SEO Client Questionnaire

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SEO Client Questionnaire

Fully editable with custom branding. Send, print or embed online.

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First Name
Last Name
Acme LLC.
Client
First Name
Last Name
Corporation Corp.
First Name
Last Name
Acme LLC.
Client
First Name
Last Name
Corporation Corp.

SEO Client Questionnaire

Fully editable with custom branding. Send, print or embed online.

SEO Client Questionnaire

Fully editable with custom branding. Send, print or embed online.

Bonsai has helped create 1,023,928 documents and counting.

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Date: March 8th 2023


Between:

Coach:

First_name
Last_name
Acme LLC.
Client:

First_name
Last_name
Corporation Corp.

This Contract is between Client (the "Client") and Acme LLC, a California limited liability company (the "Coach").

The Contract is dated January 23, 2023.

1. WORK AND PAYMENT.

1.1 Project. The Client is hiring the Coach to develop a coaching relationship between the Client and Coach in order to cultivate the Client's personal, professional, or business goals and create a plan to achieve those goals through stimulating and creative interactions with the ultimate result of maximizing the Client's personal or professional potential.

1.2 Schedule. The Coach will begin work on February 1, 2023 and will continue until the work is completed. This Contract can be ended by either Client or Coach at any time, pursuant to the terms of Section 4, Term and Termination.

The Coach and Client will meet by video conference, 4 days per month for 2 hours.

1.3 Payment. The Client will pay the Coach an hourly rate of $150. Of this, the Client will pay the Coach $500.00 (USD) before work begins.

1.4 Expenses. The Client will reimburse the Coach's expenses. Expenses do not need to be pre-approved by the Client.

1.5 Invoices. The Coach will invoice the Client in accordance with the milestones in Section 1.3. The Client agrees to pay the amount owed within 15 days of receiving the invoice. Payment after that date will incur a late fee of 1.0% per month on the outstanding amount.

1.6 Support. The Coach will not be available by telephone, or email in between scheduled sessions.

2.DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES.

- A coaching relationship is a partnership between two or more individuals or entities, like a teacher-student or coach-athlete relationship. Both the Client and Coach must uphold their obligations for the relationship to be successful.

- The Coach agrees to maintain the ethics and standards of behavior established by the International Coaching Federation (ICF).

- The Client acknowledges and agrees that coaching is a comprehensive process that may explore different areas of the Client's life, including work, finances, health, and relationships.

- The Client is responsible for implementing the insights and techniques learned from the Coach.

3. REPRESENTATIONS.

3.1 Overview. This section contains important promises between the parties.

3.2 Authority To Sign. Each party promises to the other party that it has the authority to enter into this Contract and to perform all of its obligations under this Contract.

3.3 Coach Has Right To Give Client Work Product. The Coach promises that it owns the work product, that the Coach is able to give the work product to the Client, and that no other party will claim that it owns the work product. If the Coach uses employees or subcontractors, the Coach also promises that these employees and subcontractors have signed contracts with the Coach giving the Coach any rights that the employees or subcontractors have related to the Coach's background IP and work product.

3.4 Coach Will Comply With Laws. The Coach promises that the manner it does this job, its work product, and any background IP it uses comply with applicable U.S. and foreign laws and regulations.

3.5 Work Product Does Not Infringe. The Coach promises that its work product does not and will not infringe on someone else's intellectual property rights, that the Coach has the right to let the Client use the background IP, and that this Contract does not and will not violate any contract that the Coach has entered into or will enter into with someone else.

3.7 Client-Supplied Material Does Not Infringe. If the Client provides the Coach with material to incorporate into the work product, the Client promises that this material does not infringe on someone else's intellectual property rights.

4. TERM AND TERMINATION

This Contract is ongoing until it expires or the work is completed. Either party may end this Contract for any reason by sending an email or letter to the other party, informing the recipient that the sender is ending the Contract and that the Contract will end in 7 days. The Contract officially ends once that time has passed. The party that is ending the Contract must provide notice by taking the steps explained in Section 9.4. The Coach must immediately stop working as soon as it receives this notice unless the notice says otherwise.

If either party ends this Contract before the Contract automatically ends, the Client will pay the Contractor for the work done up until when the Contract ends. The following sections don't end even after the Contract ends: 3 (Representations); 6 (Confidential Information); 7 (Limitation of Liability); 8 (Indemnity); and 9 (General).

3. INDEPENDENT CONTRACTOR.

The Client is hiring the Coach as an independent contractor. The following statements accurately reflect their relationship:

- The Coach will use its own equipment, tools, and material to do the work.

