Free template

The 27-question client intake form

Everything you need to collect before a client kickoff — organized into 6 categories. Copy into Typeform, Tally, Google Forms, or Notion. No email required.

When to send: Immediately after the contract is signed or invoice is paid. Aim to have responses back 48 hours before the kickoff call. Use the answers to run the kickoff — not to gather info you should have collected before it.

Business Context

5 questions

Q1. Company overview — tell us about your business in 2–3 sentences.

Gives your team instant context for internal briefs and kickoff prep.
Long text
Q2. What industry are you in, and who are your top 3 competitors?

Competitor awareness shapes strategy from day one.
Short text
Q3. How many employees does your company have?

Company size affects communication expectations, approval layers, and project complexity.
Dropdown: 1–5 / 6–15 / 16–50 / 51–200 / 200+
Q4. Approximate annual revenue? optional

Prevents recommending strategies the client can't fund.
Dropdown
Q5. Have you worked with an agency before? What worked and what didn't?

This is gold — tells you what not to do and what the client already values.
Long text

Goals & KPIs

5 questions

Q6. What is the #1 thing you want to achieve by working with us?

Forces the client to prioritize. If they list 7 things, follow up before kickoff.
Long text
Q7. Six months from now, how will you know this engagement was successful?

This becomes your north star metric — quote it back in reports.
Long text
Q8. What are your current baseline numbers? (traffic, revenue, leads, conversion rate…)

You need a baseline. Without it, you can't prove impact.
Long text
Q9. Is there a specific deadline or event driving this project?

Urgency changes prioritization. Identify it early.
Short text + date
Q10. Do you have a monthly budget for paid channels or tools beyond our fee?

Prevents the "I assumed organic-only" surprise at week 3.
Short text

Brand & Assets

5 questions

Q11. Do you have brand guidelines? Share or upload them.

Saves 1–2 weeks of back-and-forth in the first sprint.
File upload + short text
Q12. Do you have existing content, photos, videos, or case studies? Where are they stored?

Prevents recreating things that already exist.
Long text + file upload
Q13. Website URL and all social media profiles.

Your team needs these on day one for audits and access setup.
Long text
Q14. Are there any brand rules, sensitivities, or things you absolutely don't want us to do?

Identifies landmines before you step on them.
Long text
Q15. Do you have an existing content calendar or publishing schedule?

Prevents collision with planned campaigns or announcements.
Short text + file upload

Access & Tools

5 questions

Q16. What tools and platforms does your team currently use? AI

Your team uses this to generate a full access request list — no guessing.
Long text (e.g. "HubSpot, Google Analytics, Shopify, Slack")
Q17. Who on your team manages platform access and logins?

Routes access requests to the right person immediately.
Short text (name + email)
Q18. What is your preferred communication channel and response SLA expectation?

Sets mutual expectations before the first async friction.
Dropdown: Email / Slack / WhatsApp / Teams + Short text
Q19. What is your approval process for deliverables?

Prevents a 2-day turnaround getting stuck in a 2-week approval chain.
Long text
Q20. Are there any tools or platforms you specifically want us NOT to use?

Some clients have security policies, vendor restrictions, or strong preferences.
Short text

Stakeholders & Decision-Making

4 questions

Q21. Who is the primary point of contact on your side?

Every project needs one named person. Document them now.
Name + email + phone
Q22. Who else will be involved in reviewing or approving our work?

Identifies hidden stakeholders before they appear in week 4 with veto power.
Long text
Q23. Who has final decision-making authority for this project?

Prevents approval loops that go nowhere.
Short text
Q24. How does your team prefer to receive reports and updates?

Some clients want a weekly Slack message. Others want a monthly PDF. Know before you build the wrong thing.
Long text

Constraints & Context

3 questions

Q25. Are there any upcoming events, launches, or business changes we should plan around?

Prevents recommending work that will be disrupted by something you didn't know about.
Long text
Q26. What has been tried before that didn't work?

Saves time and credibility. Repeating a failed approach in week 2 is avoidable.
Long text
Q27. Is there anything else we should know before we start?

Gives clients a chance to share what didn't fit elsewhere. You'll be surprised what comes up.
Long text

AI tip: Paste the client's completed intake into ChatGPT or Claude with the prompt: "Based on these intake answers, flag any vague responses, missing critical information, and likely friction points before kickoff." Takes 30 seconds and prevents a wasted hour during the call.

More free templates in this set:

10-step onboarding checklist → 5-phase onboarding SOP →

Want the complete onboarding system?

This intake form is one piece of the Agency Onboarding OS — a complete bundle that covers everything from the deal closing to the end of month one.

AI-native setup guide: Quick Start (30 min) + Full Setup (afternoon)
Sales → delivery handoff template
Access tracker + consolidated request emails
Welcome email + 3 access follow-up sequences
Stakeholder mapping + success metrics worksheets
6 no-code automation recipes (Zapier + Make)
5 LLM prompt workflows (kickoff prep, missing-input detector, status updates)
4 agency variants: marketing, SEO, web design, freelance
Internal SOP + client offboarding SOP

One-time payment. Founding batch. Instant download.