How to Write Better Prompts for Claude (Anthropic's Own Advice, Explained)

The short version

Anthropic’s advice comes down to this: Claude can only use the context you give it. Explain the task as you would to a smart colleague on their first day: what, why, for whom and what good looks like.

The techniques

1. Be clear and direct

Say exactly what you want and why. “Write a product description” is weak; “Write a product description for first-time buyers who worry it won’t fit their small kitchen” is strong.

2. Explain why

A reason helps Claude make good choices you didn’t spell out. “Keep it short because people read it on their phones” works better than “keep it short”.

3. Give examples

Paste one or two examples of the style or format you want. Examples beat descriptions.

4. Separate your material with tags

When a prompt mixes instructions with documents, wrap each piece in a labeled tag so nothing gets confused:

Summarize the complaint below for our support manager.
<complaint>
[paste email]
</complaint>
<our_policy>
[paste policy]
</our_policy>
Say whether the customer's request fits our policy, and why.

5. Let it think first

For hard questions (a decision, a calculation, a tricky analysis), ask Claude to work through the problem step by step before giving its final answer.

6. Give it a role

“You’re an experienced bookkeeper reviewing a small shop’s expenses” focuses the answer on what that person would notice.

Before and after

Weak:

Help with my newsletter.

Strong:

You're an editor for small-business newsletters. I run a bike repair shop in Denver.
Here's my draft newsletter:
<draft>
[paste]
</draft>
Readers are local cyclists who skim on their phones, so cut it to under 200 words,
keep the one most useful tip, and end with our Saturday clinic (10am, free).

Mistakes to avoid

• Assuming it knows your situation. It only knows what’s in the chat, your Project or your settings.
• Mixing instructions into pasted text. Tags keep them apart.
• Asking for a final answer to a hard question right away. Let it reason first.

Next: try it on a PDF summary or your own writing.