Claude is genuinely excellent at understanding context, which makes it particularly well-suited to businesses that want AI to write and think in their voice rather than in a generic template. This guide walks through exactly how to set it up so it works that way from the start.
Claude is built by Anthropic and it handles long, detailed instructions particularly well. Where some AI tools lose track of what you've told them halfway through a conversation, Claude is very good at holding onto context and applying it consistently. This makes it especially useful for businesses that want to upload a detailed brief about who they are and then have every response shaped by that understanding.
The feature that matters most here is called Projects. A project in Claude is a workspace where you can upload background documents, set custom instructions, and have every conversation within that project informed by all of it automatically. You don't need to paste your context file in every time you start a new chat, because the project already has it.
Projects are available on Claude Pro (the paid plan). If you're on the free tier, you can still use Claude effectively by pasting your context file at the start of each conversation, but the project approach is significantly smoother and is worth the upgrade if you're using AI regularly.
Head to claude.ai and sign up. If you're planning to use this for your business day-to-day, go with the Pro plan, which is currently around $20 per month. It gives you more messages, access to the most capable model, and the Projects feature you'll need for what follows.
In the left sidebar, click "Projects" and then create a new one. Name it after your business. This project will become your main workspace, and every conversation you have inside it will automatically draw on the context and instructions you set up next.
This is the most important step. Create a text file (a simple .txt or .md file) that describes your business in detail. If you haven't done this yet, our context engineering guide walks through exactly what to include, with examples you can adapt. The key sections are: who you are, your customers, your tone of voice, your products and services, things to avoid, and your current priorities.
Inside your project, click the knowledge section (it's in the project settings) and upload your context file. You can upload multiple files here if you want to separate different aspects of your business, for example one file for brand voice and another for products and services. Claude reads all of them and treats them as background knowledge for every conversation.
Still in the project settings, there's a field for custom instructions. This is where you tell Claude how to behave by default in this project. Keep it concise and specific. Here's an example:
You are a writing assistant for Riverside Bakery.
Always use our brand voice from the context files.
Write in British English.
Never use exclamation marks in professional copy.
When in doubt, keep the tone warm and understated.
If I ask for social media content, default to Instagram unless I specify otherwise.
Always suggest a call to action at the end of marketing copy.Start a new conversation in your project and try something you'd normally ask for, like a social media post or an email draft. You should immediately notice that the output sounds like your business rather than a generic template. If something feels off, go back and refine your context file or custom instructions. This is an iterative process, and the first version doesn't need to be perfect.
Once you're comfortable with the basics, you can create separate projects for different areas of your business. For example, you might have one project for marketing content, another for customer service responses, and another for internal operations. Each one can have its own context files and instructions, tailored to that specific use case, so the AI is always working in the right mode for whatever you're doing.
You can also upload example documents to your projects. If you've written a blog post that captures your voice perfectly, upload it as a reference. If you have a set of email templates that work well, include those too. The more real examples Claude has to draw on, the closer its output will be to what you'd actually write yourself.
The most common mistake is writing a context file that's too vague. Saying "our tone is professional and friendly" doesn't give Claude much to work with because almost every business would say the same thing. Instead, give specific examples: "We write like we're talking to a neighbour over the fence, not presenting to a boardroom. We use 'we' not 'the company.' We'd rather say 'pop in' than 'visit our store.'"
The second most common mistake is not including the "things to avoid" section. Telling AI what not to do is just as important as telling it what to do, and in many cases it's even more effective at shaping the output.
The third is setting it up once and never updating it. Your business changes, your priorities shift, and your context file should keep pace with that. A quick update every month or two is usually enough to keep things current.
If you've followed the steps above, you now have a Claude setup that understands your business and can produce work that genuinely sounds like you. From here, the next step is to start using it for real tasks and refining the context as you go.
If you haven't written your context file yet, this guide walks you through everything to include, section by section.
Ready-to-use prompts for social media, email, SEO, and content planning, all personalised to your business.
Once your context is in place, learn how to build AI into your daily operations and automate routine tasks.
We'll create your context files, configure your projects, set your custom instructions, and hand it all back to you ready to use. The whole thing takes about an hour and saves you weeks of figuring it out yourself.
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