Behavioral Rules

How to teach Coppermind the unwritten rules for working with each client - the things a CMO learns over months that make the difference between generic and great output.

What Are Behavioral Rules?#

Every client has unspoken preferences, sensitivities, and patterns that shape how you work with them. "Jane wants numbers before narrative." "Never bring up the Q2 rebrand." "Always CC the ops director on strategy emails." These are behavioral rules.

Coppermind stores these rules per client mind and injects them into every interaction - meeting prep, content drafts, follow-up emails. When you switch to a client, their rules load automatically and shape Claude's output for the rest of the session.

This is the handoff killer feature. When a new CMO takes over a client, they inherit not just data but working knowledge about how to work with that client.

When to Use This#

• After a client corrects your approach and you want Coppermind to remember it permanently
• When you notice a pattern in how a stakeholder prefers to receive information
• Before a handoff, to codify the institutional knowledge a new CMO will need
• When onboarding a team member who will work with this client

Adding a Rule#

Switch to the client mind first, then tell Claude the rule:

"Switch to Acme Corp"
"Remember: always lead with ROI numbers when presenting to Sarah. She tunes out without metrics first."

Or be explicit about adding a behavioral rule:

"Add a behavioral rule: never mention competitor X by name in client-facing materials"

Each rule needs a category. If you do not specify one, Claude will pick the best fit. The categories are:

Seeing Your Rules#

"Show the behavioral rules for this client"

Or filter by category:

"Show the communication style rules"

The response lists all active rules grouped by category, with the total count.

Editing a Rule#

"Edit the rule about email length - change it to 'keep emails under 5 sentences for this client'"

Claude will find the matching rule by content and update it. Previous versions are preserved (up to 5 per rule) so you have an edit history.

Removing a Rule#

"Remove the rule about competitor X"

By default, rules are soft-deleted - they stop being active but stay in the history for audit purposes. If you want a permanent removal:

"Permanently delete the rule about competitor X"

How Rules Get Used#

When you switch to a client, active behavioral rules are loaded and injected into Claude's context. You will see them reflected in:

• Meeting prep: The "Working With [Client]" section incorporates your rules into the preparation brief.
• Content drafting: Rules about communication style, content preferences, and topics to avoid shape every draft.
• Follow-up emails: Stakeholder-specific preferences are applied when drafting communications.
• Handoff documents: Rules are exported as part of the client mind, so the next CMO inherits your working knowledge.

Rules are separate from the dynamic behavioral context that Coppermind assembles automatically from brand voice, stakeholder data, and recent activity. Think of it this way:

• Behavioral context (automatic): Coppermind reads your existing data and infers useful instructions.
• Behavioral rules (you create these): Explicit instructions you have taught Coppermind through experience.

Both work together. Rules take priority when they conflict with inferred context.

Limits#

• Up to 50 active rules per client mind (most clients need 5-15)
• Each rule can be up to 500 characters
• Rules only apply to client minds, not your personal mind (use the CMO Profile for personal operating rules)

Examples for Common Scenarios#

After a client correction#

You sent a brief that was too long. The client said "I need the executive summary on one page."

"Add a behavioral rule: all briefs for this client must have a one-page executive summary. Full details go in an appendix."

Stakeholder preferences#

You learned that the VP of Sales only reads bullet points and the CEO prefers narrative.

"Add a behavioral rule: when preparing materials for Tom (VP Sales), use bullet points only. When preparing for Lisa (CEO), use narrative format with supporting data."

Sensitive topics#

A previous campaign did not go well and the client is sensitive about it.

"Add a behavioral rule: do not reference the spring 2026 product launch campaign. The client considers it a failure and bringing it up damages trust."

Handoff preparation#

You are about to hand off the client to a new CMO and want to capture your working knowledge.

"Show all behavioral rules for this client"

Review the list, add anything that is missing, then proceed with the handoff. The new CMO will see these rules every time they switch to this client.

Tips#

• Capture rules in the moment. When a client corrects you or reveals a preference, add the rule immediately. If you wait, you will forget the nuance.
• Be specific. "Be professional" is not useful. "Use formal tone in board-facing documents but casual tone in weekly check-in emails" is useful.
• Review quarterly. Rules can go stale. A rule about a 90-day trial period stops being relevant after the trial ends. During your quarterly review, scan the rules and deactivate any that no longer apply.
• Rules are not memories. If you are storing a fact ("Acme's fiscal year starts in April"), use store_memory. If you are encoding a behavior ("always reference fiscal year timelines when discussing budgets"), use a behavioral rule.