A client onboarding questionnaire collects the decisions and materials needed to start a service project: goals, audience, scope, approvers, deadlines and dependencies. Use the answers to prepare the kickoff, not as a substitute for discussing unclear requirements.
Copy the questions below into your preferred document or form. Replace the bracketed fields, remove questions that do not affect delivery and let clients answer “Not sure yet.” A missing decision is more useful to see than a confident guess.
Short intake form: the essential questions
- Project and contact: What is the project name, your role and your preferred work contact?
- Goal: What should be different when this project is complete?
- Audience: Who will use or benefit from the result?
- Deliverables: What outputs are included in the agreed project?
- Boundaries: What is explicitly outside this project?
- Approval: Who makes the final decision, and who provides feedback?
- Timing: Is there a fixed deadline? What event or dependency makes it fixed?
- Inputs: Which approved files or materials can you supply, and which are missing?
- Access: Which accounts will the team need invitations to use, and who owns them?
- First milestone: What would make the first delivery acceptable?
- Communication: Which channel should we use for updates and blockers?
- Risks: What could stop or delay the work?
For a small project, these questions may be enough. Use the optional sections only when their answers will change the work.
Optional questions for a more detailed brief
Business context and priorities
- What prompted this project now?
- What have you already tried, and what should we retain or avoid?
- If time becomes constrained, which outcome is most important?
- How will you judge success, and what information do you already have as a starting point?
Brand, content and materials
- Which brand guidelines, examples or existing assets are approved?
- Who will provide text, images or other content?
- Are there permissions or usage limits we need to know about?
- Where is the current approved version of each essential file?
Workflow and decisions
- Will anyone else need to review the work before final approval?
- How should conflicting feedback be resolved?
- Are there dates when a key reviewer is unavailable?
- Who can approve a change in scope or schedule?
Make the questions specific to your service
| Service | Add these questions | Useful evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Website design | Which pages are agreed? What should visitors do? Who supplies each page's content? | Page list, primary action and content owner |
| Content writing | Who is the reader? What should they learn? Which claims need a source or client review? | Audience brief, outline and source material |
| Social media support | Which channels are included? Who approves posts? Which topics or claims need extra review? | Channel list and approval workflow |
| Operations consulting | Which process is in scope? Where does it start and end? Who performs each step? | Current process example and named process owner |
Example answers: a local business website
The following example is fictional and shows the level of detail to request.
Goal: Help local customers understand our three main services and contact the office for a quote.
Audience: Homeowners within our service area who need to compare the services before calling.
Deliverables: Five pages: Home, About, Services, Service Area and Contact. Online booking is outside this phase.
Approval: The owner gives final approval. The office manager checks contact details and opening hours.
First milestone: A homepage wireframe containing the agreed service overview, service area and contact action.
Missing input: Approved service photographs. The office manager will confirm availability before the wireframe review.
Compare “We want a better website” with these answers. The detailed version gives the team a concrete first task and makes the missing input visible.
Turn answers into tasks, not another document
For every answer that creates work, record an owner and a completion condition. For every unanswered question, decide whether it blocks the first milestone or can wait.
Use the client onboarding checklist to track the handoff. The questionnaire collects information; the checklist tracks whether the project is ready to begin.
For example, “We have brand photos” becomes “Client contact shares the approved folder before design starts.” “Our director approves everything” becomes a named reviewer, an expected review window and an escalation route if that person is unavailable.
Message to send with the questionnaire
Subject: A few details before we start [project]
Hello [name],
Please complete the questions relevant to [project] by [agreed date]. Short answers are welcome, and “Not sure yet” is fine where a decision needs discussion.
Please link to approved materials in [agreed location]. Do not put passwords or payment-card details in this form. We will arrange account invitations separately.
We will review your answers before kickoff and use the meeting to resolve the remaining decisions. Thank you, [name].
Common questions
How many questions should an onboarding questionnaire have?
Use the shortest set that lets the team begin the agreed work. Start with the twelve essential questions and add service-specific details only where needed.
Should every answer be required?
No. Distinguish essential decisions from optional context. Let the client flag uncertainty so it can be resolved at kickoff instead of forcing an invented answer.
When should you send it?
Send it early enough to review before kickoff, once the client understands the agreed project. Set the return date from the actual start date and the time needed to resolve gaps.
Is this the same as a contract?
No. This is a delivery intake template. Keep agreed scope and commercial terms in the appropriate project documents, and reconcile any conflicting answers before starting work.
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