Below, each section explains what to ask and why it matters. The full questionnaire is at the end of the post as one block you can copy and paste into an email, a document or a form.
When should you send a web design client questionnaire?
Send it once the client has said yes in principle and before your kickoff call. If you still need to confirm the price, send it before you write the final quote, because the answers often change the scope. Give the client a reply date and enough time to ask colleagues.
Example email to send with the questionnaire
Subject: Website refresh: a few questions before we start
Hi Dana,
Before our kickoff call on Tuesday 4 November, could you answer the questions below? They help me plan the right pages and avoid surprises later. Short answers are fine, and "not sure" is a useful answer too.
Please reply by Friday 31 October. If someone else on your team knows the answer better, feel free to forward the questions to them.
Thanks, Sam
If this is the first message after the client agrees to work with you, you can add the questionnaire to your client onboarding email instead of sending it separately.
Telling the client that "not sure" is a fine answer matters. People skip questions they can't answer well, and a blank tells you less than "not sure" does.
What questions should you ask a web design client?
Group your questions by topic so the client can answer one area at a time. These eight sections cover what most small website projects need. Remove any question that does not apply to the project.
1. Business and goals
- What does your business do, in one or two sentences?
- What is the main thing you want this website to do? For example, get enquiries, take bookings or sell products.
- How will you know the new site is working?
- What isn't working on your current site?
Why it matters: The main goal decides the page structure and the most important button on each page. "How will you know it's working" gives you something concrete to report against later.
2. Audience
- Who are your main customers?
- What do they usually want to find or do when they visit?
- What questions do customers often ask you before they buy or book?
Why it matters: Common customer questions are a good source of page content and navigation labels. They also show which pages need to be easiest to reach.
3. Content and pages
- Which pages do you think the site needs?
- Who will write the page copy? Do you have it already?
- Do you have photos, logos and other images we can use?
- Is there any content from the current site that must be kept?
Why it matters: Late or missing content can hold up the whole project. If the client expects you to write copy that you haven't priced, you need to know now. The page list is also the basis of your scope.
4. Design preferences
- Do you have brand guidelines, colors or fonts we should use?
- Please share two or three websites you like, and say what you like about each.
- Is there anything you don't want the site to look or feel like?
Why it matters: Asking what they like about each site gets you more useful detail than a list of links. The "don't want" question often surfaces strong opinions early, before you've spent time on a design.
5. Technical and access
- Who owns your domain, and who can log in to manage it?
- Where is your current site hosted?
- Which tools does the site need to connect to? For example, a booking tool, email list or payment provider.
- Who can give us access to these accounts?
Why it matters: Waiting for domain or hosting access can hold up a launch even when the design is finished. Knowing who owns each account lets you ask the right person early. Ask for account invitations through a secure method, and never ask for passwords in the questionnaire itself.
6. Budget and timeline
- What budget have you set aside for this project?
- Is there a date the site must be live by? If so, why that date?
- Will you need help with changes or support after launch?
Why it matters: The budget tells you how much scope is realistic. Asking why a date matters tells you whether it is a fixed event or a preference, and that changes how you plan.
7. Approvals and who decides
- Who is the main contact for day-to-day questions?
- Who gives final approval on designs and content?
- Does anyone else need to review the work? At which stage?
- How quickly can you usually give feedback on a draft?
Why it matters: A reviewer who appears late can ask for changes to work that was already approved. Knowing who approves, and how fast they can respond, lets you set review dates you can both keep.
8. How they want updates
- How would you like to receive project updates?
- Who else should receive them?
- Which day of the week suits you best?
Why it matters: These answers set up your update routine before the first update is due. For a fuller set of questions on this, see the five questions to ask before your first client update.
What is the best length for a website design questionnaire?
Keep it as short as the project allows. A small website rarely needs more than the questions above, and many projects need fewer. Every question should change something you do: the scope, the design, the plan or the way you communicate. If you can't say what you would do with an answer, remove the question.
If you already have an answer from a sales call or proposal, fill it in yourself and ask the client to confirm it. That saves them time and checks that you heard them correctly.
How do you use the answers in the kickoff call?
Read every answer before the call and sort them into three groups:
- Clear answers you can use as they are.
- Gaps and vague answers you need to discuss.
- Conflicts, where two answers don't fit together, such as a large page list and a small budget, or a fixed date and a slow approval process.
Spend the kickoff call on groups 2 and 3. Don't use the call to read back answers the client already gave you.
