Custom GPTs: The Easiest Way to Put AI to Work in Your Business

Heard of Custom GPTs but not sure if you need one? This guide explains what they are, how they work, how much they cost and when they’re actually useful, in plain English, with no technical fluff.

What is a Custom GPT (and why would you need one)?

You’ve probably used ChatGPT to write an email, summarise a meeting or bounce around ideas. It’s powerful, but it’s also generic. A Custom GPT takes that same engine and fine-tunes it to your specific needs.

Think of it like giving ChatGPT a defined role in your business, with the context, tone, rules and files it needs to do the job properly.

Here’s the simple version:
A Custom GPT is a tailored version of ChatGPT that behaves the way you want, with no coding required.

Instead of writing new prompts every time, you can give it:

• A custom personality (like a polite assistant, a direct expert or a branded tone of voice)

• Access to your uploaded documents (such as SOPs, product info or onboarding guides)

• Clear instructions on how it should respond or behave

• Optional APIs or tools that let it pull in real-time data or take action

Why would you need one?

1. Because repeating yourself is a waste of time.

2. Because not everyone on your team knows how to write a good prompt.

3. Because your knowledge is valuable, and it should be working for you.

Common use cases include:

• Internal assistants for onboarding or training

• Customer support helpers based on your documentation

• Client-facing tools that explain your process

• Sales assistants that answer product questions

• AI-powered help for operations and internal tools

You don’t need one to use ChatGPT, but if you have ever thought, “I wish ChatGPT just knew how we do things here,” then a Custom GPT is worth looking into.

How Does It Work?

Creating a Custom GPT is simple. It feels more like filling out a form than building software. You don’t need to code or install anything.

The basic process:

1. Click “Create” inside ChatGPT (available to ChatGPT Plus users)

2. Answer a few questions about what your GPT should do

3. Upload documents or provide content it should use

4. Test and tweak your GPT in real time

5. Publish and control access

Detailed Steps:

Step 1:
On the left navigation panel, click explore.

Click Explore on the left Nav bar

Step 2:
On the “top right” click on the “+create” button.

Step 3:
In the left side, choose “create”, then in the “what would you like to make” text box, type in the idea for your custom GPT.

Step 4:

(a) Name your GPT - Create a name for your GPT.

(b) Add files - add your own knowledge base to your GPT by uploading files in the knowledge section under “configure”

Step 5:
Click the “create” button to create your new custom GPT.

Capabilities and Constraints

You can give your GPT a tone, role and specific knowledge. You can also connect APIs or tools if you want it to take actions or use live data.

You can:

• Make it private for yourself

• Share it with your team

• Publish it publicly

You cannot:

• Train it on massive datasets

• Give it long-term memory (yet)

• Let it run tasks automatically without input

But for most business tasks, especially internal support, operations or onboarding, it does more than enough.

How Much Does It Cost?

Custom GPTs are free to create if you are on the ChatGPT Plus plan, which costs $20 USD/month.

There are no extra charges to:

• Build or use GPTs

• Upload documents

• Share or publish your GPT

If you use external APIs or connect paid tools, those tools may charge you separately. But OpenAI does not charge more based on how many GPTs you create or how often you use them inside ChatGPT.

How Hard Is It to Set Up?

You can build a simple GPT in under 10 minutes. A more detailed one might take 30 to 60 minutes, depending on how much you want to customise.

You don’t need to install anything or learn a new platform. It’s all inside ChatGPT.

Making changes is easy, and they go live immediately:

• Edit instructions

• Swap out documents

• Update the name or intro message

• Change access settings

The hardest part is deciding what you want it to do. Once you’re clear on that, the setup is fast.

What’s It Best For?

Here are some real use cases where Custom GPTs perform well:

Internal Operations

• Answering repeat questions from team members

• Acting as a training assistant

• Helping with onboarding

Customer Support

• Providing FAQs or troubleshooting

• Giving consistent answers based on your documentation

• Helping agents find answers quickly

Sales and Lead Qualification

• Answering common product or service questions

• Guiding leads through a qualification flow

• Recommending next steps

Client Tools

• Offering structured guidance

• Delivering repeatable advice without needing your time

• Giving clients self-serve access to your IP

Education and Training

• Walking people through internal training

• Offering learning material in plain language

• Acting as an on-demand tutor using your own style

What it’s not ideal for:

• Live scheduling

• Background automation

• Sensitive decision-making

Final Thoughts

Custom GPTs are one of the fastest ways to make AI useful in your business. They’re simple to build, flexible to change and powerful enough to save you hours of manual work.

You don’t need to be technical. You don’t need to spend days planning. You just need a repeatable task and some knowledge that’s worth sharing.

To recap:

• You need ChatGPT Plus ($20/month)

• You can build one in under an hour

• You can update it anytime

• It gives your team or clients access to your expertise, without needing you every time

If you’re curious, open ChatGPT, click Explore GPTs and try creating one. Start small. Give it one clear job. Improve it later.

Ready to try it?
If you're using ChatGPT Plus, click Explore GPTs and choose Create. Start with something simple, like answering onboarding questions or explaining a process.
You can always adjust it as you go.