Setup Guide

Get Started with Agency OS

A step-by-step guide for Mac and Windows. No coding experience required. You will be running in under 10 minutes.

What is this?

Agency OS runs inside Claude Code on your computer

Claude Code is an AI that lives in your Terminal (Mac) or PowerShell (Windows). It reads, writes, and manages files directly on your machine. Agency OS is a plugin that gives Claude Code 17 skills and 18 commands purpose-built for growing your business.

TIP

You do not need to be a developer to use this. You type commands in plain English. It does the work.

Before you start

Prerequisites

You need two things before installing Claude Code.

Claude Account

A paid Claude plan. Sign up at claude.ai

Pro $20/mo, Max $100/mo, or Max $200/mo

GitHub Account

Free account at github.com. Needed for plugin installation.

Free

NOTE

Windows users: You also need Git for Windows installed. Download and install it before proceeding.

Step-by-step

Installation

Select your operating system and follow the steps.

Open Terminal

Open Finder (the smiling face in your Dock). Go to Applications > Utilities > Terminal. Double-click to open it.

TIP

Shortcut: Press Command + Spacebar to open Spotlight. Type Terminal. Press Enter.

Install Homebrew (package manager)

Paste this into Terminal and press Enter. It will ask for your Mac password (the one you use to log in to your computer).

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

After it finishes, it will show "Next steps" with commands to add Homebrew to your PATH. Run each of those commands one at a time.

Install GitHub CLI

brew install gh

Wait for it to finish. You will see a beer mug icon when it is done.

Log in to GitHub

gh auth login

Select: GitHub.com > HTTPS > Login with a web browser. It will open your browser. Log in and enter the code shown in Terminal.

Install Claude Code

curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash

Wait for it to finish. You will see "Claude Code successfully installed!" and "Installation complete!"

If it says ~/.local/bin is not in your PATH, run the command it shows you, then close and reopen Terminal.

Type claude and press Enter. You will see the Welcome screen. Select "Claude account with subscription" and follow the browser prompts to log in.

Claude Code welcome screen with login options

Your browser will open. Select your organization and confirm access.

When you see "Build something great. You're all set up for Claude Code." you are authenticated.

Create your workspace folder and open Terminal from it

mkdir ~/Documents/Agency\ OS

This is where all your Agency OS files will live.

Open Finder, navigate to Documents, find the Agency OS folder. Right-click it and select "New Terminal at Folder."

Right-click Agency OS folder in Finder and select New Terminal at Folder

Your Terminal will open already inside the Agency OS folder.

Start Claude Code and run Agency OS

In the Terminal that is open in your Agency OS folder, type claude and press Enter.

claude

Claude Code will open and welcome you.

Claude Code welcome screen showing Welcome back Muhammad

Type "run agency os" or /agency-os to start. It will check your setup and ask if you want to run /setup first. Say yes. This creates the rules file that makes Agency OS work correctly.

Agency OS running setup and creating CLAUDE.md rules

Once setup is complete, you have access to all Agency OS commands. Type "show me all agency os commands" to see the full list.

All Agency OS commands listed including 6 builds, agency growth, and creative tools

Install Git for Windows

Download from git-scm.com/downloads/win. Run the installer with default settings. This is required before Claude Code will work.

Open PowerShell

Press Windows key. Type PowerShell. Click "Run as administrator".

Install GitHub CLI

winget install GitHub.cli

Close and reopen PowerShell after this installs.

Log in to GitHub

gh auth login

Select: GitHub.com > HTTPS > Login with a web browser. It will open your browser. Log in and enter the code shown in PowerShell.

Install Claude Code

irm https://claude.ai/install.ps1 | iex

Close and reopen PowerShell after installation.

Create your workspace folder

mkdir $HOME\Documents\Agency OS

This is where all your Agency OS files will live. The plugin will install into this folder.

Install the Agency OS plugin

Open PowerShell from your Agency OS folder first. Navigate to the folder in File Explorer, click the address bar, type powershell, press Enter. Then run:

claude plugin marketplace add https://github.com/asmaldigital/agency-os
claude plugin install agency-os

You are ready

Starting Claude Code

Installation is done. Here is how you start Claude Code every time.

