Are You Wasting Time with the Wrong ChatGPT Tool?

What Marketers Need to Know About ChatGPT’s Projects and Custom GPTs

When you log into ChatGPT, you face the following choices: chat, Projects, or GPTs. A chat is the obvious choice. But what about the other two? If you’ve ever stared at Projects and GPTs wondering if OpenAI created two versions of the same thing, I get it. My staff and clients constantly ask about this.

When to Use a Simple Chat

While this article focuses on Projects and GPTs, let’s briefly address when a standard chat is your best option:

• Quick, one-off questions – When you need a fast answer that doesn’t require context from previous conversations (“What’s the formula for calculating ROI?”)
• Exploration of new topics – When you’re brainstorming or exploring ideas without a defined strategy yet

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• Simple content tasks – For basic content like a single email draft or social media post that doesn’t need to follow a specific brand voice or framework
• Learning how to use ChatGPT – For newcomers getting comfortable with the platform before diving into more complex features

I use a standard chat as my “scratch pad” for quick thoughts and simple tasks. It’s perfect when you don’t need ChatGPT to remember context across sessions or follow specific guidelines.

But what about those more complex marketing scenarios?

When your needs expand beyond one-off conversations, that’s where Projects and GPTs come in—each serving a distinct purpose in your marketing toolkit.

At first glance, Projects and GPTs look similar. Both allow you to add custom instructions and knowledge files to your conversation with ChatGPT. But under the hood, they serve very different purposes, and using the wrong one for your task can lead to clunky results, wasted time, or missed opportunities.

Are you still confused? The good news is, you’re not alone. 

According to a recent survey by SurveyMonkey, 88% of marketers use AI in their day-to-day roles, with over half (51%) using it to optimize content. However, many aren’t confident they’re using these tools effectively. A 2025 study by Siege Media found that 90% of content marketers plan to use AI to support content marketing efforts, but confusion about which tools to use for which tasks remains a significant barrier to success. The Projects vs. GPTs debate contributes to the confusion.

As I mentioned, you aren’t alone. Many marketers, including me, are confused by Projects vs. GPTs. However, my interactions with ChatGPT improved when I understood the distinctions, and I want to help you understand Projects and GPTs better so your interactions can also improve. 

So, what did I learn that can help you?

An example is the best way to begin. 

Projects Use Case

I use a Project to organize ongoing marketing content for our blog. We also set up Projects for general client work, like managing copywriting tasks across channels.

GPT Use Case

When I need focused output with a specific tone, structure, or strategic direction, say writing a sales landing page, recipe blog posts, or copy for a website redesign, we use a custom GPT trained for the specific task.

Signs You’re Using the Wrong Tool for the Job

• You spend the first 10 minutes of every ChatGPT session re-explaining your brand voice
• Your custom GPT keeps asking questions about tasks it was supposed to be trained for
• You’ve created seven different chats for essentially the same task
• Your team members keep asking, ‘Wait, where did that great prompt go?’

Now that you understand the big picture, I’ll explain Projects and GPTs in more depth. 

Are you ready?

Let’s get to it.

Why This Confuses So Many Users

Projects. Custom GPTs. Two options, one platform… and no clear explanation from OpenAI.

I’m here to help.

• Projects are great for managing evolving conversations and ongoing work, i.e., multiple jobs that vary but share the same criteria. We’ll use a Project to brainstorm and develop first drafts for content like this blog post.
  
• GPTs are ideal for tasks that require consistency and repeatability; one job, done well, over and over again. We’ll use a GPT for campaign landing pages or website copy for a redesign.

We created a custom GPT to draft new website copy for Early Bird Farm & Mill. The avatar and journey map attached to the GPT gave it the foundation to maintain consistent messaging across the entire site. So, what happened? Within weeks, they saw a 150% increase in sales versus the same period a year ago, and are now close to 200% improvements versus a year ago. 

It’s kind of like the difference between a notebook and a standard operating procedure. A notebook helps you think and explore. An SOP ensures the same outcome every time. Both are useful, but for very different reasons.

The better you match the tool to the task, the sharper and more useful your AI conversations become.

“If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail.” ~ Abraham Maslow

What Is a Project? When Should You Use It?

