Stop Wasting Time Re-Explaining Everything to AI (This One Feature Changes Everything)
How to make Claude remember your entire business—so you never have to train it from scratch again.
WORD OF THE DAY: Claude Projects
What It Is: A workspace in Claude (the AI chat assistant) where you can upload your company documents, set custom instructions, and have all your conversations about a specific topic or project in one organized place.
The Simple Analogy: Imagine hiring a new employee. Without Projects, every time you talk to them, you have to re-explain who your company is, what you do, and how you like things done. With Projects, you give them a training manual once, and they remember it forever.
Real Example:
Without Projects: Every time you ask Claude to write a marketing email, you have to paste your brand guidelines, explain your tone of voice, describe your target customer, and hope it gets it right.
With Projects: You create a “Marketing” project, upload your brand guidelines once, add instructions like “you are a cheeky social media maven that writes in a friendly, humurous tone,” and now every email Claude writes automatically follows your rules. No repeating yourself ever again.
WHY THIS MATTERS: Stop Training AI From Scratch Every Single Time
Here’s the problem most people have with AI: every conversation starts at zero.
You ask Claude to help with customer service. It gives you generic corporate-speak. You tell it “no, be more casual.” It tries again. You say “no, imagine you’re talking to a friend.” Ten messages later, you finally get something decent.
Next day? You start all over again. Same explanations. Same back-and-forth. It’s exhausting.
Projects solve this. They give Claude long-term memory about your business, your style, your preferences, and your documents. One setup, infinite use.
The Technical Magic (RAG):
The key with Projects is they can handle much more of your company data and knowledge without running into the data limits of a normal chat with Claude. When you upload lots of information to a Project, Claude automatically sets it up as a RAG system (Retrieval-Augmented Generation). This means Claude doesn’t try to remember everything at once. Instead, it searches through your uploaded documents to find exactly what it needs for each question, then uses that to write its response.
Translation: You can upload 500 pages of company knowledge initially, but when you upload more, Claude automatically switches to RAG mode which can expand capacity up to 10x—potentially 5,000 pages of information. Claude intelligently searches through all of it to find exactly what it needs for each question.
THE COST: What You Need to Access Projects
Projects are NOT available on Claude’s free plan. Here’s what it costs:
Claude Pro: $20/month
Gets you Projects
5x more usage than free
Access to best models (Claude Sonnet 4.5, Opus 4)
About 45 messages every 5 hours (resets automatically)
Claude Team: $25-30/month per person (minimum 5 people)
Everything in Pro
Share projects with your team
Everyone can see and use the same project documents
Pooled usage (if Bob doesn’t use much, Sarah can use more)
Claude Max: $100-200/month
For power users only
5x-20x more usage than Pro
Not necessary for most businesses
Bottom Line: For a solo business owner or small team, Claude Pro at $20/month is all you need.
TASK OF THE DAY: Set Up Your First Claude Project (Takes 10 Minutes)
Step 1: Get Claude Pro
Go to claude.ai
Click your profile (bottom left)
Select “Upgrade to Pro”
Pay $20/month (cancel anytime)
Step 2: Create Your First Project
Hover over the left sidebar
Click “Projects”
Click “+ New Project” (top right)
Give it a name (example: “Customer Service”)
Add a description (example: “Handles all customer support questions”)
Step 3: Upload Your Knowledge
Click “Add Content” in Project Knowledge section
Upload relevant documents (up to 500 pages worth):
PDF files
Word documents (DOCX)
Text files (TXT)
Spreadsheets (CSV)
HTML files
Example for Customer Service Project:
Upload your product catalog (so Claude knows what you sell)
Upload your FAQ document (common questions and answers)
Upload your return policy (so Claude gets it right)
Upload past customer emails (so Claude learns your tone)
Step 4: Set Custom Instructions
Click the “Custom Instructions” section
Tell Claude how to behave in this project
Example Instructions:
You are the customer service assistant for [Your Company Name], a [describe business].
Our tone: Friendly, helpful, and professional. We treat customers like friends, not tickets.
Important rules:
- Always check the uploaded product catalog before answering product questions
- Refer to our FAQ and return policy for standard questions
- If you don't know something, say "Let me check on that" rather than guessing
- End every response by asking "Is there anything else I can help with?"
