Deployment guide

First, the thing that makes this different: you own it. What you're setting up here isn't a website or a SaaS system that you log into or an app you rent. It's a copy of Soundtrak's whole AI Studio that lives on your computer.

It's a premium, licensed product, yours to run for your own business's marketing, not to resell or run for other people's clients, and not open-source.

A few quick steps. Install Python and Claude Code, download the Studio, say one sentence, and start. No coding, and no experience with Claude needed. After the download, the Studio sets itself up: it installs the pieces it needs, checks everything works, turns on backup, and builds your dashboards for you. Plan on about 30 minutes, most of it downloads running in the background.

The map, so you know where you're going:

Install Python: runs the behind-the-scenes scripts.
Install Claude Code: sign in and pick your model.
Download the Studio: one folder from GitHub.
Say "Setup Studio": the Studio does the rest.
Bookmark your Studio home: one page, your way back into everything.
Set up your brand: the foundation every campaign reuses.
Your first campaign: say the word and go.

Step 1 - Install Python

Python runs the Studio's behind-the-scenes scripts.

Go to python.org/downloads and click the big yellow Download Python button.
Open the file you just downloaded.
IMPORTANT: on the first screen, tick "Add Python to PATH" (bottom of the window) before clicking Install Now. This one tick prevents the most common setup problem.
Let it finish, then click Close.

On a Mac or Linux? The Studio's engine calls the command python (not python3). If your machine only has python3, the auto-update and backup won't run. You don't need to fix this by hand: the health check in Step 4 tests for it and, if it's missing, prints the exact one-line fix.

Step 2 - Install Claude Code

Claude Code is what you'll actually use every day: the AI you type your requests to.

Get a Claude account first. You need a paid plan, either Claude Pro or Max (the same login as Claude.ai). If you don't have one, sign up at claude.com/pricing.
Install Claude Code to your PC using Anthropic's official guide: code.claude.com/docs/en/setup.
The first time you open Claude Code it opens your browser to log in. Sign in with your Pro/Max account. You only do this once. New to it? The 5-minute quickstart shows a first-timer exactly what to click: code.claude.com/docs/en/quickstart.
Pick your model. Open the model picker (type /model) and choose Opus. It's the most capable, and the Studio leans on it for quality. On the Pro plan you get Opus but with tighter usage limits; Max gives a lot more headroom. Either works. If you hit a limit on Pro, switch to a lighter model with /model and carry on.

⚠️ Install the desktop app, not the browser version. This is the one that trips people up. The web / browser version of Claude runs in the cloud and cannot open the folder on your computer or run the Studio's files, so it will not work for this. Use the desktop app.

Step 3 - Download the Studio

The whole Studio is one folder of files, hosted on GitHub. You don't need a GitHub account to download it.

Open github.com/abraun64/soundtrak-ai-studio.
Click the green < > Code button (top-right of the file list), then Download ZIP.
The ZIP saves into your Downloads folder. Right-click it → Extract All… → Extract.
Watch for the double folder. GitHub often extracts a folder inside a folder, like soundtrak-ai-studio-main\soundtrak-ai-studio-main\. You want the inner one, the folder that has files like README.md and a campaigns folder directly inside it. That inner folder is your Studio.
Move that folder into your OneDrive (or Dropbox) folder. Keeping it there gives you an automatic offsite backup of everything you do, with zero extra setup.
Rename it to exactly:
```
Marketing AI System
```

⚠️ Check you got it right, the name has to be exact. The final result should look like C:\Users\<you>\OneDrive\Marketing AI System, and opening that folder should show README.md and a campaigns folder right there (not one more folder to click into). If you have to open another folder first, you moved the outer double folder, so go up one level and move the inner one instead. Getting this right now prevents nearly every "it can't find my files" problem later.

Step 4 - Open it and say "Setup Studio"

Now you point Claude Code at that folder and let the Studio finish the job. Claude Code always works inside one folder, so this is how it learns where your Studio lives.

Open Claude (the desktop app) and click the Code tab at the top.
On the project screen, choose Local (this runs on your own computer), then click the Select folder button.
A file browser opens. Go to your Marketing AI System folder, click it once to highlight it, then click Open (that picks the folder itself; you don't need to go inside it first). You're in the right place when Claude Code shows Marketing AI System as the current project. Prefer the terminal? Open one inside that folder and run claude instead.
If Claude asks whether to trust the files in this folder, say yes; it's your own downloaded product.
Type this and send it:
```
Setup Studio
```

⚙️ What "Setup Studio" does for you. That one sentence handles everything mechanical:

shows you the licence once (free for your own business use, provided "as is"; full terms in the LICENSE file) and asks you to reply I AGREE;
installs the pieces it needs (two small libraries, plus one optional extra for gallery thumbnails);
runs a health check and, if anything's missing, tells you the one thing to fix in plain language;
turns on automatic backup, so your work saves at the end of every session;
builds your dashboards, and (on Windows) sets up the handy gallery quick-buttons;
opens your Studio home page at the end.

