Building Strong Relationships With a Client Onboarding Questionnaire (+Free Template)

In agency life, the thrill of landing a new client is quickly followed by the realization that it's time to roll up your sleeves and get to work. The initial excitement gives way to the practicalities of setting the foundation for a successful partnership. This is where a well-structured client onboarding process comes into play, and at the heart of this process lies the client onboarding questionnaire.

The questionnaire and tips in this article are here to help you improve your agency’s client onboarding process, prove your marketing efforts, and build a strong foundation for your client relationships.

Let's dive in!

How Pre-Designed Onboarding Templates Benefit Agencies

Here’s an all-too-common scenario: a growing agency has a flood of new clients in a short period of time, but their onboarding process is messy and disorganized. As a result, the agency struggles to understand their clients' needs and goals, and they often had to redo work that didn't align with their clients' expectations. 

Getting new clients is great, but as we grow, onboarding can be so time-consuming. I look forward to having the onboarding over and a return to a normal work schedule.

Linda Rooney, Founder + CEO, DandeLions Digital

When communication is inconsistent, the reports don’t cover the metrics the client needs to see, and clients are left feeling frustrated and dissatisfied with the agency's services. A messy start significantly increases the churn risk of a client, and every agency wants to do everything possible to reduce churn.  

All of this can be avoided by streamlining and improving the onboarding process.  Although there’s no exact science to the client onboarding process, there are things you should do to improve the experience and ensure that every engagement gets off on the right foot as you scale your agency.

If you're an agency looking to build strong partnerships with your clients, a thorough onboarding process is essential. And one of the most powerful tools agencies use to kick off this process is to create a client onboarding questionnaire. 

By taking the time to gather information upfront, you understand your clients' needs, goals, and pain points and tailor your strategy accordingly. 

Let's start with the basics before getting into the best practices of client onboarding.

What Is a Client Onboarding Questionnaire?

A client onboarding questionnaire is a document or set of questions that a marketing agency uses to gather information about new clients. The purpose of the onboarding questionnaire is to gather the essential information needed to create a marketing strategy truly aligned with the client's business, target audience, and desired outcomes. It also sets clear expectations and fosters a collaborative partnership from the outset.

The onboarding questionnaire will cover a range of topics, from basic contact information to more detailed questions about the client's business objectives, target demographics, and pain points. It may also include questions about the client's past experiences with similar projects and their expectations for communication and project management.

An agency with an onboarding process is off to a good start in the client's eyes. Those without it run the risk of looking unprofessional and disorganized at the very start of the client relationship.

Dustin Fatch, Founder, Marketing Done Right

By using a client onboarding questionnaire, agencies:

• Establish a strong foundation: A thorough onboarding process helps build a strong foundation for the client-agency relationship. By understanding the client's business and goals, the agency creates a tailored strategy that addresses their unique needs.

• Identify potential issues: The questionnaire helps identify potential issues or roadblocks upfront, which prevents misunderstandings or miscommunications later on.

• Save time and resources: By collecting information upfront, the agency avoids wasting time and resources on work that may not align with the client's needs.

The more you have up front the better you will start off on the right foot.

Zeke Domowski, CEO, Creatively Innovative

By taking the time to gather information upfront, agencies establish a strong foundation for a successful partnership and ensure that their work is aligned with the client's goals and needs.

Our onboarding was so messy that we knew we needed better processes. Now when a client onboards, it's all automated, and each client has a smooth experience. 

Joaby Parker, President, Cover3 Creative

The Goal of Using a Client Onboarding Questionnaire

The primary purpose of an onboarding questionnaire is to better understand the specific wants and needs of the client and to improve the likelihood of providing a high-level experience and customer loyalty, leading to improved client retention.

Whether you have a small, medium, large, remote, or in-office agency, you want to identify the essentials for each of your employees and how to make it easier for them to do their tasks. 

Client onboarding checklists and client questionnaires are even more important if you have a full team. You'll want your account manager, SEO specialist, keyword researcher, content writer, social media marketer, and other significant members of your team to synchronize the tone, message, and goals of your new client. 

And, as you get more clients, you'll need to identify who does what as well as when, where, and how. 

Here are three reasons why client onboarding questionnaires are so important:

1. Make a Great First Impression

When it comes to any working relationship, it’s critical to make a good first impression. A client onboarding questionnaire helps you do just that. Not only does a client questionnaire help you gather the necessary information to execute brilliant marketing campaigns, but it also shows the client that you are putting their needs first and are doing everything you can to understand their business. 