Example: following up on a vague answer
"You mentioned the site should 'get more leads'. Which would be more useful in the first three months: more enquiry form submissions, or more calls to the office? It changes which button we put first on each page."
Example: raising a conflict between budget and pages
"The budget you mentioned covers five pages. Your page list has eight. We could start with the five most important pages and add the other three later, or I can send a quote for all eight. Which would you prefer?"
After the call, send a short written recap with the goal, the agreed pages, the approval contact and the first deliverable date. Ask the client to correct anything you got wrong. The client onboarding checklist has a fuller list of what to confirm before work starts.
How do you use the answers in your first update?
Your first update should show the client that you used their answers. Refer back to their goal, name the person who approves, and use the update format and day they asked for. If any answer is still missing, ask for it in the update with a clear deadline.
Example first update
Subject: Website refresh update, Friday 7 November
Hi Dana,
Done this week: I've drafted the page structure for the five agreed pages, with the booking button first on every page, since bookings are your main goal.
Next: Homepage design, ready for your review on Wednesday 12 November.
What I need from you: Please send the photos for the team page by Monday 10 November. Without them I'll use placeholders, and the team page review will move to the following week.
What changed: Nothing. The scope, cost and 21 November launch date are as agreed.
Sam
This update uses three answers from the questionnaire: the main goal, the content owner and the update day. The client can see that the questions had a purpose. For more on the four parts used here, see what belongs in a weekly client update.
Copy the web design client questionnaire
Copy the block below, replace the brackets, and delete any question that doesn't apply to the project.
Web design questionnaire for [client name]
Project: [project name]
Please reply by [date]. Short answers are fine. "Not sure" is a useful answer.
BUSINESS AND GOALS
1. What does your business do, in one or two sentences?
2. What is the main thing you want this website to do?
(For example: get enquiries, take bookings, sell products.)
3. How will you know the new site is working?
4. What isn't working on your current site?
AUDIENCE
5. Who are your main customers?
6. What do they usually want to find or do when they visit?
7. What questions do customers often ask you before they buy or book?
CONTENT AND PAGES
8. Which pages do you think the site needs?
9. Who will write the page copy? Do you have it already?
10. Do you have photos, logos and other images we can use?
11. Is there any content from the current site that must be kept?
DESIGN PREFERENCES
12. Do you have brand guidelines, colors or fonts we should use?
13. Please share two or three websites you like, and say what you like about each.
14. Is there anything you don't want the site to look or feel like?
TECHNICAL AND ACCESS
15. Who owns your domain, and who can log in to manage it?
16. Where is your current site hosted?
17. Which tools does the site need to connect to?
(For example: booking tool, email list, payment provider.)
18. Who can give us access to these accounts?
Please don't send passwords here. We'll send account invitations separately.
BUDGET AND TIMELINE
19. What budget have you set aside for this project?
20. Is there a date the site must be live by? If so, why that date?
21. Will you need help with changes or support after launch?
APPROVALS AND WHO DECIDES
22. Who is the main contact for day-to-day questions?
23. Who gives final approval on designs and content?
24. Does anyone else need to review the work? At which stage?
25. How quickly can you usually give feedback on a draft?
HOW YOU WANT UPDATES
26. How would you like to receive project updates?
27. Who else should receive them?
28. Which day of the week suits you best?
Anything else we should know before we start?
[Your answer]
Frequently asked questions
Should I send a web design client questionnaire before or after the client signs?
Send the business, goals, content and budget questions before you write the final quote, because they affect the scope. Technical access and update questions can wait until the client has agreed to the work.
Should I use a form or an email?
Use whatever your client will actually complete. A plain email with the questions pasted in works well for small clients. A form can help when you send the same questionnaire to many clients and want the answers in one place.
What if the client doesn't answer some questions?
Bring the gaps to the kickoff call and ask them there. If an answer is needed before work can start, such as who approves designs, say which task is waiting and agree a date for the answer.
Can I treat questionnaire answers as approval of the scope?
No. The answers tell you what the client wants. The agreed scope is what you both confirm in the proposal or kickoff recap. If an answer asks for more than you agreed, discuss it as a change.
Conclusion
A web design client questionnaire works best when every question leads to a decision. Send it before kickoff, use the call to resolve gaps and conflicts, and show the client in your first update that you used what they told you.
When the project starts, Friday can handle the update routine you agreed in section 8. You write one short update each week per project: what got done, what comes next, and what you need from the client and by when. The client gets it by email, with a link to a private page that keeps every update, file and reply, newest first. They don't need an account. You can try Friday free for 30 days, with no card needed.