Verified against ChatGPT · 2026-06-25
Build a client onboarding checklist that survives the handoff from sales to delivery
Generate a reusable, phase-by-phase onboarding checklist — access, information, and approvals you need from a new client — so nothing falls through the crack between the sales call and day one of work.
The prompt
Ready to copy — highlighted parts are example details you can swap.
You are building a reusable client onboarding checklist for a small service business, to run every time a new client signs. Context: - Service: monthly website maintenance retainer - Access/info typically needed: WordPress admin login, hosting account access, GA4 access, brand assets - Typical time to start: work starts within 5 business days of signed contract Task: Produce an onboarding checklist grouped into phases: 1. Paperwork (contract signed, deposit/invoice sent and paid) 2. Access & credentials (list each item from WordPress admin login, hosting account access, GA4 access, brand assets as its own line) 3. Kickoff logistics (kickoff call or email scheduled, point of contact shared) 4. Assets & content needed from the client (anything you're waiting on them for before real work starts) For every item: state who owns it (you or the client) and roughly when it's due, relative to signing — not a fixed calendar date, so the checklist is reusable across clients. Format: a checklist with checkboxes, grouped under the four phase headers above.
Customize the highlighted detailsoptional — the prompt above already works
Why this works
Most onboarding breakdowns aren't caused by a missing step — they're caused by an unassigned one, where each side assumed the other would chase it. Naming an explicit owner (you vs. client) per item removes that ambiguity, and due dates set relative to the signing date, rather than fixed calendar dates, are what let a single checklist actually get reused across every new client instead of being rewritten each time. Grouping into phases also makes a half-finished onboarding easy to audit at a glance — you can see "paperwork done, access half done, no assets yet" instead of scanning a flat, unordered list.
What you get back
Paperwork [ ] Contract signed (client) [ ] Deposit invoiced and paid (you send, client pays — due before start) Access & credentials [ ] WordPress admin login (client, due day 1) [ ] Hosting account access (client, due day 1) [ ] GA4 access (client, due day 1) [ ] Brand assets shared (client, due day 2) Kickoff logistics [ ] Kickoff call scheduled (you, due day 1) [ ] Point of contact shared both ways (you, due day 1) Assets & content [ ] Any outstanding content/photos requested (you request day 1, client supplies by day 3)
Verified against
ChatGPT GPT-5.1 · 2026-06-25
Claude Sonnet 5 · 2026-05-02
Changelog
- 2026-06-25 — Re-verified, no changes.
- 2026-05-02 — Switched due dates from fixed calendar dates to "days since signing" so the checklist is reusable across clients.
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