Alongside the questionnaire, include material such as:

• A one-page overview of your agency

• A personalized note of introduction

• A sample of the client reporting that they can expect to receive from your agency

• Branded merchandise

Be thorough, organized, and show genuine care while being confident.

Will Gold, CEO, Merkava Group

A thoughtfully designed questionnaire, accompanied by introductory materials (agency overview, success stories), demonstrates your professionalism and commitment to client success. Think of this as your agency's official welcome package. It may seem like a small thing to you, but it highlights your agency’s dedication, customer service, and attention to detail.

2. A Good Client Onboarding Process Sets Clear Expectations

It’s safe to assume you discussed the scope of your arrangement during the client discovery meeting, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you’ve set clear expectations.

Wherever it falls in your process, a client onboarding questionnaire allows you and your clients to get on the same page before day one of your engagement arrives, managing clear expectations and focusing on delivering them.

For example, if you’re providing the client with SEO services, include client onboarding questions questions such as:

• What are your SEO-related goals, both short and long-term?

• Have you ever worked with a digital agency in the past? How would you rate the results?

• How do you measure SEO performance (e.g., would they prefer a monthly SEO report or a live SEO dashboard)?

If the answers align with your approach and what’s included in the contract, you’re good to go. However, if you notice a change in tone or scope creep, discuss points of concern to clear the air and set better expectations.

Setting expectations is one of the best ways to create a great first impression. You might have a kick-off meeting with your client, and it would look bad if you forgot to ask about certain account access, which product or services they are selling the most, or which one they would rather focus on. 

Avoid sending the onboarding questionnaire until AFTER you have received payment and signed the terms and conditions. Sending too much stuff upfront will get things done out of order, and you may not get paid.

Zeke Domowski, CEO, Creatively Innovative

Your client might end up canceling your contract if you constantly go back and forth with them about things that you should have known and asked upfront. 

Our clients love their customized reports on data based on what they are most interested in understanding for their specific business. We start with a template for our new clients, and during their onboarding, we ask what their top KPIs are. We make sure to include those on the first page for them. 

Christina Cypher, Director of Marketing, Click Control Marketing

That way, you avoid running into crazy client requests, like this:

Remember, your client is running a business. They most likely hired your agency to handle their SEO, social media, and marketing needs because they do not have time to do it themselves. So don’t waste their time with repeated requests and instead handle them at all in one go during the onboarding process.

3. It Provides You With More Information

You spend a lot of time narrowing your target market to ensure that you’re selling to the right prospects. You also collect targeted information during the sales process.

While some agencies feel that a pre-sales questionnaire can seem daunting during the decision-making process, many agencies send new clients their onboarding questionnaires as part of the client discovery process.

“We conduct a basic questionnaire pre-sales to help determine pitch strategy, and post-sales to assist in the onboarding process,” says Will Gold, CEO of Merkava Group.

Onboarding questions give us a clear picture of clients goals, better understanding of their business and target market and expectations. Post-sales questions include reporting, communications and ROI predictions.

Anatoly Zadorozhnyy, CEO, Marketing1on1

Regardless of your approach, you’ll never have all the details you need unless you ask for them–and it helps to use the post-sales questionnaire to reconfirm your strategy and realign expectations.

The onboarding questionnaire is a great way to reconfirm strategy, main areas of focus and give the client a thorough run through of next steps and expectations. It’s a great tool to make sure everyone is on the same page from the start of the campaign.

Scott McCluskey, Digital Marketing Manager, Pivotal Agency

Let’s say you want to expand your agency to provide local SEO services at a state level versus your local neighborhood. You’ve gained a new client, but competitor research only goes so far if you don’t know the area well. 

Your client might know some insight as to who they are going against. Maybe the top competitor isn’t providing quality customer service, and they lean toward your new clients. Or if your new client is losing their customers, they might know which competitor is scooping them up. 

Client onboarding questionnaires are a simple way to collect a variety of information used to better understand your client and their expectations.

And as mentioned earlier, the questionnaire is here to help your team won't lose track of each client's goals and better provide goal tracking initially. You'll also have this information on file in case one of your team members forgets.

Which leads us to the next section…

What To Include in Your Client Onboarding Questionnaire

The key to success is to customize the client questionnaire to suit your agency’s needs, all while making it simple enough for a new client to complete in a timely manner.

