Make Claude Research Like an Analyst
Ask Claude a business question and you get a confident answer with nothing behind it. This one prompt makes Claude Code research the way a good analyst does: real sources, a link and a date for every claim, what the sources disagree on, and what it couldn't find.
Ask Claude a business question and it answers like it knows. Same tone whether it's right or wrong.
Most of the time it's close. Sometimes it's a number from 3 years ago, or something it filled in because it sounded right. You can't tell which by reading it.
A good analyst does 3 things a guesser doesn't. They show where every claim came from. They tell you when the sources disagree. And they tell you what they couldn't find.
You can make Claude work that way. It takes one prompt.
Step 1. Open Claude Code
Open the Claude desktop app, switch from Chat to Code at the top, and pick a folder for this. A new empty folder is fine.
Claude will ask to search the web and open pages. Say yes.
Step 2. Paste the research prompt
Fill in the 2 lines in [brackets] first.
Research this for me like a careful analyst would: [your question, like "what do yoga studios in the US usually charge for a 6 week beginners course, and what's included?"] My business, so you know what matters: [one line about your business] Rules: 1. Search the web and read at least 5 real sources. Prefer official pages, real company pages and original reports over blog posts that repeat each other. 2. Every claim gets its source link and the date of that page. No link, no claim. 3. Keep what the sources say apart from your own opinion. Label your opinion as "My take". 4. When sources disagree, show both sides and who said what. Don't pick one quietly. 5. Rate each finding high, medium or low confidence, and say why in a few words. 6. Flag anything older than 12 months. 7. End with what you looked for and couldn't find. Write it up in plain words, short. Save it as RESEARCH.md in this folder.
Step 3. Check the 3 claims that matter most
Before you use the research for anything real (a price, a decision, a post), paste this:
Pick the 3 claims in RESEARCH.md that matter most for my decision. For each one, open the source link again and quote the exact sentence from the page that backs it up. If the page doesn't say it, tell me and fix RESEARCH.md.
This is the step that catches the mistakes. If Claude can't quote the sentence, the claim doesn't go in your post.
The limitations you should know
- Claude can only read pages that are open to the public. Paywalled reports and logged-in pages are out.
- The web isn't always right either. Two blogs repeating the same wrong number is still wrong. That's why it rates confidence and prefers official pages.
- Prices and rules change. Check the date on anything you plan to use.
- It's research, not a decision. You still make the call.
Want the next guide? Follow @zachcrawford.ai