Think of a Project as your AI workspace. It remembers what you’re working on, holds context across sessions, and gives you a persistent thread for ongoing tasks. “…multiple jobs that vary but share the same criteria.” You don’t need to re-explain things whenever you open ChatGPT; it knows what you’re trying to do.

For example, we recently used a Project to support a client’s quarterly campaign planning. It housed everything from positioning notes and target audience descriptions to successful emails, social posts, and promotional offers. Because the Project could “remember” the strategy behind the campaign, we didn’t have to rehash goals or brand voice every time we created a new asset.

Use Projects when you:

• Are managing a digital campaign or content sprint
• Want ChatGPT to retain memory over time
• Need to build on previous conversations without starting from scratch
• Are developing a variety of related content for a single client or initiative

Projects don’t do well staying in their lane. They’re flexible but not specialized. And, Projects are also not team-friendly. They are tied to an individual’s ChatGPT account.

If a project is especially effective, we will build a custom GPT based on the Project so that others can use the insights.

If you need highly structured and consistent responses trained on a particular tone or framework, a custom GPT is the better fit, and that’s what we’ll cover next.

What Is a Custom GPT? When Should You Use It?

If Projects are your flexible workspace, custom GPTs are your specialized assistants. Like Projects, you can train them with specific instructions, upload reference documents, and define exactly how they should behave. Their ability to deliver consistent, on-target output every time is the difference. 

The second area of difference is that while Projects are tied to an individual account, a GPT can be shared with others.

At Inn8ly, we use custom GPTs to support focused, repeatable tasks. A good example is how we power our Marketing Sage Advantage product. It analyzes guided customer interviews to generate detailed customer avatars and buyers’ journey maps. Marketing Sage Advantage is a focused task that uses the input given to deliver a specific output each time.

Once we have the output, we can use the avatar and journey map in various ways, such as Project knowledge files. The result? A Project that understands the client’s audience and is ready to generate messaging, content ideas, and campaign assets that align with who their best customers are and how they think, act, and buy.

We’ve also used the avatar and journey map as knowledge files when we built custom GPTs for landing page copy, email sequences, and product positioning. 

The common thread is that a custom GPT is the best choice when the input is highly structured and the output needs to be reliable.

Use custom GPTs when you:

• Need repeatable output with consistent tone and structure
• Want to train ChatGPT on your frameworks, voice, or customer insights for a specific task
• Are creating a tool based on strategic assets (like avatars and journey maps)
• Want a tool you can share with someone else, like an employee or client

Custom GPTs don’t evolve like Projects do, and that’s precisely why they’re powerful. When paired with a clear plan, they help you scale the smart stuff, not just spin your wheels.

When to Use Which: Projects vs. Custom GPTs

Still not sure which one you need? 

Here’s a quick side-by-side to help you decide. In many cases, the most effective setup uses both, each doing what it does best.

Task Type	Use a Project	Use a Custom GPT
Managing a content series or campaign	✅
Developing client messaging from scratch	✅	✅ (strategy exists)
Generating content based on a defined avatar		✅
Writing emails, blogs, and posts with evolving context	✅
Creating a landing page from a repeatable framework		✅
Storing reference documents and iterating ideas	✅
Producing consistent copy across teams or users		✅
Supporting one-off strategic content tasks	✅
Delegating structured marketing tasks		✅

Projects are like your favorite coffee shop, where ideas flow freely and conversations evolve. GPTs are your trusted kitchen appliances, designed for specific tasks and delivering reliable results when you need them.

Stop Struggling, Start Scaling: How Tool Choice Affects Your Results

Here’s the thing: AI isn’t magic. It’s leverage.

When you match the tool to the task, you stop wrestling with generic output and start getting results that support your business goals. You waste less time explaining, revising, or “nudging” the AI in the right direction because it already understands what you’re trying to do or has been trained to do it.

Projects help you think through ideas, evolve content, and build assets consistent with your voice and vision over time. Custom GPTs help you scale that thinking consistently, efficiently, and with fewer edits.

Together, they create a system that feels less like trial and error and more like progress on purpose.

The takeaway

Use Projects to explore and organize.

Use custom GPTs to execute and scale.