The questions you ask in your client onboarding questionnaire will vary depending on your agency's specific services and the needs of your clients. However, there are some common questions that are useful to include in almost any client onboarding questionnaire.

For a complete list of questions (to get you started), download the Client Onboarding Questionnaire template.

By the time you’re done, you should aim for 15 to 20 questions that fit into four basic categories:

1. Client Information

• Who is the primary point of contact for this project?

• What is this preferred primary contact information?

• What’s the preferred method of communication?

• Who is the backup contact in case of an emergency? 

• Retail location or business address

• Do you have any supporting documents or account access to share?

  • Google Analytics

  • Google Search Console

  • Google Business Profile

  • Google Ads, Bing, Facebook, and other ad accounts to add to your client reporting.

  • Social media accounts

  • Other accounts you need access to

2. Marketing Information

• What is your company’s vision for the future and mission statement?

• What are your short and long-term goals as a company?

• Who is your target audience?

• What are your target geographic locations, languages, and spelling preferences?

• Who are your top three to five competitors?

• How are your products/services solving your potential customer's problem?

• Do you have an existing brand style guide? 

• Where are high-res versions of your logo saved? 

• Do you use a specific font for your marketing & branding? 

3. Project Specific Information

• What goals have you set for this project?

• What metrics will you track to measure results?

• Do you have a deadline?

• Have you previously tackled a similar project, either in-house or with another agency?

• Do you have a specific timeframe in mind for how long this project will take?

• What elements will you need our agency complete vs. what will be provided by your team? 

4. General Information

• What excites you most about working with our company?

• What can we do from a customer support perspective to ensure that you get what you want?

• How did you find our company? Online search, referral, social media?

• How often would you like to receive updated marketing reports? 

While the provided template offers a strong foundation, tailor your questionnaire to the specific services you'll offer. For SEO, include questions about current rankings and backlink profiles; for social media, focus on brand voice and target audience engagement.

For example, if you’re a digital marketing agency providing a client with SEO services, include questions such as:

• Are you familiar with your website’s current search engine rankings and traffic?

• What tools do you use or have you used to track SEO related metrics, such as backlinks, search engine rankings, and traffic?

• What SEO work have you completed internally or with the help of another agency?

Asking these targeted questions provides greater insight into the specific services you’re providing.

When we're onboarding a client, we ask what their KPIs are, then we ask them to help us connect their accounts to our system. We show them what we're going to track, how we're going to track it, and what they can expect.

Ruben Roel, President, Investigator Marketing

What Not To Include In Your Questionnaire

An effective client onboarding questionnaire is like a pair of perfectly fitted shoes. Comfy, snug, and no pinches. But getting there can be a bit of a stumble in the dark. In the quest for that perfect fit, here are some well-intentioned but toe-crushing missteps to avoid.

Mistake #1 - Questions That Take Too Much Time To Answer

Inviting your client to compose an epic ballad about their marketing goals might seem like a good idea at the time. However, too much work upfront puts a damper on that shiny new relationship. Avoid asking for lengthy explanations, such as 'What were the top 10 marketing campaigns your company has run in the past five years, and why do you think they were successful?' They take up too much of the client's time, creating fatigue.

Instead, a question like “Have you previously tackled a similar project, either in-house or with another agency?" would be easier to answer and provide more relevant, recent data. 

Don't ask for anything that is "mission critical". You need to keep these short (quantity of questions) and reduce the need for long answers. The shorter the time it takes the better. Additionally, using page separators in forms helps the customer perceive these as shorter than they are.

Dustin Fatch, Founder, Marketing Done Right

Mistake #2 - Questions a Typical Client Won’t Be Able To Answer

No one likes to feel like they've missed the memo. But that's precisely the risk when you pepper your questionnaire with questions only a marketing oracle could answer. Remember that your clients are not necessarily marketing experts. That’s why they hired you. 

An example of this type might be, "What is your customer lifetime value across all segments?" Not all clients will have this data handy. A more reasonable question might be, "Do you track customer lifetime value? If so, can you share the latest figures?"

Based on the answer provided, your team can dig into the data later. 

Do not ask for a target cost per lead or a range at the post-sales question. Get that out of the way in pre-sales to see if it even makes any sense.

Zeke Domowski, CEO, Creatively Innovative

Mistake #3 - Questions With No Clear Answer

When it comes to your client onboarding questionnaire, ambiguity is something to avoid. Stay clear of questions with no specific answers. Instead, strive for questions that nudge your clients towards specific, actionable responses.