Open Finder

Click the Finder icon in your Dock (the smiling face at the bottom of your screen).

Go to your folder

In the sidebar, click Documents. Find the folder called Agency OS

Open Terminal here

Right-click (or Control-click) the folder. Scroll down the menu and look for "New Terminal at Folder" near the bottom.

Start Claude Code

Type claude and press Enter. You are now inside Claude Code.

Run your first command

Type run agency os and press Enter. Agency OS will check your setup and guide you from there.

Open File Explorer

Press Windows key + E to open File Explorer.

Go to your folder

Navigate to Documents > Agency OS

Open PowerShell here

Click in the address bar at the top. Type powershell and press Enter. PowerShell opens in your folder.

Start Claude Code

Type claude and press Enter. You are now inside Claude Code.

Run your first command

Type run agency os and press Enter. Agency OS will check your setup and guide you from there.

Daily use

Key Commands

Type these inside Claude Code. Start with run agency os or /agency-os to begin. Then work through the builds in order.

Core System

/agency-os

Launch the full guided build (6 builds in sequence). Start here.

/agency-os:setup

First-time setup. Creates the CLAUDE.md rules file.

/agency-os:agency-quickstart

Fast track: Brand DNA > ICA > Offer > Copywriters > Content > Funnel (streamlined).

/agency-os:health-check

Scan skills for compatibility with current plugin version.

The 6 Builds

/agency-os:build-profile

Brand DNA interview. Story, voice, methodology, goals.

/agency-os:build-avatar

Ideal Customer Avatar with deep psychographic profiling.

/agency-os:build-offer

Irresistible offer with value stack, pricing, guarantees.

/agency-os:build-funnel

Full funnel: landing page, emails, SMS, lead magnet, GHL setup.

/agency-os:build-content

90-piece content system with 30-day calendar.

/agency-os:build-lead-ads

Meta Lead Form campaigns with GHL automations.

Agency Growth

/agency-os:sell-agency

Build your client acquisition pipeline (outreach, proposals, GHL pipeline).

/agency-os:deliver-client

30-day delivery plan for a signed client.

Creative and Copy

/agency-os:write-copy

Elite direct-response copy (emails, landing pages, sales letters).

/agency-os:write-ads

Meta/Facebook/Instagram ad copy with proven hook formulas.

/agency-os:write-vsl

Video Sales Letter scripts using 8 proven frameworks.

/agency-os:create-visuals

AI-generated marketing images and videos.

/agency-os:create-bot

GHL Conversation AI bot for lead qualification or booking.

/agency-os:critique

Pressure-test any deliverable before shipping it.

TIP

You can also just type in plain English. "Write me 5 LinkedIn posts about leadership" works. Claude figures out the right skill.

Common issues

Troubleshooting

"command not found: claude"

This is the most common issue. It means Claude Code installed but your terminal does not know where to find it. Run the PATH command that was shown during installation, then close and reopen Terminal.

"command not found: brew" (Mac only)

Homebrew installed but the PATH was not set. Run the "Next steps" commands that Homebrew showed after installation. Then close and reopen Terminal.

Claude is stuck or not responding

Press Ctrl+C (hold Control and press C). Then type claude to start a new session.

Accidentally closed the terminal

No problem. Open a new one from your folder. Type claude --resume to continue where you left off.

Smart quotes breaking commands (copy-paste from WhatsApp/Messages)

Messaging apps replace straight quotes with curly quotes, which break Terminal commands. Type commands manually instead of pasting from chat apps. Or paste into a plain text editor first.

"HTTPS authentication failed" when installing the plugin

Run gh auth login first. Select GitHub.com > HTTPS > Login with browser. Then retry the plugin install.

Plugin not showing commands after install

Close Claude Code completely with Ctrl+C. Reopen Terminal in your Agency OS folder. Type claude to start a fresh session. Plugins load on startup.