Official guide · Anthropic
Treat prompting like an iteration loop, not a one-shot request
Choose representative tasks, define what success looks like, compare outputs, then improve the instruction from the failures you can name.
Original source
Prompt engineering overview | Claude Platform Docs
Anthropic · Official guide · checked 2026-07-15
What the source is saying
The documentation frames prompt engineering as defining success criteria, testing, evaluating, and iterating.
Try it in your work
Open the linked pattern for a reusable template, variables to change, and an example output shape.
Open the practical pattern →Keep in mind
Iteration improves instruction quality, but it cannot replace missing facts, tools, or a weak product decision.