Questions like “Why do you think your product/service is better than the competition?“ are too broad and don't provide actionable insights beyond biased opinions. Instead, lean into the areas the client should know, such as “How are your products/services solving your potential customer's problem?” this will help clarify the marketing efforts needed.

Mistake #4 - Questions That Repeat Themselves Without Digging Deeper

Redundant questions don't just add to the length, but they also lead to confusion. If a client thinks to themselves, “Didn’t I already answer that question?”, you have a problem. 

Ensure that every question is unique and serves a purpose. Avoid redundancy like 'What is your target audience?' and 'What are the demographics of your ideal customer?”  They essentially ask the same thing.

It’s ok to dig deeper with follow-up questions, such as geographic locations or languages, but they should layer upon each other, not replicate. 

Mistake #5 - Avoid Leading Questions

Refrain from making assumptions about your client's future state. Questions that jump ahead of the current reality can create discomfort.

Instead of asking 'How much will your marketing budget increase next year?', frame the question more broadly: 'Are there any significant growth plans or anticipated budget shifts we should consider in our marketing strategy?' This allows for more flexibility in the client's response.

By dodging these questionnaire missteps, a marketing agency gets off on the right foot, creating a clean and clear client onboarding experience. After all, the goal here is to gather the valuable insights needed to deliver a stellar performance in the client's marketing campaign.

Also, remember that new clients aren’t always in a position to answer every question you throw at them via a spreadsheet. They’re hiring you to help answer some of these questions, and some of them may take additional research to uncover the correct answer.

What Tools To Use to Send Your Client Onboarding Questionnaire

Once you’re happy with your client questionnaire form, it’s time to distribute it. There are several tools and ways to do so, including:

• Email +a Google Sheets version of the client onboarding form

• Typeform

• Airtable

• Google Forms

While Google Sheets are a quick starting point, consider dedicated form-building tools like Typeform or creating Google client onboarding forms for a more streamlined client experience and easier data collection. These tools often offer templates and reporting features to enhance your process.

Start Simple, Then Scale: Google Sheets are often the fastest way to get started:

1. Create a client onboarding questionnaire as a Google Sheet (and duplicate it for the next client)

2. Sending it to your primary point of contact via email

3. Requesting that they complete the onboarding questionnaire and email it back to you

While it’s fast to create and send, this method often presents challenges in regards to collecting data and distributing it to your team.

For more efficiency in that department, software like a Google Form or Typeform is typically the better choice for creating a client onboarding form. Benefits include:

• More flexibility in regard to how you share the onboarding questionnaire

• Easier for your client to complete and return

• More convenient to share with your team

• Use templates to customize your questionnaire

As with the questionnaire itself, how you distribute and collect client information is ever-evolving. Experiment with a few strategies to find the one that’s best for your agency and your clients.

However, always ask your clients if they are comfortable filling out a client onboarding form or if they prefer to have a Zoom meeting or an in-person meeting to answer these questions. The focus of the onboarding process is to attend to your client's needs and should not be based on your agency’s convenience.

Best Practices for Sending a Client Onboarding Questionnaire

Once you've created your client onboarding questionnaire, it's important to use it effectively to set the stage for successful partnerships. Here are some best practices to follow:

• Set the Stage: Briefly introduce the onboarding questionnaire during the sales process, highlighting its role in crafting a tailored marketing strategy.

• Send Promptly: Send the questionnaire immediately upon contract signing, providing a reasonable deadline (e.g., a week before the kickoff call). Emphasize the importance of their timely response for a successful project launch.

• Prioritize Clarity & Accessibility: Use easy-to-understand language, clear formatting, and ensure the questionnaire is accessible to clients with disabilities.

• Offer Support: Be available to clarify questions and offer guidance for more challenging sections.

• Utilize Tools: Consider form-building software that offers conditional logic, progress saving, and reporting features to streamline the process.

• Open-Ended Insights: Include open-ended questions to encourage clients to provide detailed, informative answers.

• Ongoing Reference Regularly revisit the completed questionnaire throughout the project to ensure your work aligns with the client's needs and business goals.

• Iterate and Improve: Gather feedback from clients and your team, using the insights to refine the questionnaire over time.

Use the completed questionnaire as a reference throughout the project to ensure that your work is aligned with the client's needs and business goals.