- The Client will not control how the job is performed on a day-to-day basis. Rather, the Coach is responsible for determining when, where, and how it will carry out the work.

- The Client will not provide the Coach with any training.

- The Client and the Coach do not have a partnership or employer-employee relationship.

- The Coach cannot enter into contracts, make promises, or act on behalf of the Client.

- The Coach is not entitled to the Client's benefits (e.g., group insurance, retirement benefits, retirement plans, vacation days).

- The Coach is responsible for its own taxes.

- The Client will not withhold social security and Medicare taxes or make payments for disability insurance, unemployment insurance, or workers compensation for the Coach or any of the Coach's employees or subcontractors.

6. CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION.

6.1 Overview. This Contract imposes special restrictions on how the Client and the Coach must handle confidential information. These obligations are explained in this section.

6.2 The Client's Confidential Information. While working for the Client, the Coach may come across, or be given, Client information that is confidential. This is information like customer lists, business strategies, research & development notes, statistics about a website, and other information that is private. The Coach promises to treat this information as if it is the Coach's own confidential information. The Coach may use this information to do its job under this Contract, but not for anything else. For example, if the Client lets the Coach use a customer list to send out a newsletter, the Coach cannot use those email addresses for any other purpose. The one exception to this is if the Client gives the Coach written permission to use the information for another purpose, the Coach may use the information for that purpose, as well. When this Contract ends, the Coach must give back or destroy all confidential information, and confirm that it has done so. The Coach promises that it will not share confidential information with a third party, unless the Client gives the Coach written permission first. The Coach must continue to follow these obligations, even after the Contract ends. The Coach's responsibilities only stop if the Coach can show any of the following: (i) that the information was already public when the Coach came across it; (ii) the information became public after the Coach came across it, but not because of anything the Coach did or didn't do; (iii) the Coach already knew the information when the Coach came across it and the Coach didn't have any obligation to keep it secret; (iv) a third party provided the Coach with the information without requiring that the Coach keep it a secret; or (v) the Coach created the information on its own, without using anything belonging to the Client.

6.3 Third-Party Confidential Information. It's possible the Client and the Coach each have access to confidential information that belongs to third parties. The Client and the Coach each promise that it will not share with the other party confidential information that belongs to third parties, unless it is allowed to do so. If the Client or the Coach is allowed to share confidential information with the other party and does so, the sharing party promises to tell the other party in writing of any special restrictions regarding that information.

7. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY.

Neither party is liable for breach-of-contract damages that the breaching party could not reasonably have foreseen when it entered this Contract.

8. INDEMNITY.

8.1 Overview. This section transfers certain risks between the parties if a third party sues or goes after the Client or the Coach or both. For example, if the Client gets sued for something that the Coach did, then the Coach may promise to come to the Client's defense or to reimburse the Client for any losses.

8.2 Client Indemnity. In this Contract, the Coach agrees to indemnify the Client (and its affiliates and their directors, officers, employees, and agents) from and against all liabilities, losses, damages, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) related to a third-party claim or proceeding arising out of: (i) the work the Coach has done under this Contract; (ii) a breach by the Coach of its obligations under this Contract; or (iii) a breach by the Coach of the promises it is making in Section 3 (Representations).

8.3 Coach Indemnity. In this Contract, the Client agrees to indemnify the Coach (and its affiliates and their directors, officers, employees, and agents) from and against liabilities, losses, damages, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) related to a third-party claim or proceeding arising out of a breach by the Client of its obligations under this Contract.

9. GENERAL.

9.1 Assignment​. This Contract applies only to the Client and the Coach. Neither the Client nor the Coach can assign its rights or delegate its obligations under this Contract to a third-party (other than by will or intestate), without first receiving the other's written permission.

9.2 Arbitration. As the exclusive means of initiating adversarial proceedings to resolve any dispute arising under this Contract, a party may demand that the dispute be resolved by arbitration administered by the American Arbitration Association in accordance with its commercial arbitration rules.

9.3 Modification; Waiver. To change anything in this Contract, the Client and the Coach must agree to that change in writing and sign a document showing their contract. Neither party can waive its rights under this Contract or release the other party from its obligations under this Contract, unless the waiving party acknowledges it is doing so in writing and signs a document that says so.

9.4. Noticies.

(a) Over the course of this Contract, one party may need to send a notice to the other party. For the notice to be valid, it must be in writing and delivered in one of the following ways: personal delivery, email, or certified or registered mail (postage prepaid, return receipt requested). The notice must be delivered to the party's address listed at the end of this Contract or to another address that the party has provided in writing as an appropriate address to receive notice.

