Marketing agency onboarding questionnaire: what to ask a new client
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An onboarding questionnaire for a marketing agency is the form a new client fills in right after they sign, so you've got the facts you need before your first real conversation. It covers five areas: the business, its goals, access and logins, the brand and the people to contact. A short, clear form saves the first call for decisions.
What should a marketing agency onboarding questionnaire ask?
It should ask only for what you'll use to start the work, grouped into sections so the client can finish it in one sitting.
In our view, the form goes out before the onboarding call and collects what the client wants to achieve, who they sell to, how their brand looks and sounds, and which accounts you'll be working inside. Here are questions for each section:
| Section | Questions to ask |
|---|---|
| The business | What do you sell, and who buys it? Who's your best customer? What sets you apart from others in your market? |
| Goals | What would make the next three months a win? Which numbers do you watch? What have you tried before, and how did it go? |
| Access and logins | Which accounts will we work in, such as the website, email tool or customer database? Who on your side can give us access? Is there anything we shouldn't touch? |
| Brand | Can you send brand guidelines, logo files and fonts? Which words or claims should we never use? Which brands do you admire? |
| Contacts | Who approves our work? Who sends us requests? How and how often do you want updates? |
The best-customer question is where an ideal client profile starts: the kind of buyer the work should reach. Mark the questions that must be answered before the call, and let the rest wait.
The proposal the client signed already sets out the scope, so the form doesn't need to ask about it again. For the written proposal, see the marketing agency proposal template.
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Which client onboarding tool should send the questionnaire?
Choose the tool by the jobs it has to do, and test it on yourself before a client sees it. These questions help you compare tools:
- Does it save answers as the client goes?
- Can the client stop and come back later without losing their work?
- Can the client upload files, such as logos and brand files?
- Does it give you a safe way to receive logins, or will you collect those another way?
- Does it send the answers to the place where you track the work?
- Can you copy the form for the next client in a few clicks?
Whatever you pick, send the form with a short note that says why it matters and when you need it back. Then check it the day before the call, and follow up on anything left blank.
A form can also sit inside a client portal, next to files and updates. For what a client portal holds, see what an agency client portal is for.
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More on Pitches, proposals and client forms
- What goes in a creative agency pitch deck, slide by slide
- Marketing agency proposal template: what each section must say
- All guides
Sources
- DeskTeam360's founder, Jeremy Kenerson, on onboarding new clients, from his own notes (not published).
What changed
- : first version.