# The AI cake in my ad had 3 tiers and gold leaf. I sell 1 tier for $65.

> A made-up bakery used a How I AI image workflow to make a gorgeous ad photo of a cake it doesn't sell for $65, and 8 of 11 people who asked for it stopped replying. We tested the Subject-Setting-Style framework and rewrote it to start from a real product photo and end with a truth check.

By Elie Mendlow · Published November 4, 2026
Section: Markets & Main Street › Small Business · Series: AI Prompts, Reviewed (https://mcafax.com/notebook/prompts)
Canonical: https://mcafax.com/notebook/ai-prompt-review-midjourney-images
Source: MCAFax, The Broker's Notebook (https://mcafax.com/notebook). MCAFax is not a lender or a law firm.

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"Can I get the one in the ad for Saturday?"

That was the first message after **Plum Street Bakeshop (a made-up bakery that sells custom birthday cakes)** ran its new Facebook ad. **Tessa**, the owner, had made the photo with an AI image tool. It was the best cake picture she had ever posted. It was also a cake she doesn't sell for $65.

**AI Prompts, Reviewed** takes one prompt or workflow from How I AI, Claire Vo's show where guests share their screens and walk through how they really use AI. We run it on a small-business job, score it, and tell you what we'd change.

**Credit:** Based on "How to Use the Subject-Setting-Style Framework for Professional Midjourney Images," a workflow from How I AI (hosted by Claire Vo, written up by the ChatPRD team), shown by Ravi Mehta (the How I AI workflow page doesn't state his title) in the episode "How I AI: Data-Driven Prototyping and Structured Midjourney Prompts for Elite Results with Ravi Mehta." [Read the original workflow on How I AI](https://www.chatprd.ai/how-i-ai/workflows/how-to-use-the-subject-setting-style-framework-for-professional-midjourney-images). [Watch the full episode](https://www.chatprd.ai/how-i-ai/data-driven-prototyping-and-structured-midjourney-prompts). Guest site: [Ravi Mehta](https://www.ravi-mehta.com/).

## What the original does

Ravi compares a bare office-chair prompt with one split into subject, setting and style, then changes one photo choice at a time. The workflow runs in 5 steps:

- **Adopt the framework:** describe the subject exactly, with framing, count and what must not appear, then the setting's location, time and light.
- **Use photo language for style:** film stock, lens and aperture, as cues for the look.
- **Build the prompt** in a fixed order, adding aspect ratio, a text-safe area and exclusions.
- **Portraits:** a separate template for fictional people, with checks for hands, eyes and teeth.
- **Compare and refine:** change one element at a time, pick on purpose, and log the prompt, edits and usage rights.

Its own checklist sets the bar we tested against: **"The subject and composition support the actual placement rather than merely looking attractive."**

## The test

Everything here is made up.

Tessa wanted one Square image for a Facebook ad that said "Custom birthday cakes from $65." Her best seller is a single-tier buttercream cake with fresh berries.

**Run 1, the original as written:** she filled in the template. Subject: a three-tier birthday cake with fresh raspberries and gold leaf, centered, with a topper. Setting: a bright kitchen counter, morning window light. Style: warm and soft, the look of Kodak Portra 400, a 50mm lens with a blurry background.

Then she followed the compare step and changed one thing at a time: 3 lighting options, 3 lenses and 3 film looks. That is 9 prompts. Her tool returns 4 images per prompt, so 9 x 4 = **36 images** to sort.

The original's checks earned their keep. A full-size look caught the topper, which read "Happy Brithday," so she regenerated without text. The final image was gorgeous.

Nothing in the workflow asked whether Tessa sells that cake.

The ad ran for 7 days on $150 and brought 14 messages. Of those, 11 asked for the cake in the picture. Tessa prices a three-tier cake at $240. After the quote, 8 of the 11 stopped replying. The other 3 settled for a two-tier cake at $120. The 3 people who hadn't asked about the photo ordered the $65 cake.

That is 6 orders and 3 x $120 + 3 x $65 = **$555** in revenue, or $150 / 6 = $25 of ad spend per order. Worse, 8 people now think the bakery baits and switches.

## The rerun

**Run 2:** same budget, our prompt below. It starts with a question the original never asks: what exactly does the ad promise, and at what price.

- **Subject:** Tessa's real phone photo of the $65 cake as the reference, with size, tiers, frosting and berries kept exactly as shown.
- **Setting:** the only thing the AI could change. A party table by a window, morning light, balloons out of focus.
- **Exclusions:** extra tiers, gold leaf, toppers, any text, and props that suggest a bigger order.
- **Truth check:** list every item in the image a customer could ask to buy, and confirm each one is sold at the ad's price.

She varied only light and background, 3 options each. That is 6 prompts, or 6 x 4 = **24 images**, 12 fewer than Run 1.

