How to Use Claude ai Step by Step for Beginners (2025 Guide)

In this video, I'll show you exactly how to use  Claude.ai step by step. Claude is an AI assistant   that helps you write, analyze information, and  create things you can actually use. I'm Kevin,   and we'll start with the basics, like writing,  summarizing information, and working with files.  

Then we'll move on to more powerful features like  artifacts, projects, connectors, and skills. By   the end, you'll know how to use Claude to actually  get work done, not just chat with it. Let's get   started. First, head to the Claude website.  You'll find a link right here at the bottom of  

the screen, and then sign in. It's completely free  to get started. Once you're in, this is the main   screen where all your conversations happen. Here  in the middle, you'll see the prompt box. This is   where you type what you want Claude to do. Over  on the left-hand side, you have what's called the  

sidebar. From here, you can start a new chat. You  can also access more advanced features. Down here   at the bottom, you can also view your recent chats  so you can always come back to your work. Let's   start with something simple. I'll ask Claude to  write a professional email. Then, right over here,  

let's run that. Here, you can see Claude created  a full professional email with structure. We even   have some bullet points and all the details  we would need to send this to a supplier.   Now, in most cases, this is already pretty good.  But I didn't actually specify the type of cookie.  

Here it looks like it assumes it's chocolate chip  since that is the most popular type of cookie,   although I had oatmeal raisin in mind. I don't  have to start over if it's not perfect. Instead,   I can refine it. Down below, I'll type in a prompt  to modify this email so it's for oatmeal raisin  

cookies instead and then let's run that. Right up  on top, we can now see the updated email message,   and down below, we can see a summary of all the  different changes that it made. And, of course, I   could keep going from here. I could ask it to make  the email shorter, maybe make it more friendly, or  

just give it more context, like let's say who the  email is for or maybe what tone I want. This back   and forth is really how you get the best results.  Now, once I'm happy with this message, right up on   top, I could fill in these various placeholders.  For example, here, I could type in the supplier  

name. Down below, I could copy the message,  or over here, one of my favorite features,   you could also open the email directly within your  email client. Now, let's look at another really   common use case, summarizing information. I'll  start a new chat right here in the top left-hand  

corner. You'll notice when I hover, there's  a shortcut key. I have a dense sales report I   need to read. Instead of going through the entire  document, I can upload it to Claude to get a quick   summary or ask questions about it. Right over  here, I could click on the plus icon, and here,  

I could upload a file or a photo. Or my favorite  method, I could simply take my file and then drag   and drop it into the chat. There, I see my file.  Down below, I can now enter in a prompt. So,   let's say to summarize this and give me the key  takeaways. Then over here, let's run that. Claude  

pulls out all the most important points and  presents them in a clean, easy to read format.   And look at that. Revenue hits $482,000. Like Mama  always said, there's money in the cookie business.   Now, this works with all kinds of files, like  documents, PDFs, or even spreadsheets. So far,  

we've been using Claude like a chat bot, writing  and summarizing, but this is where it really   starts to stand out. Over on the left-hand side,  let's hover over the more dropdown, and here,   you'll see an option for artifacts. Let's click on  that. Instead of just giving you text in the chat,  

Claude can actually create things you can work  on. So right over here, let's click on create   artifact. Over here, we could choose the type of  artifact. You have apps and websites, documents   and templates, games, and more. For this, I'll  select documents and templates. Down below,  

I get a question back asking me what kind of  document or template do I have in mind? Well,   I would like to create a product launch plan for  the Kevin Cookie Company's new oatmeal raisin   cookie. Then I'll send that. Before it builds the  artifact, it gives me a quick high-level outline  

of what it wants to build. Now, I think all of  this looks great. So down below, I'll type that   in, and then let's send that. Now, you'll notice  this opens up in a separate workspace. This is   what's called an artifact. It's something Claude  creates that you can actually work on and edit  

instead of just viewing everything here in the  chat. Now, overall, I think this is really solid,   but it is a little bit more verbose than I would  like. So over here in the chat, let's ask it to   make it more concise, and then let's send that.  You can see that it tightens everything up while  

keeping all the key points. In fact, it looks  like it's about half the length of the original.   Now, let's see if maybe we could also add a sales  forecast to this. So down below, I'll type that   in, and let's send it. And there we go. It added  a new section with the sales forecast. Now, all I  

have to do is fill in all the specific details. I  can also update specific parts of this artifact.   Here, if I scroll all the way to the top, I have  my executive summary. Let's see if maybe we can   make this a little bit more persuasive. I'll  highlight all this text. And when I do that,  

I get this overlay that allows me to improve  it or explain it. Let's click on improve, and   let's see if it can make it more persuasive. Then  let's click on update. And now it improves just   that section without changing everything else.  So, I can update the entire document, or I can  

just refine specific pieces. Now, once you start  creating multiple documents like this, things   can get messy pretty quickly. To keep everything  organized, we can use something called projects.   Let's now rename this document or the artifact. To  do that, let's click on this dropdown up on top,  

and here we have the option to rename. I'll click  on that and let's call it the product launch plan,   oatmeal raisin cookie. Then I'll click on save.  Right up on top, let's click on that same dropdown   and we can now add this artifact to a project.  Right over here, I'll click on add to project.  

This opens up a prompt where I can see all of my  existing projects or up on top, I can also create   a new project. I'll make a new one called oatmeal  raisin cookie launch. And right here, I'll click   on create. Over on the left-hand side, let's now  click on this icon to open up all the different  

projects. And there I see the project that we  just created called the oatmeal raisin cookie   launch. Let's click into this one. With projects,  I can keep my launch plan, my chats and any other   files all here in one place. As an example, I  also have a PDF with research on oatmeal raisin  

cookies. Here I could drag that in and add it  to the project knowledge. Here I have my PDF   with all the research and over here we also have  that artifact that we just created a moment ago,   all here in one place. Now that I have some files  in my project, I can also add instructions. So  

that way instead of repeating myself every time,  I can tell Claude how I want it to respond. Right   over here, I'll click on this plus icon, and I  can now add instructions. As an example, let's say   always respond in bullet points. Now I’ll click  save and anything I ask inside this project will  

follow that automatically. Now here's where this  gets really powerful. Inside a project, Claude can   use everything I've added. So, it can reference  my launch plan artifact and also the research   document I uploaded. Right here, I'll type in a  prompt. What should I prioritize for a successful  

launch? And then let's run that. Now you'll notice  it responds in bullet points and it's also pulling   from both the plan and the research. Instead of  jumping between chats, everything here stays nice   and organized. So far, we've looked at how to do  work in Claude, but you can also connect it to  

your other tools. Back in the main chat view,  let's click on the plus icon and right here,   you see the option to add connectors. Now here  you could connect it to things like your files,   your email, your calendar, and you have all  sorts of other services as well. Now with email,  

you could have to review your emails and highlight  what's most urgent. For most people getting   started though, you don't need this right away,  but it really becomes powerful as you go deeper.   In the top right-hand corner, let's close out of  this. You can also customize how Claude works with  

something called skills. Right here, I'll click  on the plus icon and here you can manage your   skills or you could add a new skill. This lets  you save reusable instructions or workflows,   so you don't have to repeat them every time. For  example, you could create a skill for writing  

emails or analyzing data in a very specific way.  If you want to go deeper, check the description   for a full video on how to use skills. That's how  to use Claude to actually get work done day to   day. If you want to go deeper, I put together  a full playlist covering everything Claude.  

You'll find that linked right down below. Thanks  for watching and I'll see you in the next video.