ISMS Copilot
First steps

Managing Long Conversations and Usage

How you structure your conversations directly impacts your credit usage. The single most effective way to maximize your plan's value is knowing when to continue a thread versus when to start fresh.

Why Long Conversations Cost More

Every time you send a message, the AI reviews your entire conversation history to maintain context and provide relevant answers. In a 3-message conversation, this is minimal. In a 50-message thread, the AI processes significantly more informationā€”like photocopying an entire binder every time you add one page.

This isn't a flaw; it's how conversation context works. But it means very long threads consume credits much faster than short ones.

A single message in a 50+ message conversation can use 5-10 times more credits than the same message in a fresh conversation. This is the #1 reason users hit limits unexpectedly.

When to Continue vs. When to Start Fresh

Continue the Same Conversation When:

  • You need the AI to remember specific context from the last 2-5 messages

  • You're refining a document through multiple iterations

  • You're working through a multi-step process (e.g., gap analysis ā†’ recommendations ā†’ implementation plan)

  • The conversation is still under 10-15 messages

  • You're asking follow-up questions that directly reference previous answers

Start a New Conversation When:

  • You're switching to a completely different topic or framework

  • The current thread has 20+ messages

  • You don't need the AI to remember earlier context

  • You've finished one task and are starting another

  • You're uploading a new large document for analysis

  • The conversation has gone off-track or accumulated irrelevant history

Best practice: Treat conversations like focused work sessions. One conversation = one compliance task. When the task is done or the thread gets long, start fresh.

Practical Examples

Example 1: Policy Development

āŒ Inefficient approach:

  1. Message 1: "Create an ISO 27001 access control policy"

  2. Messages 2-10: Refine the policy through iterations

  3. Message 11: "Now create an incident response policy"

  4. Messages 12-20: Refine incident response policy

  5. Message 21: "Now create a risk assessment template"

  6. Messages 22-35: Continue working... (credits consumed rapidly)

āœ… Efficient approach:

  1. Conversation 1 (Access Control): Draft and refine access control policy (10 messages)

  2. Conversation 2 (Incident Response): Start fresh, draft and refine incident response (10 messages)

  3. Conversation 3 (Risk Assessment): Start fresh, create risk template (8 messages)

Same work, far fewer credits consumed.

Example 2: Gap Analysis

āœ… Good use of one conversation:

  1. Upload your current policy document

  2. Request gap analysis against ISO 27001

  3. Ask clarifying questions about specific gaps (3-5 messages)

  4. Request prioritized remediation recommendations

  5. Total: ~8 messages

This benefits from continuous context. The AI remembers the uploaded document and previous findings.

āŒ Then don't continue with: "Now create a policy for the first gap" (message 9). Start a new conversation for implementation work.

Example 3: Multi-Client Consulting

Use Workspaces + fresh conversations per task:

  • Client A Workspace: Separate conversations for risk assessment, policy review, audit prep

  • Client B Workspace: Separate conversations for SOC 2 gap analysis, control implementation, testing

Each task gets a focused conversation. Workspaces keep clients separate. See Managing Multi-Client Projects with Workspaces.

File Uploads and Conversation Strategy

Large documents consume extra credits, especially in long conversations. Follow these guidelines:

  • Upload files in fresh conversations whenever possible

  • Complete all analysis and questions about that document in one focused thread

  • If you need to upload another document, start a new conversation unless the files are directly related

  • Avoid uploading multiple large files across a single 20+ message thread

If you're doing comprehensive document analysis (e.g., reviewing 5 policies against ISO 27001), consider uploading each policy in a separate conversation. This keeps credit usage predictable and results organized.

Recognizing When a Conversation Is Too Long

Watch for these signs:

  • You're past 15-20 messages in one thread

  • You've switched topics from your original question

  • The AI's responses feel slower or less relevant

  • You're hitting usage limits faster than expected

  • You have to scroll significantly to see the beginning of the conversation

When you notice these patterns, finish your current task and start a new conversation for the next one.

Older Long Conversations

If you have very long conversations created before the current usage system, they may consume credits faster than expected due to accumulated context.

Recommended: Start new conversations for current work. You can always reference old threads for historical information, but active work benefits from fresh conversations with predictable credit usage.

Model Selection and Conversation Length

All AI models (Claude, GPT, Grok, Gemini, Mistral) are affected by conversation length, but some handle long context more efficiently than others:

  • Claude and Gemini: Better optimized for longer conversations and large documents

  • GPT and Grok: Work well for quick, focused conversations

  • Mistral: Efficient processing for shorter to medium-length threads

If you must maintain a longer conversation, Claude or Gemini may provide better value. See Choosing the Right AI Model.

Quick Tips for Efficient Usage

  1. One task, one conversation. Don't combine multiple unrelated compliance questions in one thread.

  2. Start fresh after 15-20 messages, even if the topic is related.

  3. Upload large files in new conversations, not in existing long threads.

  4. Use Workspaces to organize, not long conversation threads.

  5. Ask complete questions upfront instead of spreading context across many messages.

  6. Avoid long back-and-forth clarifications. Provide detailed context in your initial message.

Starting new conversations doesn't mean you lose old work. All conversations remain accessible in your history based on your plan's data retention settings. Fresh threads just optimize credit usage.

Impact on Different Plans

Free Plan: Conversation length management is critical. Your limited credits per session mean long threads will hit your limit quickly. Keep conversations short and focused.

Plus Plan: Higher allocation gives you more flexibility, but long conversations still consume credits faster. Following these practices maximizes your unlimited messaging benefit.

Pro Unlimited (coming soon): Even with the highest limits, efficient conversation management improves AI performance and response relevance.

Was this helpful?