Working with Claude Code - Tips & Tricks

Master these techniques to become more effective with Claude Code!

You can ask Claude Code to modify or add things at any time:

Can you change the color scheme to blue and white?

Add a dark mode toggle button

The contact form needs email validation

Make the navigation sticky at the top when scrolling

The more specific your requests, the better results you’ll get.

Instead of:

“Make it look better”

Try:

“Add more spacing between sections and make the headings larger”

Instead of:

“It’s not working”

Try:

“When I click the submit button, nothing happens. Can you check the JavaScript?”

Instead of:

“Add some colors”

Try:

“Use a blue (#2563eb) and white color scheme with subtle gray backgrounds”

Don’t understand something? Just ask!

Can you explain what the CSS flexbox code does?

Why did you use addEventListener instead of onclick?

How does the form validation work?

What's the difference between let and const in JavaScript?

Claude Code is patient and loves explaining things in beginner-friendly terms!

If you’re new to coding and want Claude to explain things in simple terms, add this to your prompts:

Please explain everything in simple terms, as if I'm a complete
beginner. Avoid technical jargon and use everyday language.
If you need to use a technical term, please define it first.

Example:

Can you add a contact form to my website? Please explain
everything in simple terms, as if I'm a complete beginner.

This helps Claude:

• Use plain, everyday language instead of technical terms
• Explain concepts like you’re learning for the first time
• Define any technical words before using them
• Keep explanations clear and approachable

Before (technical):

“I’ll implement a POST request handler with form validation using regex patterns and preventDefault to handle the submit event.”

After (beginner-friendly):

“I’ll add code that checks if the email looks correct when someone clicks the submit button, and then sends the message.”

Don’t try to get everything perfect in one go. Build iteratively:

1. Start with basic structure
2. Add functionality
3. Improve styling
4. Add polish and details

Example workflow:

1. "Create a simple contact form with name, email, and message fields"
2. "Add validation to make sure all fields are filled"
3. "Style the form to match my site's blue color scheme"
4. "Add a success message after submission"

Complex features are easier to build in steps:

Instead of:

“Build a complete e-commerce shopping cart”

Try:

1. "Create a product card component with image, title, price"
2. "Add an 'Add to Cart' button to each product"
3. "Create a cart that shows selected items"
4. "Add quantity controls to the cart"
5. "Calculate and display the total price"

Ask Claude to teach you while building:

Create a photo gallery with a lightbox effect.
As you build it, explain each major part of the code
so I can understand how it works.

1. Be descriptive - Explain exactly what’s happening
2. Share error messages - If you see errors in the browser console, share them
3. Describe what you expected - What should have happened?

Good troubleshooting request:

When I click the "Submit" button, I see this error in the console:
"Uncaught TypeError: Cannot read property 'value' of null"

I expected the form to show a success message. Can you help fix this?

Be honest! Claude Code won’t be offended.

The design is nice, but can we try a more modern, minimalist style?

This works, but the animations feel too slow. Can we speed them up?

You can ask Claude to work with your existing code:

I have a navigation menu in header.html.
Can you make it responsive and add a mobile hamburger menu?

Can you show me 3 different color schemes I could use for this site?

What are some alternative ways to layout this contact section?

Can you review my HTML and suggest accessibility improvements?

Are there any performance optimizations I should make to this code?

The more you work with Claude Code, the better you’ll get at:

• Asking clear, specific questions
• Breaking down problems
• Understanding the code it generates
• Building more complex projects

Don’t be afraid to experiment and ask questions!