Are you working as a virtual assistant, coach, freelancer or other digital service provider and are about to start a project with a new client? That should be a great feeling for you, shouldn’t it?
New customer, new project, new income.
What to expect
Struggling with Client Onboarding?
But from my own experience and from conversations with my customers, I know that this moment can often be overshadowed by doubts and frustration.
You probably know the feeling: Especially with new customers you, of course, want to leave a good impression right from the start.
At the same time, in this step of your collaboration it’s also about providing the client with all the important information for the upcoming project.
This is not only important for the client, but also for you as you can now set the fundamental cornerstones for your collaboration. It’s crucial to clarify project boundaries in order to avoid false client expectations.
How about you?
- Did you already set up an automated client onboarding process in your business?
- Or do you exchange numerous e-mails with your clients at the beginning of the project until all the important details have been clarified?
If the latter is still the case, I totally understand that this can be time-consuming and sometimes frustrating.
The good news, however, is that you can prevent misunderstandings and false expectations at the project start by using a Client Welcome Packet.
What is a Client Welcome Packet?
So what exactly is a client welcome packet? Imagine a client welcome packet like a brochure that you send to your client and in which you:
- Welcome your new clients and thank them for the trust they have placed in you and your business
- Introduce yourself and your company
- Describe your services in more detail
- Describe the project itself and the project process
- Identify boundaries and manage customer expectations
What should be included in a Client Welcome Packet?
You are not sure yet what to include in your Client Welcome Packet? I would recommend the following details.
Welcome message
Start your Client Welcome Packet with a welcoming message in which you thank your new client for trusting you.
Furthermore, you should provide them with a brief introduction to the following pages of your welcom packet, i.e. you should describe the contents of the following pages in a few words.
About me / Meet the team
Introduce yourself in the Client Welcome Packet. Tell a little bit more about yourself, your career and your mission.
Do you work in a team? Then briefly introduce the individual team members to your new client so that the customer knows exactly who they are dealing with “on the other side of the project”.
Your Offer & Signature Services
Your client hired you because you are an expert in your field and because you offer specific signature services.
Present your offer and your signature services to your client in more detail.
In doing so, you show your client which tasks you will work on during your project. In addition, your client is able to see your range of qualities again, can recommend them to others or even hire you again in the future.
Testimonials / Portfolio
Have you already been able to collect some client feedback from previous customers? Sharing these testimonials with a new client and providing more details about previous projects helps you built trust in your brand and business.
Project description
What definitely should be included in your Client Welcome Packet is a brief desciption of your upcoming project. Tell your client how the project will be structured, where you stand at the moment and where your project ultimately should result in.
It is important to list the exact scope of the project just like you agreed on in your contract so that there are no misunderstandings later, such as:
- How many revisions are included?
- How many hours are included in the client package?
- Is there an additional coaching call?
- What about the support after the project is finished?
These questions need to be clarified before the beginning of the project. And even though you have already agreed upon these specific terms in your project contract, it won’t hurt to visualize them for your client again.
By outlining the project in your Client Welcome Packet, you can better manage customer expectations and set some important project boundaries right from the start.
Project timing
Project work should be well planned. Not only for your own sake, but also for the client to understand how long you need for your work and when the result can be expected.
Therefore, you should include further information about your project timing in your Client Welcome Packet.
Tools & Resources
What tools do you use to communicate with each other during the project? Are there any tools or resources that you already take for granted but your client may never have worked with? Maybe not even heard of?
List the tools you will be working with during the project and include a list of resources for the client to find out more about the tools if necessary.
Next Steps & Client Questionnaire
All the important information concerning your project has been displayed. So now it is time to finally start working together on the project.
List the next steps for your customer and use a client questionnaire to ask for further information you may still need from your client.
FAQs
You are the expert and know your business inside and out. Especially, if you have already worked with several clients before, you will notice that some questions are asked over and over again. Collect these questions in an FAQ overview and answer them to your client directly in the Client Welcome Packet.
Further components of the Client Welcome Packet
Of course, you can design your Client Welcome Packet however you like. But here are some more ideas for other pages you may want to include in your Client Welcome Packet:
- Communication guideline
- Let’s connect: Overview of your social channels
- Your terms and conditions
- Payment Policy
- Price list (also helpful for later orders or upselling during the project)
Client Welcome Packet Template
Begin your new project professionally and with a streamlined onboarding process. Make sure to include the above mentioned most important pages to smoothly onboard your new client.
Want to save time? Feel free to use my Client Welcome Packet template for Canva – especially designed for service providers.
Are you a life coach, business coach, fitness coach or run another coaching business? Then the following Client Welcome Packet Template for Coaches could be right for you:
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