “Based on that analysis, suggest three target customer segments.” Finally, “Draft messaging for the enterprise segment focusing on ROI.”
Each smaller request gives Copilot focused work it can handle well. You build toward the larger goal through steps instead of hoping for perfection in one massive output. This approach also lets you course-correct if Copilot heads in the wrong direction from the get-go.
12. Establish Team Prompt Libraries
Create a shared repository of prompts that work well for your organization. When someone finds an effective way to ask Copilot for something, capture it and share it.
Build your library by role and task type. Sales teams need different prompts than finance. Marketing uses Copilot differently than operations. Document what works for each function.
Include the actual prompt text, what it’s used for, and an example of good output. This prevents everyone from reinventing the wheel and speeds up new employee onboarding.
13. Set Expectations About What Copilot Can’t Do
Copilot won’t replace human expertise, creativity, or strategic thinking. It won’t understand your company culture without context. It can’t make judgment calls about sensitive situations.
Be clear with your team about Copilot’s limitations. It’s brilliant at drafting, summarizing, analyzing patterns, and handling routine work. It struggles with nuance, company-specific knowledge, and anything requiring deep industry expertise.
Setting realistic expectations prevents disappointment and helps people use Copilot for what it does well rather than getting frustrated when it fails at tasks it was never meant to handle.
Implement Copilot (the Right Way) with Expert Help
Airiam helps businesses implement Microsoft Copilot the right way. We evaluate your data environment, configure security properly, train your teams, and establish best practices tailored to how your business works.
The difference between Copilot that gets used and Copilot that sits unused comes down to implementation. Do it right from the start, and you’ll see productivity gains within weeks. Skip these best practices, and you’ll wonder why AI isn’t quite working for your business.
Let’s make sure your team knows how to Copilot effectively. Talk to our Copilot experts.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. How long does it take to get good at using Copilot?
Most people see immediate value once they understand basic prompting. True mastery takes 2-3 weeks of regular use. The learning curve isn’t steep, but it requires moving beyond lazy, vague prompts to thoughtful, detailed requests.
2. Does Copilot work offline?
No. Copilot requires internet connectivity since it processes requests through cloud-based AI models and accesses your Microsoft 365 data online. No connection means no Copilot.
3. Can Copilot access all my company data?
Copilot can only access data you personally have permission to see. It respects all existing security controls and permissions. If you can’t open a file, Copilot can’t use it either.
4. What happens if Copilot gives me wrong information?
Always review and verify Copilot’s output. AI can generate plausible-sounding content that’s incorrect. Treat every Copilot response as a draft that needs human review before final use.
5. How do I know if my prompts are good enough?
If you’re getting useful results that need minor refinement, your prompts are working. If you’re consistently disappointed with outputs, add more detail, context, and specificity to your requests.
