Specify output format before you start

Claude will generate in whatever format it thinks is appropriate unless you tell it otherwise. That means you'll often get a wall of prose when you wanted a table, or a bulleted list when you needed an email. Specify format upfront.

Format specifications that work

• "Format as a table with columns for: Company, Stage, ARR, Risk Flag, Next Action."
• "Output as 5 bullet points, each under 15 words."
• "Write as a professional email with subject line. Under 150 words."
• "Format as a numbered step-by-step guide. Each step should be one action I can take today."
• "Output as a side-by-side comparison table: Us vs. [Competitor]. Rows: Feature, Pricing, Deployment, Support."

The CRM-ready request

If you're using Claude to generate CRM notes, tell it: "Format the output as a CRM entry I can paste directly into Salesforce. Include: Call Summary (3 sentences), Pain Points Identified (bullet list), Budget / Authority / Timeline indicators, Agreed Next Steps with date, Deal Risk Flags."

The rule

If you have to reformat the output, you didn't specify the format. Say it in the prompt.