ℹ️ The prompts you'll see, and why they're fine. Your copy comes pre-configured so Claude doesn't stop to ask permission for its own routine work: edits apply automatically and its setup commands just run. The one prompt you're sure to meet is the one-time licence (reply I AGREE); you may also get a one-time "trust this folder?" question, just say yes. Anything else is safe to accept. Prefer to approve edits yourself? Press Shift+Tab to toggle auto-accept off (and on again).

When it says READY, setup is done, one time only. A red [FAIL] always prints its exact fix; a yellow [WARN] is just a heads-up you can usually ignore (see the table at the bottom).

Step 5 - Bookmark your Studio home

When setup finishes it opens your Studio home: a single page linking to your Campaign dashboard, your System dashboard, and the guides. Bookmark it (on Chrome, save it to your Bookmarks Bar). That one bookmark is your way back into everything; the pages behind it update themselves as you work, so you just refresh.

Your Campaign dashboard is empty until you start your first campaign. That's expected; it says so.

Step 6 - Set up your brand

Do this once, before any campaign. This is the foundation every campaign reuses, so you never re-explain yourself: your look, your voice, who you sell to, and any rules you must follow.

📋 Before you start, gather what you have. All optional; the more you bring, the sharper it starts, but nothing here blocks you and you can add the rest later.

Your website address: the single most useful source; the Studio reads it while it interviews you.
Brand style guide, or just your logo, colours and fonts.
Tone of voice: how you sound, words you use and words you avoid.
Positioning & segments: what you stand for, and who you're selling to.
Rules you must follow: only if you're regulated (finance, health, government…): disclaimers, things you can't claim.
Where you publish + your martech: key channels plus tools (CRM, email, analytics). If any needs a password or key, the Studio shows you where to enter it safely.
Best-practice examples: a few standout campaigns or pieces for the Studio to learn from.

Click + New to open a new chat. Point it at your Marketing AI System folder (the same Local → Select folder as in Step 4, or pick it from your recent folders), and name it "Brand setup". This is a chat you'll come back to. Then type:

Onboard <your business name>

The Studio interviews you, a few questions at a time, and builds your foundation. Point it at your website and any public material and it uses them as source while it asks; the more you give, the sharper it starts. Anything missing is marked to fill in later.

Come back any time to update it. Return to your Brand setup chat and say "update my brand". It only asks about what changed, never the whole thing again. Your foundation is saved to your files (not to the chat) and carried into every campaign, so even if you lose the chat, your brand is safe.

Step 7 - Your first campaign

That's it, you're ready. Press + New for a fresh chat, point it at your Marketing AI System folder, and type:

start a campaign: <what it's for>

📘 Next: the Operator guide walks you through a campaign in detail, stage by stage, and shows you the optional System Improvements chat, where your ideas for improving the Studio itself become tracked work. Nothing there is needed on day one.

The one habit that matters: a fresh chat for each new job, each campaign, each time, pointed at your Marketing AI System folder, with a name you'll remember. Everything you do is saved automatically and carried across chats through your Brand foundation, so a new chat never loses your brand or your past work. You don't set up your chats in advance; you make one when you start a new job.

Backup & upgrades

Backup is automatic once set up (Step 4): your work saves at the end of every session. The safety net is that local save plus your OneDrive/Dropbox folder, an offsite copy with zero extra setup. That's enough for most people, no GitHub account required.
Git is recommended, not required. If Git is installed, the Studio keeps a full version history of your work and can push to an online backup; if it isn't, the Studio still runs perfectly and your OneDrive/Dropbox folder is your backup. The setup check flags a missing Git as a yellow "recommended" warning, never a blocker, it's your call whether to install it.
Want a separate online backup in your own account? Optional, install Git, create a free private repo, then say "Setup Studio" again and the Studio connects it.
Upgrades: your copy is yours and keeps working as-is, so you never have to upgrade. If a newer version is released, whoever gave you the Studio can hand you the update.

If the health check flags something

Step 4 ("Setup Studio") runs a "doctor" that checks your setup. A red [FAIL] line is a real blocker and always prints the exact fix; a yellow [WARN] line is just a heads-up you can usually ignore. The usual ones:

Line	What it means	Fix
`[FAIL] python module: … MISSING`	a required helper library (markdown / pyyaml) didn't install	type "Setup Studio" again in the chat session, so it retries
"python is not recognised" (Windows)	Python installed without "Add to PATH"	re-run the Step 1 installer and tick "Add Python to PATH"
[FAIL] `python` NOT on PATH (only `python3`) (Mac/Linux)	the engine's `python` command is missing, so auto-update & backup won't run	point `python` at `python3`, the doctor prints the exact one-line command, or use a virtual environment
`[WARN] playwright … (optional)`	the thumbnail-image tool isn't installed, not a blocker	ignore it, or say "Setup Studio" to add it; it only affects gallery preview images
`[WARN] git (recommended…)`	Git isn't installed, not a blocker; you just lose version history	optional; install Git if you want version history + online backup (see below)

Do I need a GitHub account?

No, not to download the Studio, and not to use it day to day. GitHub shows up in two separate ways, and only the optional one needs an account of your own:

GitHub touchpoint	Whose it is	Account needed?
The public page you download from (Step 3)	the people who make the Studio	No, anyone can download
An optional online backup of your own work	yours (a free private repo)	Yes, but only if you want it