"Hi, we need a new website. Can you help?" Most agency enquiries start like this. The agency has to reply with questions, the prospect replies with partial answers, and after three rounds the agency finally understands what the project is. By then, the prospect has spoken to two other agencies.
Capturing a project brief in the first exchange saves days and makes the first call far more productive. This playbook shows how.
Step 1: decide what you need to know
Most agencies need:
- Goal. What the project should achieve.
- Scope. What is included: pages, features, integrations.
- Timeline. When it needs to be live.
- Budget range. Roughly what they plan to spend.
- Decision-makers. Who else is involved.
- Current situation. What exists now and what is wrong with it.
- Examples. Sites or work they like.
Step 2: ask conversationally, not as a form
A long form feels like a test. A short conversation feels like help:
Prospect: We need a new website. Assistant: Happy to help. What's the main thing you want the new site to do better than your current one? And roughly when do you need it live?
Then follow with budget and scope. Budget handling is covered in budget questions that scare off the wrong agency clients.
Step 3: answer their questions too
Prospects have questions of their own: do you do this, how long, how much? Answer them as you go. A one-sided interrogation puts people off.
Step 4: summarise the brief
At the end of the exchange, summarise what you have understood: "So you need a ten-page site with booking, live by March, budget around $15,000." This checks understanding and shows you listened.
Step 5: pass it on with context
SpideyChat for agencies asks your brief questions at any hour and passes the full conversation to your team. The installation guide and training guide cover setting up your questions.
Handling incomplete answers
Some prospects will not know their budget or timeline yet. That is fine. Note what they do know, offer a typical range to react to, and move on. A partial brief is still far better than a single line saying "we need a website." Never make answering every question a condition of getting a reply.
Sorting briefs by readiness
Briefs tell you how ready a prospect is. Someone with a clear goal, budget and deadline is ready for a proposal. Someone exploring options needs information first. Sorting briefs this way lets your team respond appropriately to each, rather than treating every enquiry the same.
Step 6: prepare for the call
With a proper brief, the discovery call can focus on ideas and fit, not basic facts. The team can prepare examples and questions in advance.
Mobile prospects
Many prospects enquire on their phones. Short conversational questions work far better on a small screen than a long brief form, a point made in how mobile visitors send enquiries.
After the brief
Once a client signs, the same habit of capturing details clearly helps with ongoing requests, reducing the status questions covered in agency retainer clients asking the same update questions.
Capturing details in other businesses
Restaurants face the same challenge with group bookings, where missing details cause problems on the night, as described in large group bookings and the details nobody captures. The lesson is universal: ask the right questions once, at the start.