The client onboarding checklist for brand designers

A good project starts before you open a design file. Onboarding sets expectations, protects your time and gets you everything you need in one go.

The checklist

1. Send the agreement first. Scope, revisions, timeline, rights and the payment split. Nothing else opens until it's signed.
2. Collect the deposit. Don't schedule the kickoff until it lands.
3. Send a questionnaire, not an email. Ask about the audience, the feeling, colors they love (and hate), competitors and must-haves.
4. Ask for assets in the same place. Old logos, fonts, photos and references — uploaded with the answers, not across five emails.
5. Book the kickoff call once you've read the answers, so the call is about decisions, not data entry.

Questions worth asking

• Describe the brand in three words.
• Who should never be confused about what you do?
• Which brands do you admire, and why?
• Which colors represent you? Which should we avoid?
• What does success look like six months after launch?

Make it effortless for the client

Clients are busy. Every extra login, link or attachment is friction. Give them one link that shows exactly what to do next — sign, pay, answer — and save their answers as they go.

In Wuilder

Your client gets a secure link (no password), signs the agreement, pays the upfront milestone and answers your questionnaire on the same page. Answers and files land in the project's Kickoff tab.

See client onboarding →