Our customers are: [describe your typical customer - busy parents, tech professionals, etc.]Step 5: Start Using It
Click “+ New Chat” inside your project
Ask Claude something related to this project
Claude will automatically reference your uploaded documents and follow your instructions
Test it: Ask “How should I respond to a customer asking about our return policy?”
Claude will check your uploaded return policy document and write a response in your specified tone. Magic.
HOW EVERY DEPARTMENT SHOULD USE CLAUDE PROJECTS
The real power comes from creating MULTIPLE projects for different parts of your business. Here’s how:
MARKETING DEPARTMENT
Project Name: “Marketing Content”
Upload:
Brand guidelines document
Past blog posts or emails you liked
Target customer description
List of your products/services
Competitor research
Custom Instructions:
You create marketing content for [Company].
Our voice: [conversational/professional/playful - pick one]
Our audience: [describe them]
Our unique value: [what makes you different]
Always:
- Write headlines under 60 characters
- Use short paragraphs (3-4 sentences max)
- Include a clear call-to-action
- Mention specific products from our catalog when relevantUse It For:
Writing social media posts
Drafting email newsletters
Creating blog post outlines
Writing product descriptions
Generating ad copy
SALES DEPARTMENT
Project Name: “Sales Support”
Upload:
Product pricing sheet
Sales scripts that work
Common objections and how you handle them
Case studies or testimonials
Competitor comparison sheet
Custom Instructions:
You help our sales team close deals for [Company].
Our sales approach: Consultative, not pushy. We listen first, then recommend.
Always:
- Reference specific features from our pricing sheet
- Use real customer stories from our case studies when relevant
- Address objections with the techniques in our uploaded sales playbook
- Suggest next steps to move the deal forwardUse It For:
Writing follow-up emails after calls
Creating custom proposals
Responding to objections
Suggesting upsells or cross-sells based on customer needs
Preparing for sales calls
CUSTOMER SERVICE DEPARTMENT
Project Name: “Customer Support”
Upload:
Product manual or documentation
FAQ document
Return/refund policy
Shipping information
Past support tickets (the good responses)
Custom Instructions:
You are our customer service assistant.
Tone: Empathetic and solution-focused. Customers are frustrated; we're here to help.
Priority:
1. Solve their problem quickly
2. Make them feel heard
3. Keep them as a customer
Always:
- Check our uploaded policies before answering policy questions
- Refer to product documentation for technical questions
- Offer solutions, not just explanations
- Apologize when we messed upUse It For:
Drafting responses to customer complaints
Writing help center articles
Creating email templates for common issues
Training new support staff
Escalation decision-making
OPERATIONS/FINANCE DEPARTMENT
Project Name: “Operations”
Upload:
Standard operating procedures (SOPs)
Budget templates
Vendor contracts
Compliance documents
Internal policies
Custom Instructions:
You help with operational and financial tasks for [Company].
Context: We are a [size] company with [number] employees.
Always:
- Reference our SOPs when suggesting processes
- Consider our budget constraints
- Flag compliance issues based on uploaded policies
- Be precise with numbers and proceduresUse It For:
Creating new SOPs
Analyzing expenses
Writing vendor emails
Drafting contracts
Building budget forecasts
HR/HIRING DEPARTMENT
Project Name: “HR & Hiring”
Upload:
Employee handbook
Job descriptions for open roles
Interview questions you use
Onboarding checklist
Company values document
Custom Instructions:
You support HR and hiring for [Company].
Our culture: [describe your company culture]
What we value: [list core values]
When writing job posts:
- Be specific about requirements
- Highlight what makes working here special
- Avoid corporate jargon
When creating interview questions:
- Focus on culture fit and specific skills
- Make them behavioral, not hypotheticalUse It For:
Writing job descriptions
Creating interview guides
Drafting offer letters
Writing employee performance reviews
Creating onboarding documents
PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
Project Name: “Product Development”
Upload:
Product roadmap
Customer feedback surveys
Feature requests log
Technical specifications
Competitor feature analysis
Custom Instructions:
You help with product development for [Company].
Our product: [describe it]
Our users: [describe them]
Priorities:
1. Solve user problems
2. Stay technically feasible
3. Differentiate from competitors
Always consider the customer feedback when suggesting features.Use It For:
Analyzing customer feedback for patterns
Writing feature specifications
Creating product update announcements
Prioritizing feature requests
Drafting technical requirements
PRO TIPS: Getting the Most Out of Projects
1. Start with One Project Don’t create 10 projects on day one. Pick your biggest pain point (probably Marketing or Customer Service) and nail that first. Then expand.
