Use Claude to shape the first version of an online product
· Startup with AI
A common early mistake is trying to build every feature the idea might need one day. Claude can help you work through a smaller question: what is the simplest version that would solve one real problem for one type of customer? Treat the output as a draft to review, not a specification that is automatically right.
Give Claude useful background
Write a short brief with the customer, the problem, what they do today and what you have learned from conversations. Include constraints such as your budget, technical experience and the time you can spend. Ask Claude to point out missing information before proposing a solution.
If you use Claude Projects, Anthropic says you can keep related chats and reference material together. Add only material you are comfortable sharing with the service, and keep confidential customer details out. Give the project clear instructions, such as “flag assumptions and ask before inventing product requirements.”
Cut the product down to one useful job
Ask Claude to suggest the smallest workflow that would help the customer reach a specific outcome. A bookkeeping idea, for example, might begin with importing one month of transactions and producing a review list. It may not need team roles, dashboards and integrations in its first version.
For each proposed feature, ask: what problem does it solve, what evidence says this matters, and how could we test it without building the feature? This makes it easier to separate necessary work from attractive extras.
Use an Artifact as a conversation piece
Claude Artifacts can present self-contained content such as a prototype or simple interactive tool. That can make an idea easier to discuss than a long description. Ask for a rough prototype using sample data, then show it to a few people who resemble your intended customers.
Be clear that a prototype is a way to explore a workflow. It is not automatically secure, reliable, connected to your real systems or ready to sell. Record where people hesitate, what they expect to happen next and which parts they ignore.
Turn feedback into a build brief
After each conversation, write down what the person actually did or said. Ask Claude to compare the notes with your original assumptions and suggest the next question to investigate. Keep the original notes so you can check any summary.
When you are ready to build, create a short brief with the intended user, the main task, the screens or steps required, and what is deliberately out of scope. The AI DO IT launch checklist can help you work through the accounts and process around the product too.
A useful next step
Use Claude to explore the product. Use customer feedback to decide what deserves to be built.
Source: Anthropic: Claude Projects