OpenAI’s GPT Store Review: A Promising Start but with Some Key Flaws!

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The wait is over, but the store has just begun. Ladies and gentlemen, the GPT Store is finally here. 

I’ve been plugged in after work since it launched last week. A healthy obsession (I think). Overall, it’s definitely a step in the right direction and towards a future world where science fiction becomes non-fiction.

However, it’s not truly great. Yet.

To truly launch GPTs and AI into the hands of the mainstream, there are several key components that OpenAI has left out. Gaps and holes in the wall that are clearly visible with a semi-trained eye.

Whether or not they have some of these enhancements listed on their roadmap is unknown.

You see, to make ChatGPT a staple in the hearts and minds of the average person, OpenAI needed a way to make its use cases as easy as possible to implement and use. Enter GPTs.

It’s like in the mid-90s when AOL got people who weren’t nerds to use the internet by shipping them free and easy-to-use CDs to access their service. Oh, what was that? You weren’t even born then? Oh. Never mind. 

I can tell you one thing: when I ask people if they use ChatGPT, the most common answer I get is: “Yeah, I’ve used it a few times, but I’m not really sure what to use it for. It’s so open-ended.” Again, enter GPTs.

Let’s crack into it and see the possible future of the GPT Store. Save this article and come back to it in two years to see if any of it has become a reality. If none of it did, then I’ll let you use me as a human punching bag. Deal? Deal.

How the GPT Store Can Go from Good to Excellent in Seven Key Steps

1. Add User Ratings and Reviews

What’s an online “store” without ratings? Not a store. 

Allowing people to leave feedback and reviews for the creators of GPTs serves multiple essential purposes, enhancing both the user experience and the development of the technology. However, everyone knows that.

Whether it’s just a star rating or a combination of stars and reviews, they are the ingredients GPTs need to build social rapport, squash errors and bugs, and develop a following of groupies.

Also, wouldn’t it be fun to rate dumb GPTs like this one star?

I checked the stats, and this GPT has been used a total of twice.  I will give it this though: it’s so dumb that it’s actually kind of funny.

2. Add a Top 100 GPTs List

Who wouldn’t want their GPT to hit the top 100 list?

Not only is this idea great for marketing, it’s stupidly simple, and it’s exciting for users and creators. It would also be a great addition to a creator’s resume or cringy LinkedIn profile, drawing even more attention to the GPT Store.

Also, while you’re at it, add a top 1,000 list and a top 10,000 list. There are already millions of GPTs floating around in cyberspace, so even making the top 10,000 list would be one hell of an achievement.

3. Add Analytics

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At the moment, GPT creators don’t have access to anything other than a total chat number for each of their GPTs. It’s kind of like trying to drive down the road in a Michigan blizzard with a small circular section of the windshield visible because the rest of it is caked with ice.

I’m not even asking for much. Even something as simple as a line graph with an editable date range showing the total number of chats your GPTs have had would be a step in the right direction.

For now, the grains of salt we have for data are simply too small to analyze to get meaningful insights.

If OpenAI made something like Google Analytics, but for GPTs, that would be a true game-changer and power tool. 

4. Include Built-in GPT Theft Protection

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I can’t believe I even need to mention this because OpenAI should know better.

Did you know it’s remarkably easy to steal the prompts and files from a GPT? Once stolen, bad actors can recreate your GPTs and claim them as their own.

For now, we have duct tape solutions by including a prompt at the beginning of a GPT’s Custom Instructions. Not exactly the best way to prevent someone from jacking your GPT because hackers gon’ hack.

Out of everything on the list, this is a 100% must-have.

5. Add More GPT Categories

Please tell me, where are these categories that people want? Categories like: Marketing, Humor, Crypto, Sports, Social Media, Historical Figures, Dating, Cooking, Blogging, etc.

Here are the currently available categories: DALLE-E, Writing, Productivity, Research & Analysis, Programming, Education, and Lifestyle.

What does “Lifestyle” even mean? Sounds like the type of app category that my Creative Director, Dick Smith, would be into.

We need more categories so people can find the GPTs that they want and need.

6. Allow People Without a ChatGPT Plus Subscription to Use GPTs

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95% of my friends and family do not subscribe to ChatGPT, so they will never be able to use my bots. 

Here are some ideas on how OpenAI can make GPTs available to anyone:

• Provide a free trial or something where someone can use a GPT for free for 24-hours, or even a couple-hours. This would easily give them a taste of it to see if they like it.
• Charge per message. If a free user wants to use one GPT a few times per month, for example, they would pay a low fee like $1.
• Offer a low-cost subscription PER GPT, like $3/month.

Not everyone can afford a ChatGPT Plus subscription at $20/month. Also, some people are losers. Providing pricing options would help launch GPTs into the mainstream.

7. Add a Proper Search Results Page

Do you remember ChatGPT Plugins?

I didn’t think so. Most don’t.

Well, it didn’t have a search bar. You literally couldn’t search for the type of plugin you wanted.

The GPT Store has a search bar! However, the search results are just a little dropdown of GPTs underneath the bar.

If the search results were listed on a full search results page, similar to Google or Bing, that would be so much better. The search results page could also display the full GPT description, which is key in allowing users to select a GPT that’s right for them.

Lucky for OpenAI, they have a search giant (Microsoft) right by their side that, let’s just say, has some experience with creating search results pages.

Wrapping It Up

If you couldn’t tell, I really like the GPT Store. 

However, it’s obvious that OpenAI hires more engineers than marketers. If you need more proof of that, think about how painful it would be to name your product “ChatGPT.” It’s a name that’s hard to spell, hard to remember, hard to pronounce, and easy to forget. But I promised I wouldn’t rant about that again.

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Anyway, if you know someone who works at OpenAI or has connections to them, please do me a favor and send them this article. I’ll send you a beer in the mail. It will have your name on it.