5-Minute Setup: Get Your First Project or GPT Running Today

Are you ready to put these tools to work? 

Here’s a quick walkthrough to help you launch your first project and build a useful custom GPT.

And don’t panic; no tech team is required.

Getting Started with a Project

To recap, use a Project when you want to build and refine a channel-specific content strategy, messaging framework, or campaign calendar over time.

1. Open ChatGPT and select the Projects tab from the left-hand menu.
2. Click “New Project.”
3. Give it a clear, descriptive name (e.g., “Website Refresh Plan” or “Email Funnel Buildout”).
4. Upload reference documents or background info (knowledge files), ChatGPT needs to perform the tasks.
5. Give it the custom instructions it needs to understand the broad task
6. Start your first chat (ChatGPT will remember the context and build on it in future sessions.)
7. Return to the Project anytime to pick up where you left off.

Think of a Project like a Google Folder with a brain.

Building a Custom GPT

Use a custom GPT when you want a focused assistant trained on a specific task you or your team needs to repeat.

1. In ChatGPT, click your profile picture in the upper-right corner.
2. Select “My GPTs.”
3. Click “Create a GPT.”

From there, you’ll see two tabs: Create and Configure.

• Create tab: This is where you “chat” your way through the setup. You’ll describe what you want the GPT to do, how it should respond, and what files or frameworks it should use. It’s the fastest way to get something functional, but it has limitations.
• Configure tab: This gives you more control. You can:
  • Set specific behavior instructions
  • Upload knowledge files (like customer avatars, tone guides, or alternative prompts)
  • Define or limit capabilities (like image generation or code writing)
  • Add conversation starters to guide users

Once you’re happy with it, save and test. You can always go back and refine it as your needs evolve.

Let ChatGPT Help You

Here’s the meta-move: ChatGPT can help you write better prompts, system messages, and knowledge files for both Projects and custom GPTs.

Need to explain your tone, brand voice, or customer avatar? Paste what you’ve got into a chat and ask ChatGPT to clean it up, simplify it, or reword it for clarity. Want your GPT to follow a specific structure or framework? Describe it once, then have ChatGPT turn that into a reusable instruction you can paste into the instructions box in the Configure tab.

This works especially well when you:

• Don’t know how to phrase what you want
• Want to make your instructions more concise or consistent
• Are building a new tool and need a clear onboarding prompt

Pro move: Use a Project to refine your strategy with ChatGPT, then copy the polished instructions into your custom GPT.

Prompting A Skill That Matters

If you’re wondering about creating effective prompts for both Projects and custom GPTs, you’re asking the right question. While the tools differ, the fundamentals of good prompting remain consistent. 

Check out our ChatGPT for Beginners guide, which introduces the CRAFT prompt framework, a simple system that works exceptionally well with both Projects and GPTs. 

Ready for more advanced techniques? 

Our article on 5 AI Prompt Frameworks for Marketing provides additional structures specifically designed for marketing tasks. 

Remember: the better your instructions, the better your output, regardless of which tool you’re using.

The Right Tool Makes All the Difference

For busy business owners, the right AI setup isn’t just a nice-to-have; it’s the difference between marketing that drains your time and marketing that drives growth. Whether you’re managing a full campaign or creating consistent landing pages, the right tool makes all the difference.

Projects give you a place to think, build, and refine over time. 

Custom GPTs allow you to scale what works with consistent, on-brand output. 

Project or custom GPT? A Quick Decision Tool

• Need to work on an ongoing campaign with evolving content? → Use a Project
• Need to replicate the same output style repeatedly? → Build a custom GPT
• Want to share your AI assistant with team members? → Definitely custom GPT
• Working through strategic planning that builds on itself? → Project all the way

But why not both? 

When used together, they create a smart, streamlined system that supports your progress instead of distracting from it. Use a successful Project to build a GPT, and use the output of a GPT to inform a Project.

If your marketing feels disconnected or your AI tools aren’t pulling their weight, there’s a good chance it’s not you. You might just be using a hammer when you need a screwdriver.

Are you ready to stop struggling with ChatGPT and start seeing real marketing results? We’ll help you pick the right tool, set it up, train it right, and put it to work. Use VIPChatwithJames.com to book a virtual coffee.