🔍 Perplexity 101: Ultimate Guide to Deep Search, Labs, Templates & 53 Pro Prompts

Your complete playbook for transforming how you research with AI's most powerful search engine

What You'll Learn in this Guide

In this guide, you'll discover how Perplexity AI is changing the search experience and why it matters for your productivity.

Key Topics:

• General Search - The everyday Google alternative

• Deep Search - Advanced research capabilities (10 Usecases and prompt templates)

• Model Selection - Choosing from 4 AI models for different needs

• Perplexity Labs & Templates - Creating interactive research projects (23 real-world applications and pormpts)

• Perplexity Templates (20 real-world applications and pormpts)

"I haven't opened Google in 3 months."

That's what a founder told me last week. Here's why.

Let me tell you a truth… We've been trained to accept terrible search experiences because we didn't know better existed.

What Perplexity Actually Is (And Why It Matters) 🎯

Here's what I've learned after 6 months of daily use: Perplexity isn't just another AI chatbot. It's a search-first AI that does what Google should have built years ago.

The fundamental difference:

• Google shows you where information might be

• Perplexity shows you what the information actually is

Founded in 2022 by former Google AI researchers (ironic, right?), Perplexity has already hit 10 million weekly users and a $3 billion valuation. But numbers don't tell the real story.

The Problem Google Created (And Won't Fix)

Think about your last Google search:

• Type query

• Scan 10 results

• Click first link (probably ads)

• Hit back button

• Try second link

• Open 5 tabs

• Piece together an answer

• Still not sure if it's accurate

Google's dirty secret: They make $282 billion/year from keeping you clicking. Why would they want to give you answers faster?

General Search: Your New Default 🔍

This is Perplexity's bread and butter. Every search:

• Scans real-time web data

• Synthesizes multiple sources

• Shows inline citations

• Allows follow-up questions

Real example from my workflow:

Query: "Latest iOS 18 battery drain issues and fixes"

Perplexity returns:

• Current user reports from Reddit (last 24 hours)

• Apple's official statement

• Tested fixes from tech blogs

• Which iPhone models are affected

• Temporary workarounds that actually work

Google would have shown me 15 SEO-optimized articles from 2019.

Deep Search: The Research Game-Changer 🚀

Launched in late 2024, Deep Search is like having a PhD student research assistant.

How it works:

• You ask a complex question

• It generates 5-10 related searches automatically

• Analyzes 30+ sources

• Builds a comprehensive report

• Asks clarifying questions if needed

My actual Deep Search last week:

"Compare Notion vs Obsidian vs Capacities for a second brain system, considering mobile apps, pricing, and plugin ecosystems"

What I got:

• Feature comparison matrix

• Pricing breakdown (including hidden costs)

• Mobile app store ratings and recent reviews

• Plugin availability stats

• Migration difficulty between platforms

• Community size data

• Time saved: 3 hours of manual research.

Perplexity 10 Deep Search Use Cases

Deep Search represents Perplexity's most advanced research capability, performing dozens of searches and reading hundreds of sources to deliver comprehensive reports. These use cases demonstrate high engagement across academic and professional communities.

1. Academic Literature Review Development

Prompt: "Create a comprehensive literature review on [topic]. Identify the 15 most cited articles published in the last 5 years, summarize their key findings, methodologies used, and provide complete publication details (authors, journal, year, DOI). Organize the results by recurring themes and highlight the theoretical frameworks utilized across these studies."

Prompt url: https://getprompts.org/prompts/84540c5b-7199-462e-b1db-b39a442d494f

Source: Learn Prompting + Reddit r/perplexity_ai

1. Competitive SWOT Analysis for Business

Prompt: "Analyze the attached press releases from 3 major automotive competitors (A, B, C) from 2025-Q2. Generate comparative SWOT analyses highlighting technological innovations, supply chain vulnerabilities, and emerging market strategies. Identify potential partnership opportunities between these companies." 7

Prompt url: https://getprompts.org/prompts/3e91b03c-1329-4d00-8b66-b26fc8969c6c

Source: LinkedIn (Ruben Hassid)

3. Financial Market Research & Investment Analysis

Prompt: "Create a dashboard comparing the 5-year performance of a traditional stock portfolio vs. an AI-powered one. Include sentiment impact, macroeconomic trends, and portfolio composition analysis with real-time data."

Prompt url: https://getprompts.org/prompts/1dea4c7f-ff17-479b-97f1-cfb23d74e502

Source: Perplexity Official Blog

4. Research Gap Identification for Academic Studies

Prompt: "Analyze recent publications on [topic] from the past 3 years. Identify specific research gaps, unexplored questions, or methodological limitations in existing studies. Provide evidence for each gap identified and suggest potential research questions that could address these gaps."

Prompt url: https://getprompts.org/prompts/4e3be44c-6aa3-4fd9-8df2-420d064fa3ce

Source: LinkedIn (Tim Donovan - Marketing Professional)

5. SEO Content Strategy & Blog Post Creation

Prompt: "Research and create an SEO-optimized blog post about [topic]. Include keyword analysis, competitor content review, search intent mapping, and create a comprehensive content outline with meta descriptions and internal linking strategy."

Prompt url: https://getprompts.org/edit-prompt/6017dbbc-c174-4cb2-8fe6-5f00c3358f28

Source: YouTube (Julian Goldie SEO)

6. White Paper Development for Thought Leadership