By Phil Gee · AI Academy, Southport
Here is the biggest mistake I see business owners make with Claude. They open a fresh chat every single time, explain who they are and what they need all over again, and wonder why it feels like hard work.
There is a much better way — Claude Projects. Once you set one up properly, it changes how much value you get out of the tool.
What a Project Actually Is
Think of a Project as a dedicated workspace inside Claude that already knows the background. You load it up once with the information that matters — your brand voice, your pricing, your standard terms, examples of writing you like — and every conversation inside that Project starts already briefed.
No more repeating yourself. No more generic first drafts that need heavy editing.
What Small Businesses Are Actually Using Projects For
A "Proposals" Project. Load in your pricing structure, your standard terms, and two or three proposals you are proud of. From then on, every new proposal starts from something that already sounds like you — not a blank page.
A "Client Communications" Project. Load in your tone of voice guidelines and a few examples of emails you have sent. Tricky client emails, chasing payments, handling a complaint — all drafted in your voice, ready to tweak and send.
A "Content" Project. Load in your brand guidelines and a handful of blog posts or social captions you like. Every new piece of content comes out sounding consistent, instead of drifting a little further from your voice every month.
A "Business Knowledge" Project. Load in your FAQs, your processes, and key facts about how you work. Ask it questions about your own business and get accurate, specific answers instantly — instead of digging through old documents.
Why This Matters More Than the Chat Itself
The real value is not any single response Claude gives you. It is the fact that you brief it once and benefit from that briefing every day afterwards. That is the difference between a tool you occasionally poke at and a tool that is genuinely working for your business in the background.
Getting Started
Pick the one area of your business where you write the same type of thing over and over — proposals, client emails, content, whatever it is for you. Set up one Project. Load in your best examples. Use it for two weeks. You will feel the time saving almost immediately.
If you want a hand setting this up properly for your business, book a free chat with me — I will show you exactly how to structure your first Project so it actually saves you time from day one.