Put good in, get good out. It’s a simple premise, but pretty widely applicable.
Use quality ingredients, get a better tasting meal.
Put in premium gas, enjoy better engine performance — at least that’s what our dads tell us.
Our marketing engine gets much better mpg (meaningful performance gains, of course) with quality client onboarding.
We find that the better we get to know you, the better work we can do for you. That doesn’t just mean the basics, though those are important too. We want to know things like your broader business goals, who your stakeholders are, and your quirky brand preferences.
We asked members of our team what information they would like to know from a client when onboarding in order to do their best work. See what they said below.
AMANDA, Sr. Account Executive
When onboarding a new client, I start with understanding four things:
- Budget: How much are you looking to spend on this project to reach your goal?
- Timeline: What key milestone(s) are you trying to hit? Is there an event or key date coming up?
- Objective: What are your goals both as a company and for this project specifically?
- Target Audience: If the target audience didn’t come through in the objective, I’d ask for some more input on who we’re trying to reach. Who’s our ideal target including demographics, interests, locations, etc.?
Once I understand the scope of the project, I’d begin to drill down and ask about brand guidelines and assets, competitors, key channels, etc., specific to the project. Finally, I’d like to know your preferred communication style so we can efficiently stay connected.
EVAN, Sr. Copywriter
I would ask the client about their brand’s personality and voice, so that any new copy I write doesn’t seem disconnected from what came previously. For the same reason, I would request examples of previous advertising.
I would ask the client who their main competitors are, so that I could see examples of that advertising (and then do something different).
I need to know what the target audience’s pain points are, and (in plainspoken terms) how our product or service is going to soothe that pain and make their life better. What does your product do better, or faster, or longer? Beyond the tangible, rational benefits, does using your product or service offer our target an emotional benefit and/or move them closer to a higher-level aspirational goal?
I need to know what conclusion we want our target audience to reach and what action we’re calling them to perform. And lastly, I need a deadline. And probably a cup of coffee.
KIM, Sr. Art Director
With websites, my goal is to create a site that not only visually represents your brand, but delivers the experience your users need. I would like to know:
- What is the goal of your website?
- What’s working on your current site that you’d like to keep? What hasn’t worked?
- Are there specific websites you admire for their design, content, or organization?
- Do you have a brand platform, style guide, or design assets (logos, color palettes, typography, icons, videos, etc.)?
- Do you have accessible web colors defined in your brand style guide?
- Do you have any existing visuals or photography that should be incorporated?
- Have you audited your site recently for gaps in content or structure?
RACHEL, Sr. Media Strategist
I agree with others that goals, objectives, key audiences, and competitors are important to understand as we get started on a project.
Specifically for media/community relations, it’s vital to learn about their current relationships with the media and stakeholders. It helps set the bar for what a client knows about public relations and shows us the opportunities where we can lead and advise on the best strategy for their organization. I would ask the following questions:
- How have you handled media relations and internal communications in the past?
- Do you have a crisis communications plan?
- Who are the key stakeholders in your industry and what’s the nature of your relationship with each? How do you currently communicate with them now?
- Who are your spokespeople/thought leaders? Do they need media training?
- Are your thought leaders active on social media? Have they ever submitted contributed content or op-eds?
- What are some of the top publications related to your industry and audiences you’d like to see news about your organization in?
BRIAN, Director of Web Development
In order to deliver a fully functional and feature-rich website, I would need to know some details about your current hosting and server environment, as well as expectations on how the final product should function and be utilized by its users. The key questions I would need answered are:
- What web host and CMS are you currently using? And if not WordPress, is there any reason we couldn’t move to WordPress?
- Is there any special functionality required, for example hooking into APIs or submitting forms to third-party vendors?
- How will your end-users interact with your site beyond standard navigation? Are there any UI/UX features to be aware of, such as ecommerce, post filtering/sorting/searching, specialized forms, etc.?
Keep these questions in mind next time you’re writing a brief for your agency partner or putting together an RFP. Providing this level of information gives us the right fuel to make sure you get the best possible work.
Already know these answers for your next project? Let’s get to work.