(b) The timing of when a notice is received can be very important. To avoid confusion, a valid notice is considered received as follows: (i) if delivered personally, it is considered received immediately; (ii) if delivered by email, it is considered received upon acknowledgement of receipt; (iii) if delivered by registered or certified mail (postage prepaid, return receipt requested), it is considered received upon receipt as indicated by the date on the signed receipt. If a party refuses to accept notice or if notice cannot be delivered because of a change in address for which no notice was given, then it is considered received when the notice is rejected or unable to be delivered. If the notice is received after 5:00pm on a business day at the location specified in the address for that party, or on a day that is not a business day, then the notice is considered received at 9:00am on the next business day.

9.5 Severability. This section deals with what happens if a portion of the Contract is found to be unenforceable. If that's the case, the unenforceable portion will be changed to the minimum extent necessary to make it enforceable, unless that change is not permitted by law, in which case the portion will be disregarded. If any portion of the Contract is changed or disregarded because it is unenforceable, the rest of the Contract is still enforceable.

9.6 Signatures. The Client and the Coach must sign this document using Bonsai's e-signing system. These electronic signatures count as originals for all purposes.

9.7 Governing Law. The validity, interpretation, construction and performance of this document shall be governed by the laws of the United States of America.

9.8 Entire Contract. This Contract represents the parties' final and complete understanding of this job and the subject matter discussed in this Contract. This Contract supersedes all other contracts (both written and oral) between the parties.

THE PARTIES HERETO AGREE TO THE FOREGOING AS EVIDENCED BY THEIR SIGNATURES BELOW.

Coach

First_name
Last_name
Acme LLC.
Client

First_name
Last_name
Corporation Corp.
Table of contents

If you're in the SEO industry, the last thing you want to do when signing a new SEO client is to mess up the onboarding procedure. If this happens, there's a strong possibility you'll have to work hard over the next few weeks or months to win back that client's trust and respect. One of the best ways to ensure a smooth onboarding process and set yourself up for success is by implementing an SEO questionnaire for clients in the initial stages of the relationship.

This set of questions will allow you to get a clear understanding about your customer's business and associated goals in a professional and convenient way. It is an excellent tool to qualify potential SEO clients, save time and ensure you can deliver the results they are looking for. All you need to do is make sure you're asking the right questions.

To help you create the perfect SEO client questionnaire we will go over the most important aspects you must cover and dig deeper into the reasons why you should be using one in the first place.

Note: SEO is already a demanding job in itself. Make it simpler with Bonsai! We offer a wide range of administrative tools to help streamline your processes end-to-end. From client onboarding to invoicing, taxes and everything in between. We've got you covered. Try a. 7-day free trial here.

Why Your SEO Agency Needs a Client Onboarding Questionnaire

A well-designed onboarding questionnaire can significantly shorten the time it takes to get to know new clients and build a stronger foundation for your partnership from the start. Additionally, this questionnaire will provide you with vital information so you can develop a strong plan for your new client and position yourself as an SEO expert.

It also gives you the opportunity to discover any problems that might slow down your job or red flags that indicate you're not a good fit for the potential SEO client. This way you can either reject the client or make the necessary adjustments before you even sign an SEO contract. This initial questionnaire can be used as a guide during the kickoff call with the client although some send it ahead of time in order to prepare follow-up questions if needed.

Essential Aspects to Cover When Taking on New SEO Clients

When creating your own SEO client questionnaire, keep in mind the main goal is to better understand the client's business and its current state so you can set goals, create targeted tactics, and manage expectations. While the specific questions you ask may vary depending on your business goals, there are certainly some vital aspects you must not miss if you want to make the most out of this initial questionnaire.

Let's quickly go over each of these aspects including some example questions to ask in order to get a head start in your SEO work.

Business Information

You want to fully understand your client's business, their history, what they sell, their current and ideal customers, and other relevant information you need to build a better SEO strategy. This also includes learning about their competitors which will allow you their websites, links, social media presence, page speed, etc. to determine why rivals might be outperforming your customer.

Here are some questions you can include in this section of your SEO client onboarding questionnaire.

- What's the name of your business?

- What does your business do?

- Who are your top competitors?

- What differentiates you from other businesses?

- Who is your ideal consumer and target market?

- Is all of your business done online?

- Do you deal with local clients?

- Do you operate in multiple locations?

