Preparing for an Intro Call

Before the Call

Size of Company
Budget
Timeline
Services you are interested in:
Brand Strategy
Brand Identity
Website Design
Website Development
Packaging Design
Digital Marketing Assets (e-mail, social, paid ads)
Print & Material Design
Presentation Decks & Templates
Photography
Video
Copywriting
Campaign
How can we help you?
Design Direction
What creative assets do you have? (Photos Video Copy None)
For web projects, which platform do you prefer? Squarespace or Shopify chart of Qs to ask

Email Template:

I have a couple of questions before we chat:

Do you have any examples of websites, images, magazine layouts you admire?
Before we move forward, I just want to let you know that my next availability is in August. Let me know if there’s flexibility!
Our typical budgets for a _____ site start at $5K for Squarespace. I saw that your budget is a bit lower, let me know if there’s wiggle room there.

I just want to make sure I have enough information to have a super productive call, but if you’re unsure, not a problem. We can talk through it!

What are your overall goals?
Did you reach out to solve a specific problem? Is there a reason you chose us in particular to help solve it?
Ask questions about Design Direction or Are there any specific brand competitors or inspiration to reference?
What was your experience with your previous designer? (if they mentioned)

I’m always trying to understand how the business works! This has helped me build trust with clients and opens up ways to upsell.

What would you consider a weakness in your business model? (Be honest, no judgement here.)
What’s stopping your ideal customer from using your products or services?
What challenges are you currently facing that you’re looking to overcome?
Are there any opportunities in your marketplace that you could take advantage of that you currently are not?
Are there any obstacles that stand in your way? If so, how can we avoid them?

Understand their customer more (this might be too much for some people!)

How do you currently reach your customers?
How often do you interact with them and through what platforms? What’s working? What’s not?
Have you tried any marketing solutions in the past? If so, how did they work out?
How would you describe your ideal customers?
Do your consumer segments interact with your product or service differently? If so, how?
What specific emotions do your customers have when buying or deciding on your products or services?
What is your current customer conversion rate? Or can you send me your google analytics? Or, I can help you set this up!

Marketing

How do prospects and customers currently find your products or services?
What sales strategies do you have in place for new customers, upselling or driving additional sales with existing customers?
Are there seasonal patterns that impact your business?
Who are your competitors? What makes you different/unique in the market?
What type of feedback do you get from your customers?
What are the most common questions they ask?
What does your current sales funnel look like?
How do your marketing efforts perform? Do you have specific metrics you can share? What metrics matter most to you?
What are your current basic numbers? Email list size, open rates, rate of growth, and unique website visitors?

E-Commerce Specific Questions

What are you doing for fulfillment?
Are you currently shipping international? Any issues with shipping?
Do you have assets for PDP or will you need these created? Any other assets — copy, video, etc?
How many products do you have currently?
Do you have any specific apps or customization to be considered?

Budget

Talk through process
Is there anyone else on your team that might need to approve designs? Who is the main point of contact? Talk about preference (one point of contact)
What is your timeline?
Do you have a cap for your budget? Throw out ranges for websites.
Are you speaking to anyone else? Or when do you plan on making a decision?

Upsell