A Free Client Update Template You Can Use Today
Use this client update template to tell a client what changed, what comes next, what you need, and whether the plan moved. Copy it into email, a document, or a text message, then replace each prompt with a concrete sentence. Delete any prompt that has no useful answer.
Client update template
Project update for [project name], [date]
Done
[State the result the client has now.]
Next
[State the next useful outcome and its expected time.]
Needed from you
[Ask for one clear item, name the date, and state the effect of a delay.]
Changes
[State any change to scope, cost, timing, or a prior decision.]
Keep the filled update short enough to read on a phone. A useful update often needs one or two sentences in each block. Add detail only when the client needs it to understand a choice or act.
Write results in the done block
The done block should tell the client what is now different. "Worked on the home page" names your activity, while "The new home page is ready for your review" names the result. The second version also gives the client a clear sense of the state.
You do not need to list every task. Choose outcomes that affect the goal, schedule, cost, or next decision. If a technical change prevents a known problem, explain the effect in ordinary words.
Avoid percentages unless you have a defined way to calculate them. Saying a design is 70 percent complete can create false precision. Name the parts that are ready and the work that remains instead.
Make the next block specific
The next block tells the client what you expect to do before the following update. Choose an outcome rather than a list of planned activity. Add a date when timing affects the client.
Do not turn the block into a promise you cannot support. If a supplier or review could change the date, state the condition. You can write, "I plan to send the final files on Thursday, once the printer confirms the sizes."
The wording gives the client a useful expectation and names the dependency. If the condition later changes, explain it in the next update rather than hiding the old estimate.
Ask for one action at a time
The needed block should be easy to answer. Name the item, the person if needed, and the date. Explain the effect when a late response will change the work.
"Send feedback soon" leaves the client to define both the feedback and the deadline. Write, "Please approve option B by 3 p.m. Thursday, or the print booking will move to next week." The client now knows what to do and what follows from delay.
If you need several decisions, use a short numbered list. Keep each item to one decision. A long mixed paragraph makes it easy to answer the first question and miss the rest.
Record changes without a long defense
The changes block is for scope, cost, dates, and decisions that no longer match the last update. State what changed, why it changed, and what happens now. The client needs a usable record more than a detailed account of your frustration.
Bad news belongs in the update as soon as you know enough to explain it. Do not wait for a perfect fix. State your next action and the time when you will know more.
If nothing changed, write "No change to scope, cost, or timing" when that assurance helps. You can also remove the block for a very small job, as long as its absence will not hide a decision.
Annotated hypothetical example
Hypothetical example: A brochure project. The dates and people below are invented to show how the template works.
Project update for Spring brochure, 13 September
Done
The revised page layouts are ready, including the new price table you approved.
Next
I will prepare the print files after your final review and send them on Wednesday.
Needed from you
Please approve the revised layouts by noon Tuesday. A later approval will move the print file delivery by the same number of working days.
Changes
The brochure remains within the agreed scope and cost. Print file delivery moved from Tuesday to Wednesday because the price table was approved on Friday.
The done block names a result and connects it to an earlier decision. The next block names the next output. The request has an owner, a deadline, and a stated consequence. The final block records a moved date without blaming the client.
Adapt the template to your channel
For email, use the project and date as the subject. Keep the four labels in the body so the client can scan it. Reply in the same thread if your client relies on email history, or link to a separate project record.
For a shared document, put the newest update first and add a clear date. Do not ask the client to search through task notes. Send a direct message when you add an update, because a document does not tell the client to open itself.
For text or chat, keep the labels but shorten each block to one sentence. Send a link for detail if the platform makes a longer update hard to read. Do not put sensitive information in a channel that your agreement does not allow.
For a tiny project, combine done and next into one paragraph. Keep needed and changes as separate labels when either requires action. A small job still benefits from a clear deadline and a written record.
Use the same structure each week
A client update template works because the client learns where to find each kind of information. Keep the labels stable and change the content. Send the update even when the done block explains a delay rather than a finished item.
You can use the template today without a new tool. If you want delivery and a private update history in one place, Friday lets you send each project update to one client email and gives the client an unindexed link where any holder can read and reply.