↗ · How-to guide
How to create a client intake form that ends with a signature.
Collect the brief, the budget, and the agreement in one step instead of three emails and a separate contract tool.
Free forever · 2 forms · No credit card
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↗ · Step by step
The standard onboarding mess is three artifacts: a questionnaire, an email thread clarifying it, and a contract signed somewhere else. Folding them into one signed intake form shortens onboarding from days to minutes, and several Sign Sail freelancer customers run their whole intake this way. Here's the build.
01 ·Open the Client Intake template
It starts you with name, email, company, project description, budget range, an agreement-to-terms block, and the signature field. The template is free to use; you'll customize rather than build from zero.
02 ·Tune the questions to your service
Swap the generic project field for what you actually need to scope: deliverables, timeline, existing assets, decision-maker. Use dropdowns and radio buttons over free text where you can, since structured answers export cleanly to CSV later. Fourteen field types cover the practical range, including file uploads on paid plans for brand kits and briefs.
03 ·Add conditional logic for branching intakes
On Pro and up, show fields only when relevant: if 'project type' is 'website', reveal the hosting question; if 'budget' is 'under $2k', skip the retainer section. One condition per field keeps the logic legible.
04 ·Put the agreement above the signature
Paste your engagement terms, scope boundaries, payment terms, and revision policy into a paragraph block directly above the signature field, and add a required acknowledgement checkbox. The signer's consent plus the frozen snapshot of that exact text becomes part of the audit trail.
05 ·Send it per-client or link it from your site
Two distribution modes: a public link (or QR code) you can put on your site or in a proposal email, or, on Business, a targeted envelope sent to a named client with a private tracked link, reminders, and expiry.
06 ·Pipe the answers into your workflow
Each submission lands as structured data plus a signed PDF. Export CSV or Excel for your project tracker, or on Business let your backend receive an HMAC-signed webhook the moment a client signs, so kickoff can start itself.
↗ · Questions
Before you start.
Should the intake form replace my contract?
For small engagements, a signed intake with clear terms above the signature often is the contract, and it's enforceable the same way. For larger work, keep your full MSA as an uploaded document and use the intake for scoping, or send both through Sign Sail. The audit trail works identically in either case.
Can clients save and finish the form later?
No, submissions are single-session, so keep the form to one sitting's length, roughly 10 to 15 questions. Conditional logic helps by hiding everything irrelevant to a given client.
What does this cost as a freelancer?
Likely nothing to start: the free plan covers 2 forms and 25 submissions a month with signatures included. If you onboard more than two dozen clients a month or want CSV export and conditional logic, Pro is $12/mo billed annually.
Kickoff on the same day as the inquiry.
Brief, budget, and signed agreement in one form. Free for your first 2 forms, upgrade when the client list outgrows it.