- What values does your brand stand for?

- What are a few newspapers, websites, or forums that your target audience frequents?

- What are your key offerings in terms of goods and services, as well as your value proposition?

Content Requirements and Strategy

This section should give you a basic understanding of any potential content issues and how much work you will have to do in this area. Potential clients may already have some images and copy on their website, as well as a specific content calendar or other guidelines to follow. Additionally, you can request basic information to help you do your own keyword research, process optimizations and begin to build the perfect SEO strategy.

Try including the following questions to get this useful information.

- What content do you have for the website?

- Has your material been SEO-optimized?

- Do you have a dedicated team to create content?

- Do you have a team of copywriters at your disposal?

- Do you have a preferred writing style?

- Do you have any brand guidelines for your business?

- What processes do you now use that you would like to keep up with, and which would you like to modify?

- Do you anticipate us to rank for any specific keyword(s) you have in mind?

Budget and Expectations

Setting the client's expectations and being aware of what they hope to accomplish by using your services (increasing conversion rates, driving more traffic, etc...) can help you avoid disagreements and disappointments in the future. It's also important to find out whether they have worked with an SEO agency before since this will give you a sense of what has already been done, and what you may do differently.

Don't forget to inquire about their budget as you must make sure they will allow enough resources for your SEO services to deliver the desired results.

Include the following inquiries in your SEO client questionnaires.

- What is your estimated monthly SEO budget?

- What degree of knowledge do you have about SEO?

- What budget do you have for site maintenance?

- What are your desired Key Performance Indicators and SEO results?

- How quickly are SEO results expected?

- Have you ever collaborated with another SEO firm or independent contractor? If so, what prompted you to leave them?

- What do you consider to be an SEO consultant or agency's success factors?

- What objectives do you have for this SEO project? What value does that objective have?

Current SEO Strategies and Available Resources

Gathering historical data is extremely helpful for demonstrating the success of all of your marketing activities. It is crucial to ensure that your potential client has the tools necessary to implement the SEO strategies you propose. During the implementation phase, resources will also determine the project's timeline and order of importance.

Here are some example questions to include in your SEO onboarding questionnaire.

- How long has your website been active?

- Do you own any further domains?

- Do you support your website using social media?

- Are you open to a website redesign?

- Are you currently running any SEO campaigns or other related activities?

- Do you currently run Pay-Per-Click advertisements?

- What are the conversion rates at the moment?

- Do you have in-house web designers?

- Do you intend to make any major website adjustments in the upcoming 12 months?

- Are you engaged in offline marketing? If so, what do you do exactly?

- Can we gain access to your Google Analytics and Google Search Console accounts?

- Are you able to grant access to a business email account?

Relationship Guidelines

This is the time to set clear expectations regarding the relationship during the SEO project. This includes communication preferences, reporting, success criteria and main points of contact. You'll want to ensure the client's demands are realistic and you can actually deliver what they are asking for (and how they are asking for it), otherwise you may want to try and reach an agreement before moving on.

The following questions will help solidify the business relationship with your new SEO client.

- Who will be our primary point of contact?

- Where would you like us to keep project-related documents?

- What level of engagement would you like to have during the project?

- What is your preferred method of communication? (phone calls, in-person meetings, video conferences, etc...)

- How often would you like to have update meetings?

- What reports, and how often, would you like to see?

- What metrics do you monitor?

Create Your Own SEO Client Questionnaire With Bonsai

Ready to draft your own SEO client questionnaire? Bonsai's client form builder is your best bet to create professional and branded online documents that you can easily share with your clients via email or URL link. If you want to collect even more leads, you can also have your questionnaire embedded into your business website and streamline the onboarding process.

Our forms are fully customizable so you can add as many questions as you need, select your preferred answer format, change the layout as well as incorporate your own branding elements to make it unique and easily recognizable. Plus, Bonsai's all-in-one product suite gives you access to many more administrative tools to help you with document creation, invoicing, payment processing, taxes, accounting and more!

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Frequently Asked Questions
Questions about this template.

How do you pitch a client for SEO?

You can run a free audit and present a competitor and market analysis in comparison to their website strength. Try not to use too much SEO jargon and just break it down into timeline and expectations for results.

What do SEO clients want?

Increased traffic and more importantly--conversions or more leads. The point of SEO is to improve a business's bottom line. Helping an SEO client get more customers is what is important to them.

How do SEO deal with clients?

Show them results and improvements in their rankings. You want to keep them in the loop of what is going on and how it will increase their leads, rankings and generate them more money.