2. Keep Instructions Updated As your business changes, update your project instructions. New product? Add it. New tone of voice? Update it. Projects get better over time.
3. Use Specific File Names Name files clearly: “Brand-Guidelines-2025.pdf” not “doc1.pdf”. Claude uses file names to understand context.
4. Don’t Worry Too Much About the Limit The 200K token limit (about 500 pages) is just the starting point. When you exceed it, Claude automatically enables RAG mode which expands capacity up to 10x. Upload what you need—Claude will handle it intelligently.
5. Test Before You Trust Ask Claude a few test questions in your project to make sure it’s pulling from the right documents and following your instructions correctly.
6. Share Projects with Your Team (Team Plan Only) If you have Claude Team, share your projects with employees. Everyone gets the same quality responses without needing to re-upload documents.
7. Start New Chats for Different Topics Don’t use one endless chat for everything. Start a new chat for each task (one for social media, one for customer emails, etc.). Keeps things organized.
8. Name Your Chats Click on the chat name and rename it something useful: “Q4 Newsletter Draft” instead of “New chat.” You’ll thank yourself later.
WHAT PROJECTS CAN’T DO (Important Limitations)
1. Conversations Don’t Talk to Each Other If you write a blog post in one chat, then start a new chat and ask “show me that blog post,” Claude won’t know what you’re talking about. Each chat is separate. Only the project knowledge and instructions carry over.
2. 500-Page Initial Limit (But RAG Expands It) You can upload about 500 pages of information before Claude automatically switches to RAG mode. Once in RAG mode, capacity expands up to 10x (potentially 5,000 pages).
3. Can’t Automatically Update If you update a document on your computer, you need to re-upload it to Claude. Projects don’t auto-sync with Google Drive or Dropbox (though you can manually connect Google Docs).
4. Usage Limits Still Apply Projects don’t give you unlimited Claude usage. You still have the same message limits as your plan (Pro = ~45 messages per 5-hour window).
5. Not a Database Projects are for reference documents and instructions, not for storing customer data, transaction records, or anything that needs to be searchable like a database.
REAL-WORLD EXAMPLE: How a Marketing Agency Uses Projects
Agency: 10-person marketing agency, Claude Team plan ($250/month for 10 people)
Projects They Created:
Client: Restaurant Chain - Uploaded brand guidelines, menu, past social posts
Client: Tech Startup - Uploaded product docs, website copy, blog posts
Client: E-commerce Store - Uploaded product catalog, competitor analysis, ad copy
Internal: Agency Processes - Uploaded client onboarding docs, contract templates, pricing sheet
Internal: Content Calendar - Uploaded editorial guidelines, posting schedules, performance data
Result:
Cut content creation time by 60%
New team members get up to speed in days, not weeks
Consistent brand voice across all clients
Clients love the quality and consistency
Their Process:
Junior writers use projects to draft content
Senior writers review and refine
Claude handles first drafts, humans add the magic
ROI: Saves ~20 hours/week across the team = $2,000+/month in time savings for a $250/month investment.
THE BOTTOM LINE
Claude Projects transform Claude from a generic AI chatbot into a customized assistant who knows your business inside and out.
The Old Way:
Copy-paste brand guidelines every time
Explain your tone repeatedly
Lose context between conversations
Generic, unhelpful responses
Waste time re-training the AI
The New Way (With Projects):
Upload documents once
Set instructions once
Claude remembers everything
Personalized, on-brand responses
Instant productivity
Is it worth $20/month?
If you use AI even once a week for your business, absolutely yes. The time saved in the first month pays for the entire year.
Your Action Plan:
Sign up for Claude Pro ($20/month)
Create your first project (Marketing or Customer Service)
Upload 3-5 key documents
Write simple custom instructions
Test it with 3-5 questions
Expand to other departments as needed
Projects aren’t just a feature. They’re how you turn AI from a toy into a tool that actually knows your business. Stop training AI from scratch every day. Give it a memory. Give it context. Give it Projects.
Coming Next: MCP - How to give your AI superpowers (connect it to everything you use)…
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