How to Address Client Hesitations

It's natural for some clients to feel hesitant about completing a detailed onboarding questionnaire. They might be concerned about the time commitment, apprehensive about sharing confidential information, or unsure of how the answers will directly benefit their marketing efforts. Proactively addressing these potential objections can increase client buy-in and ensure you receive the valuable insights needed for a successful campaign.

Here's how to proactively address common concerns and ensure a smooth process:

• Time Investment

  • Instead of: Emphasizing the time commitment required for the questionnaire.

  • Consider: Highlight long-term efficiency gains: Minimize back-and-forth communication and potential rework by gathering comprehensive information upfront.

• Sensitive Information

  • Instead of: Focusing on the client's desire for data protection.

  • Consider: Protect client data: Implement robust security protocols and offer to execute a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) upon request.

• Demonstrating Value

  • Instead of: Explaining the connection between information and campaign success.

  • Consider: Craft a tailored strategy: Utilize client insights to deliver targeted solutions and avoid past missteps.

• Lack of Perceived Relevance

  • Instead of: Justifying the inclusion of specific questions.

  • Consider: Clarify connections: Briefly explain how each area of the questionnaire directly informs your marketing strategies.

• Feeling Overwhelmed

  • Instead of: Acknowledging the potential for client overwhelm.

  • Consider: Offer flexible solutions: Break the questionnaire into smaller sections or suggest an introductory call to discuss some topics.

• Prior Negative Experiences

  • Instead of: Addressing past negative experiences in general.

  • Consider: Demonstrate your difference: Showcase your commitment to organization, communication, and transparency through testimonials or case studies.

• Trust and Rapport

  • Instead of: Focusing on the client's need to build trust.

  • Consider: Prioritize relationship-building: Express genuine interest in their business goals and emphasize your commitment to their success.

Tip: When possible, offer clients the choice between completing a written questionnaire or discussing these topics in a video meeting. Flexibility demonstrates your willingness to adapt to their preferences while ensuring you obtain the necessary information.

What To Do Internally With a Completed Questionnaire

Good news: You've just received the questionnaire back from your client,and you now have more client information than you ever thought possible.

Kickstart Your Team Collaboration

1. Review the questionnaire thoroughly: Designate a specific team member (project manager, account manager) to analyze the questionnaire, ensuring all information is complete. If any gaps exist, follow up with the client promptly to avoid project delays.

2. Share the questionnaire with the appropriate team members: Depending on the scope of work, the questionnaire may need to be shared with multiple team members. For example, if the project involves both SEO and PPC, the questionnaire will need to be shared with both those teams. The project manager should ensure that everyone is aware of the client's needs and goals.

3. Develop a client brief: Based on the information provided in the questionnaire, the agency should develop a client brief that outlines the client's needs, goals, and expectations. This document should be shared with all team members involved in the project.

4. Set up a kick-off call: A kick-off call should be used to confirm the information provided in the questionnaire, clarify any details, and ensure that everyone is aligned on the project scope and timeline.

5. Save the questionnaire and client brief in a central location: You’ll want to be able to revisit the questionnaire quickly and easily throughout the client’s lifespan with your agency, so store the completed questionnaire and client brief in a central location, such as a project management tool or a shared drive. 

The first few months are vital in determining if your new client will stay with you and generate higher customer lifetime value or not. So sending the questionnaire to your team and notifying them to start the onboarding process is critical to getting results fast and keeping clients longer.

The hardest part about onboarding is getting everything aligned before training begins. With Agency Analytics, that process was a breeze!

Jason Gibson, SEO Manager

Final Thoughts

In today's competitive marketplace, well-crafted client onboarding questionnaire is an indispensable tool for fostering successful agency-client partnerships. By asking the right questions, you'll gain a deep understanding of the client's business, set realistic expectations, and lay the groundwork for a collaborative and results-driven marketing strategy.

By asking the right questions and tailoring the onboarding process to each client's unique needs and goals, agencies build trust, maintain credibility, and create long-term partnerships that benefit both parties. 

A solid onboarding protocol ensures internal efficiency, reduces the amount of follow-up, and shows the client you are organized and competent, increasing their trust and building rapport.

Will Gold, CEO, Merkava Group 

Creating client onboarding questionnaires doesn’t have to be a long, laborious process. They are an exciting way to welcome your clients to your agency.

Just be sure to leverage automation, so your team members focus on getting results, not chasing clients for their client onboarding form.