For Interior Designers ·
What you'll accomplish
You already write the same five emails over and over: the decision reminder, the delay notice, the substitution note, the "that is outside our scope" reply and the invoice reminder. Each time you hunt for last month's version, change the names and soften the tone. After this setup, a Claude Project holds your studio's voice and those five emails, and each new draft starts from them in a minute or two. You still read every word before it goes out.
What you'll need
Before you upload anything. Open Claude's privacy and data settings and read how chats and uploaded files are handled: whether they can be used to train models, and how long they are kept. A free consumer plan may use conversations for training unless you switch that off, and the setting names change, so read what your screen says. Project knowledge should hold only text that is safe to share: no client names, no street addresses, no photos of people or homes, no trade pricing, net costs or markup. Use "[Client]", "[Project name]" and "[amount]" placeholders and fill them in yourself after Claude drafts.
Claude can only match a voice you describe. Open a blank document and write 8 to 12 short lines about how the studio sounds.
What you should see: A one-page document that reads like a style sheet, not an email. Troubleshooting: If you cannot describe your voice, paste two of your best old emails (cleaned of names) and ask Claude in a normal chat to describe the voice back to you. Edit its description until it sounds right.
Write each email once, in your own words, with placeholders where project details go. These are your templates, not Claude's.
Keep each email under 150 words. Use placeholders such as [Client], [item], [date] and [amount]. Never put real dates, product prices or fee figures into the template text itself.
What you should see: Five short emails in one document, each headed with its name. Troubleshooting: If your scope reply keeps turning into a lecture, shorten it to three sentences: what was asked, what the agreement covers, what you can offer.
What you should see: An empty project page with an area for instructions and an area for project knowledge. Troubleshooting: Anthropic is rolling out a newer version of projects in stages, starting with Claude Code, so your screen may differ from this description. Existing projects in chat keep working as before. Look for the words "instructions" and "knowledge" and use those.
Project instructions tell Claude how to behave in every chat inside the project.
You help an interior design studio write client emails. Use the studio voice described in the knowledge file "Studio voice". Start from the matching template in the knowledge file "Standard emails" and keep the studio's structure.
Rules:
- Use only the details I give you in the chat. If a date, product name or amount is missing, leave a bracketed placeholder and list what is missing at the end.
- Never invent a lead time, price, policy or contract term.
- Keep emails under 180 words unless I ask for longer.
- Be warm and direct. No hype words. Do not apologize more than once.
- Write one email per chat. Give me a subject line and the body only.
What you should see: Your instructions saved with the project. If Claude adds long preambles, add "Return only the subject line and the email body" to the instructions.
What you should see: Two files listed. Claude will draw on them in every chat in this project. Troubleshooting: If you find a client name or a price in a file, delete the file, clean it and upload again.
One chat per email keeps client details from one job from drifting into another.
What you should see: A draft in your voice with placeholders and a short list of anything Claude could not fill in. Troubleshooting: If the tone is off, tell Claude what is wrong in one sentence ("Too formal, we write like friends") and ask for a rewrite. If the same fix keeps recurring, add it to the project instructions.
Decision reminder
Write a decision reminder using the "Decision reminder" template. [Client] needs to confirm [selection] by [date] so the order can be placed in time for the [install date] install. Mention that I can send a one-page comparison if that helps them decide. Keep it friendly and firm.
Substitution proposal
Write a substitution email. The specified [item] is no longer available from the vendor. I am proposing [alternative description]. Explain that I will confirm size and finish against the manufacturer's spec sheet before anything is ordered. Ask [Client] to reply by [date].
Declining a scope request
Write a reply to [Client], who has asked for [request]. It is outside our letter of agreement. Say no kindly, point to the agreement section on additional services, and offer to send a short written proposal if they want to add it. Three sentences at most.
Invoice reminder
Write a polite invoice reminder. Invoice [number] is due under our agreement and has not been received. Ask them to let me know if anything is unclear. Do not mention late fees.