The next 7 days, same $150: 19 messages, and 15 asked for the cake in the ad. This time that cake cost $65. She booked 12 orders: 9 at $65 and 3 who upgraded to the $120 two-tier.

Revenue was 9 x $65 + 3 x $120 = **$945**, or $390 more than Run 1. The ad cost $150 / 12 = $12.50 per order.

A pretty photo of something you don't sell is a promise you'll break.

## Verdict: 7/10

**Strengths:** The subject, setting and style split is the fastest way we've seen to stop getting random AI images. Changing one element at a time teaches you what each word does. The runbook is honest: it says camera terms are only a style cue, warns against copying a living artist, and makes you inspect hands and text at full size. That check caught the misspelled topper.

**Weakness:** It's built for designers making a strong image, not owners selling a real product. The runbook says to reject misleading output, but no step ties the picture to what you sell at the price in your ad. Changing one element at a time across 6 photo choices can also mean dozens of images to sort.

**Founder tweak:** Start from a real photo of the thing you sell at the advertised price. Let the AI change the setting only, ban anything you don't offer, and run a truth check before the ad goes live. Cap variations at 2 elements.

## Copy the MCAFax version

This is our own rewrite, not the original. [**Copy the original from Ravi Mehta on How I AI**](https://www.chatprd.ai/how-i-ai/workflows/how-to-use-the-subject-setting-style-framework-for-professional-midjourney-images)**.**

```
I own [business type]. I need one image for [placement, for example a Facebook feed ad or website banner] in [aspect ratio, for example 1:1 or 4:5].
The ad or page will say: "[exact ad copy, including any price]".
Do not write an image prompt yet.

STEP 1. The promise.
  Ask me which product or service the image must show, what it costs, and what a customer gets at that price (size, quantity, finish, extras).
  Ask whether I have a real photo of it. If I do, it is the reference, and the product in the image must match it exactly.

STEP 2. Subject.
  Describe the product exactly as sold at that price. Nothing bigger, fancier or extra.
  List exclusions: anything I don't sell, upgrades not included at this price, logos, and any text or lettering.

STEP 3. Setting and style.
  Only the background, props, time of day and light may change. Props must not suggest a bigger order or a service I don't offer.
  Describe the look in plain visual terms (warm, soft light, blurred background). If you use camera or film words, treat them as style cues only, and never imply the photo was taken with that equipment.
  Leave a clear area for the headline: [top / bottom / side] [percent] of the frame.

STEP 4. Write the prompt.
  Give me one image prompt in this order: subject, setting, style, aspect ratio, text-safe area, exclusions.
  Then give me 2 variation sets that change only one element each (for example light, then background), 3 options per set. No more than 6 prompts total.

STEP 5. Truth check before I use it.
  Give me a checklist to run on the image I pick, at full size:
  - Every item a customer could ask to buy is something I sell at the price in my copy.
  - No misspelled or made-up text, extra fingers, impossible objects or fake logos.
  - The headline area is clear when cropped to [placement].
  - A log line I can save: tool, date, final prompt, reference photo used, edits made, and the AI disclosure my ad platform or customers expect.
```

Paste into any AI chat, then run the prompt it writes in your image tool. If the image shows something you can't sell at that price, don't post it.

## Try this week

1. Pick the one product or service your next ad promises, with its price.
2. Take a clean photo of it as you actually sell it, in good daylight.
3. Run the prompt above and change the background and light only.
4. Run the truth check at full size before the ad goes live, and save the log line.
5. Plan the posts around it with our [social media content calendar prompt](https://mcafax.com/notebook/prompts/social-media-content-assistant).

More owner prompts: [browse the MCAFax prompt library](https://mcafax.com/notebook/prompts).

## Questions readers ask

**Can a small business use AI images in ads?**

Yes, if the image shows what you actually sell at the price in the ad. Start from a real photo of the product and let the AI change only the background and light.

**What is the Subject-Setting-Style framework?**

It splits an image prompt into 3 parts: the subject, the setting (place, time and light) and the style (the look, often described with photo terms like film stock or lens). Writing them in a fixed order gives you more control over the result.

**Why did the AI cake ad lose customers?**

The image showed a three-tier cake with gold leaf while the ad said cakes start at $65. People asked for the cake in the picture, heard a higher price, and most stopped replying.

**How many AI image variations should I make?**

Change one element at a time, and cap it at 2 elements with 3 options each. That is 6 prompts and about 24 images to compare, which is enough to pick from without wasting an afternoon.

**Do I need to disclose that an ad image was made with AI?**

Check your ad platform's current rules, and save a log of the tool, prompt, reference photo and edits for every image you use. Never claim an AI image was taken with a real camera or film.